14 OctOber 17-23, 2024 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com New Times | music | cafe | culture | Night+Day | News | letters | coNteNts | Month XX–Month XX, 2008 miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | FILM | ART | STAGE | NIGHT+DAY | METRO | RIPTIDE | LETTERS | CONTENTS | New Rezz DJ/producer Rezz promises a reinvention at III Points. aBY GRANT ALBERT W hile some artists are busy partying hard between shows, Rezz is figuring out how to cement her legacy. “Right now, I’m going through an era where I want to start making statements with my projects,” Rezz tells New Times from her Toronto studio. “In my own mind, I want it to solidify a legacy for me in the in- dustry. This Miami set will sort of be an in- troduction to the new styles of music I’m making and playing.” When the 29-year-old producer makes her III Points debut on Friday, October 18, Rezz will deliver gritty and energetic bass music and intense visuals while wearing her trade- mark LED goggles. Born Isabelle Rezazadeh and raised in Canada, Rezz began her music career DJing at high-school dances. She explains that her early influences were Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and punk rock, while she absorbed the music of DJs like Tiësto and Afrojack. In 2013, while attending Hard’s Day of the Dead festival, she caught a set by Deadmau5, a fellow Canadian, which sparked the urge to produce electronic music. By 2015, the bud- ding producer was releasing music on Skril- lex’s Owsla and Deadmau5’s Mau5trap labels, buoyed by the EDM explosion of the 2010s. Soon after, she released her debut album, 2017’s Mass Manipulation. “In retrospect, of course, I’m able to see the magnitude of that timeframe,” she says, “but I didn’t think of it like that while it was happening. I was just going with the natural motions of being inspired, but Deadmau5 definitely inspired me to produce music.” Instead of focusing on her past, Rezz is ready to introduce audiences to her new era during her upcoming III Points set. “It’s going to be a new set for me,” she ex- plains. “I have a strong desire to evolve my proj- ect in a more mature direction. The only way I can describe what I mean is through artists like Justice or Gesaffelstein. I feel like their projects are the epitome of mature, evolved, and seri- ous, which is the direction I want to go.” Naturally, she plans to attend Justice’s headlining set at III Points on Saturday, Octo- ber 18. Rezz’s set will con- trast with III Points’ overall lineup, which generally doesn’t fea- ture bass music. “I was excited about the booking be- cause that is exactly the direction I want to be going, playing these festivals that are not exclusive to EDM,” Rezz adds. “I think it’s fair to say that any electronic dance music artist’s goal is to have their music or project surpass just electronic music. For me, I really value getting booked in places that have such a variety of music.” The release of Rezz’s latest EP, Novus, will also align with her III Points set. Set to drop via her imprint, HypnoVizion Records, on October 25, she collaborated with producer X1-Y2 across its four tracks. For Rezz, the EP marks a return to her old sound — no vocals or wallowing. Instead, it’s a smoldering piece of all-encompassing, mid-tempo bass music. “I sort of imagined a very sinister, indus- trial, futuristic vibe where I could reconnect with the part of myself that created instru- mental bass music — and that would mean the absence of catchy vocals or vocals in gen- eral,” she explains. “Eternal” is the EP’s outlier. There are mo- ments of solitude before the track ramps back up with a tornado of grinding synths. There are also distorted guitar melodies floating around — a hat tip to Reznor, she explains. “I always say my latest project is my favorite, but I can say this is truly, truly by far my greatest project,” Rezz adds. Next year, Rezz expects to release more music, debut a new audio-visual show, “Por- tal,” and continue building her influence. Ul- timately, she wants to continue carrying the torch and inspire younger producers in the way that acts like Justice and Deadmau5 in- spired her. “Now, ten years into this, and I want people to really be like, ‘Yeah, she is going to go down in history,’” Rezz says. “I don’t mean that in an egotistical way, but in a way where I want that impact, where people feel inspired to make their music after seeing me perform.” III Points 2024. 3 p.m. to 4 a.m. Friday, Octo- ber 18, and Saturday, October 19, at Mana Wynwood, 2217 NW Fifth Ave., Miami; iiipoints.com. Tickets cost $199.99 to $619 via iiipoints.frontgatetickets.com. [email protected] ▼ Music Rezz is set for her III Points debut. Infamous PR photo “FOR ME, I REALLY VALUE GETTING BOOKED IN PLACES THAT HAVE SUCH A VARIETY OF MUSIC.”