Juicy Romance, a self-described country girl with a city girl’s heart, is ready to make a bold statement with her audacious sophomore ‘Scandalizer’ EP. This EP invites you to step into her world of playful contrasts, representing a milestone in her journey as an artist. It reflects her growing self-confidence and serves as the first collection of songs that genuinely encapsulates her sound: fast-paced, pop-infused productions that create an electric dancefloor atmosphere intertwined with club music vocal and bass-heavy rhythms. She describes the EP as ‘sexy, cheeky, and audacious,’ exploring some of her favorite themes and experiences. This project showcases her bold and fearless approach to music, sensuality, empowerment, and self-expression. 

You come from Australia and are based in London. Going back to your beginnings, what moved you to get into electronic music? You were playing the violin in your early stages of music. How was this musical transition? 

I grew up playing violin for 12 or so years and then dipping in and out of a few other instruments,  sometimes successfully, sometimes terribly. My saxophone phase wasn’t my hottest moment. My dad was a composer and music teacher and would supervise my practice most afternoons. No skipping the school bus to hang with the girlies at the milk bar, that’s for sure, but I am very grateful for it now. I grew up listening to many blues, jazz, Brazilian music,  disco, and pop/rock artists like Bonnie Raitt and James Taylor, courtesy of my mum and dad.  Which was fab, but honestly, it wasn’t until I first put my first CD, ‘The Secret Life of The Veronicas, purchased at a servo on the side of the highway in QLD. There began my love for pop, which, as you can probably tell, heavily inspires my music now. Then, I started to hit the clubs during high school, and my brother took me to more underground clubs, and my love for dance music began. He also taught me to DJ with a couple of scratched-up CDS and a pair of CDJ800s. I would play disco and house at various parties around Melbourne and have moved through multiple genres as I’ve discovered my sound more and more, but I think now I just like to play whatever the hell I want—usually sexy music.  

What sort of parties are going on in Melbourne? There’s quite a scene, no? 

Yes! There is a fantastic music scene in Melbourne. It was such a great place to get started connect with other DJs, and make music friends. It has definitely been tough in Australia with clubs shutting down or being bought by developers. Like in a lot of places, the government makes it permanently impossible for underground nightlife to survive, but it always continues to pop off, whether it be through festivals, roofs, DIY spaces, or new club spaces popping up. It is forever changing, which makes going home and seeing what’s new so exciting.  

When did you move to London? 

I first came over two years ago to play some shows with my older brother who was touring at  the time. I was DJing in Melbourne regularly and had just finished crazy months of studying for  entrance exams to medical school, so I thought, why not? I obviously need and deserve a  vacay. It was the most incredible 3 months and once I had gotten a taste, there was no way I  was going back. I lived on my brother’s couch for longer than any respectable lady should,  started producing, then releasing music and slowly touring more. Now, I thankfully have a cute  house, have learnt to properly make the music I was destined to make (bangers) and am much  more settled into the chaotic but exciting life over here. It can be exhausting, but I wouldn’t  change a thing. 

Your new EP, “Scandalizer,” is described as “ sexy, cheeky, and audacious.” Can you tell me a bit about the overall creative process? 

My creative process is extremely chaotic, which I think is fitting. When it comes to lyrics, I never really sit down to write them. They will pop into my head at random moments in time and I’ll jot  them down, and sometimes it’s a whole song or a cheeky little line that needs to be fleshed out a little. For example, the lyrics for ‘Run My Mouth’ came to me while I was alone on a  beach in Australia, in a hot pink, diamanté bikini, eating a banana and thinking about my boyfriend. And just like that, my sexy masterpiece about a skin flute soiree was born. Usually,  once I have the lyrics, I build the track. Writing lyrics often comes more naturally to me than producing so I let the words lead the way and drive the music. My production certainly doesn’t  take itself too seriously, I like to use a lot of sounds borrowed from 2010s club music, think detuned donky leads, or fat tech house plucky baselines but at a faster bpm. Oh, and also big  builds……I would do naughty things for a big build and a satisfying drop.  

What messages or values would you like to transmit with your EP and your music as you undergo an artistic transformation? 

I want my music to make people feel sexy. Make you want to hit the strip with the crew, a  bottle of Goose in one hand, your fake ID in the other. Boots high, skirt short, shirt not buttoned up too high. Feeling hot and naughty and sexy and thirsty. In all seriousness, though,  it’s about indulging in pleasure, entertaining fantasies of your ideal self, and harnessing confidence and positive self-image. I guess I’m trying to convey a sense of hedonism to lovers of clubs,  booze, bangers, and sex. I think art can be very serious a lot of the time, and we often want to assign deep meaning to things, which is important and beautiful in itself. But I have yet to write a  deep or serious song, and I doubt Juicy Romance ever will.  

In your perspective, how do you feel the Internet has impacted the electronic music scene? 

The internet has impacted music immensely. Some ways are incredibly positive. Like allowing artists, or future artists, to learn to make music, connect with other musicians, discover music, and share their music. Historically, you needed partners like labels to guarantee opportunities in the first place. The wonderful thing is that it’s opened the world up for so many people and made a career in music far more accessible. But on the other side, there is a lot more digital noise now. I, like most others, feel social media pressure to be on all the time, and it’s something I have to make sure I take a break from. At times, it’s affected my sleep and my self-confidence as it can be hard to juggle TikTok, Instagram, Work, Shows, Making music, and your private life – while also having constant information being fed to you about what everyone else is doing. I think the way to make the most of the internet and resist the weight of digital expectations is about managing your own time and allowing yourself to take a chunk of it to chill, let your hair down, and have phone-free time with the girlies or boys. 

Talking about music. What are some of your irreplaceable pieces of gear? I don’t know if you work Analogue or Digital, but what is essential for you to make your music?

Gear-wise, I have a straightforward setup. A 2015 MacBook has had full storage for over 3  months, the dining table, my housemate’s microphone, and my Ableton, which takes about 2  minutes to load anything. I mainly use Serum, or occasionally Diva or Korg M1 plugins, for my basslines and leads, then program my drums using samples, usually along with a sexy tech house loop. I use Splice a lot for one shot, FX hits, and then my voice, which I spend a lot of time processing, pretty much with exclusively stock Ableton audio effects. That’s it. I guess you could say I’m more glitz and glamour in principle rather than practice.

LISTEN/STREAM/BUY SCANDALIZER

CHECK OUT HER EXCLUSIVE MIX FOR NUMÉRO NL HERE:

Talent: @juicyromance

Photographer: @amypeskett

Styling: @avalution

HMUA: @calliefx