[INTERVIEW] Ship Wrek Gives An Inside Look At Their New EP, 'NO GUEST LIST'

Hailing from the renowned music hub of Los Angeles, powerhouse duo Ship Wrek has quickly made a name for themselves in the house scene. From the minds of Tripp Churchill and Collin Maguire, this pair launched their project in 2019. Fast-forward to today, and Ship Wrek has racked up nearly 2 million monthly listeners and well over 100 millions collective streams on Spotify alone.

These two innovative producers have cultivated a hypnotic signature sound, present in their hit anthems of "Need It", "The Fall" with the Chainsmokers, and more. Their infectious tunes has resulted in support from a wide range of prominent artists, such as Chris Lake, Tiësto, Diplo, Skrillex, and DJ Snake, to name a few. Additionally, Ship Wrek has showcased their electrifying stage presence and mixing abilities at Coachella, Groove Cruise, Electric Zoo, Academy LA, and other flagship festivals and venues.

Diving into the next chapter of their artistic journey, Ship Wrek has dropped their five-track EP, NO GUEST LIST, encompassing collabs with Disco Lines and Dillon Francis. We sat down with Tripp and Collin so they could take us behind the curtain into making each track, the inspiration for the EP, working with their fellow DJs, and more!

Check out iEDM's exclusive interview with Ship Wrek below.

iEDM: What was the process behind creating the exotic bassline in “Sober”?

Ship Wrek: We went back and forth on that project; we think there are like 40 versions of it. We reinvented that song so many times that it is now three years old. The bassline is centered around minimal sound design. As we continued to play it out, we would make slight changes in the track. The drums were altered multiple times and the bassline was actually a last minute change. We connected to the final bassline the most because it felt bouncy and organic.

iEDM: What inspired the lyrics in “Sober” and what is the story that they tell?

Collin: I was like super into recording my own vocals back then. I still am, but during that time period I was doing it a bunch. Tripp had made the beat the night before. We created this club demon character, who was the epitome of going out into the AM.

iEDM: How did you and Disco Lines balance each other's signature styles in “Misbehave”? Which components in the song lean more towards your musical identity and vice-versa?

Tripp: That was an interesting collab because Collin started it in a session when I was out of town. Thad (Disco Lines) saw potential in it, and we began working on it together. Disco Lines had this idea for the structure, adding some melodies, and other signature soundscapes. Once the song was about 60% done, Collin and I started realizing that it was shaping up to be something that we love.

Collin: We sessioned it a couple more times with Disco Lines; they were so fun and everything came easily. There was no real mission. We were just making stuff and bouncing ideas off each other. Taking the gritty bassline towards the end, we layered it with another bassline to give it more energy for club play. Overall, there is a good balance of both our and Disco Line’s identities on “Misbehave”. Sticking to our unwritten rule, “if you don't love something, then it's not ready to come out”, we were happy to finally drop this track.

iEDM: What advice would you give to up-and-coming house producers who are struggling to create a buildup that grows the intensity and anticipation for the drop?

Ship Wrek: We have gotten better at buildups in the last couple of years is because we realized that how you build tension for a song is just as important as how you release the tension. The drop and the catchy bit are what everyone is going to remember. It also comes down to using effects correctly and learning how to create good drum grooves. Both of these need to connect together and progress into the buildup. We have been using Endless Smile, a VST plugin by Dada Life. It is basically a cheat code when bringing a buildup to the next level.

Tripp: I know it is hard for a lot of upcoming people because they have not played as many shows. For general advice, you really have to put yourself in the club element and think about how something will sound when played live. Honestly, when we produce on the couch sometimes, I will just put on random DJ sets with no volume. Occasionally, I will look up and catch a vibe.

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iEDM: Which section or soundscape in “Mamacita” do you think best reflects the Ship Wrek sound, and why?

Ship Wrek: The lasers remind us of the old sound that we used to have. We definitely pay homage to our old stuff but blend it with something new as well. The guitar was certainly a component that brought the track home. We purposely designed this song to be more stripped back and not too over the top with different soundscapes. Not every track needs to be like super complex and crazy. We love the cool vibe “Mamacita” has and are proud of its sound design.

iEDM: When making “Too Fuego”, what piece of production in it pushed you the most out of your comfort zone or challenged you as artists? How were you able to overcome this obstacle?

Ship Wrek: “Too Fuego” was probably the hardest track to get exactly right on the EP. We took the main vocal from one project, then we took drums from another project. We Frankenstein’d that song. The drop was made first, which led to us trying to figure out how to put the rest of the track together for it to make sense sonically. It was challenging to work backwards. We also added a ton of things last minute.

On the breakdown, there is an eerie vocal choppy sound. Collin came up with the “Mr. Produca” lyric, literally right before we turned the track in. Sometimes we overthink when producing but for this EP we kind of just said f*** it and rolled with what we thought sounded good. The final product is really authentic to our project.

iEDM: What sparked the idea for using the deep-sounding stand-alone drum in the intro and outro of “Night In Milan”? How did you craft this sequence?

Ship Wrek: That one was another hard one as well because there were two versions. One was tech house and the other leaned more towards bass house. What really helped us decide the direction for “Night In Milan” was when we had a session with Dillon [Francis]. We gave him the basic version of it and then he cooked up the structure and some of the drums, like the one in the intro and outro.

iEDM: Why do you think the vocals in “Night In Milan” match up nicely with the overall vibe of the instrumental?

Tripp: I was chilling with my friend who’s a rapper and I made part of the bassline for “Night In Milan”. He ended up spitting the lyrics as we were sitting on the couch. I think the way he did the vocals made the bassline field just so much more bouncy. I've always pictured like a cartoon of some animals or something from back in the day, going down a road and the car is bouncing up and down. The track has a lot of swagger in it too.

iEDM: What were some of your favorite parts about working with Dillon Francis on “Night In Milan”?

Ship Wrek: Dillon is one of our favorite people ever to work with because he is just so chill, and he has got such a good ear. He is very tapped into what is cool and what is hot right now. On top of that, Dillion has a really outgoing personality, and it is always fun to hang out and work with him. He is the guy that taught us to not overthink things. We have done two collabs with Dillon now. Both have gone so smoothly and there is always a story coming from our sessions together.

iEDM: Why do you think all the tracks fit smoothly together in your new EP ‘NO GUEST LIST’? How did you come up with the name for the compilation?

Ship Wrek: We were originally going to name it around “Sober” but decided that was boring. Our intention was to do something tongue-in-cheek and super straightforward. We imagined this boiler room-type set where people are just coming to see the music, just for the music, and there is no guest list. There are no boundaries to the show. We wanted to bring that energy into the music. And it is funny in a real-life context. Picture someone trying to get in and the bouncer saying, ‘sorry, no guest list. Not for you.’

iEDM: You guys are always killing it with your festival and show outfits. Besides your captain hats, what are each of your top fashion trends and go-to fits to wear during a performance?

Tripp: We are very into the fashion world but like to throw on fits that we feel matches our personal styles. I think it's important in life to care about fashion while having fun with it. When we look our best, I feel like we play better. It provides that extra level of confidence. Even though sometimes you are going to the club in a black t-shirt and that is chill too.

If you have a fire fit on, it results in greater interaction with not only people at the club, but your fan base as well. People can see what we are wearing to shows from our clips on Instagram and it gives them a chance to feel more connected to us on a personal level.

Collin: Festivals are dope because they give you the opportunity to wear more creative fits because you are not in that hot, sweaty club environment. Touring does not permit you to lie wear what you want to wear at times. Occasionally, we just have a backpack and will be gone for a week. You can really only pack t-shirts and jeans, but we have learning how to get inventive with our outfits. When touring, we will find new brands and dig deeper into what other people are repping.

A certain trend I have been obsessed with lately is work pants. I feel like there are so many brands that are pushing the limits of the work pants, plus they are extremely comfy. And then Arc’teryx, I actually wore an Arc’teryx shirt to the club this past Friday.

iEDM: What are you most looking forward to in regard to your upcoming set at Breakaway Music Festival? Is there anything you can hint at for your fans to get excited about?

Ship Wrek: We are simply looking forward to playing it. That one got canceled last year, so it's going to be cool to come back. That will be the same day [today] our full EP drops too. So it will absolutelyl be a celebration!

In terms of other future ventures, we are hyped for our first EDC Las Vegas. Additionally, we got so much more music on the way and are in absolute hustle mode right now. Head down, just focused on getting all this music out and putting one foot in front of the other. Awesome things have happened this year already. Now, we are really trying to double down and push to that next level.

Photos Courtesy of Ship Wrek

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