JDM Global (Josh Mehling)

Photography by Katie Reahl. Artwork by Avery Hartwell. Interview by Heather Hawke.

This past May, Houston, TX based producer Josh Mehling introduced the world to JDM Global, his first official solo project as well as its first release, the Summer 21 Pack EP. As a producer who has worked alongside Claud and currently makes up a quarter of superband Shelly alongside Clairo, Claud, and Noa Frances Getzug, he’s well versed in many genres including rock, hip-hop, pop and electronic music. The Summer 21 Pack EP – which features three tracks “Cake,” “Tight,” “Get Back” and was produced, written and recorded by Josh at home in his bedroom — is a woozy take on modern shoegaze sprinkled with indie pop trimmings.

Josh says that as he was spending so much time alone in his room in last year, making things every day trying to stay creative and the pandemic was something that pushed him to focus on creating a solo project. He recalls about his first JDM Global single “Cake”, “One day, I came up with this little instrumental. I was playing it on loop in the shower—trying to think of ideas production wise. I kind of just started singing melodies over the track and writing the lyrics. I thought it was something that I could send to someone. And then, I was like, ‘Maybe I could try singing and send it to friends as a joke.’ But my friends were like, ‘You should put this out.’” Which he says was also something that pushed him to release his solo project.

Stay tuned to Josh’s socials for updates on his JDM Global project, as well as he’s other various collaborations and makings as a producer/musician.

Josh’s web/socials: Website – Bandcamp – Soundcloud – Instagram – Twitter 

Hi! So, this past year has been pretty chaotic due to various reasons including the pandemic…Before we began, how are you doing with everything? How has this last year been for you and how are you feeling? How have you been coping with everything?

I swear time is not real! I can’t believe it’s been over a year now since we all went into lockdown. The last year was definitely weird and difficult at times for sure, with finishing my last year of college and transitioning into post-grad life, while also transitioning out of a global pandemic. In many ways it gave me this heightened sense of creativity and drive which I didn’t expect at all. Being pulled out of normal day-to-day life and staying at home, I found myself willing to learn and experiment more with music. Staying creative was definitely my main coping mechanism.

Going back to the beginning. What city/state did you grow up in? What was your childhood like growing up there? Did creativity/music/art play a big part of your childhood?  

I was born in Houston, Texas and never moved until going away for college when I was 18. Houston feels like a huge part of who I am. I loved growing up there, even with the 110-degree summers that are so humid and brutal. Houston as a city is super laidback and isn’t trying to be this huge tourist destination like an NYC or LA, but it offers just as much. I feel like I sound like I’m being paid to hype up Houston this much right now. But I always feel the most light and calm when I’m back there. It’s such a special place with a lot of incredible, warm people and an underrated music scene, for sure. I was absolutely more of a creative kid growing up, rather than an athlete or academic. I grew up going to lots of shows with my parents, friends, alone at times. Went to music camp, played in a band in middle school. It’s funny looking back and forgetting I was always trying to have music in my life.

Tell me about your musical upbringing. What music did you grow up listening to? When did you first become aware that music was going to be a part of your life? What was your formal / not formal music education like growing up? 

I wish I had my first iPod Nano to look at to answer this question. I’m pretty sure the first song I ever bought from iTunes was Umbrella by Rihanna. Bop. But I grew up listening to a bunch of different stuff. My parents would play everything in the car from Led Zeppelin to Todd Rundgren to Sneaker Pimps to The Clash to Ohio Players. I’m grateful for all the incredible music my parents show me. My mom has one of the most iconic Spotify playlists of all time that she is super proud of. I never had any real music education apart from a couple years of guitar lessons when I was in middle school. When I started high school and got Ableton Live, I just started teaching myself how to play the computer essentially and went from there. I knew music was going to be a part of my life for the long run when I decided to pursue a Music Business degree in college. Even though it wasn’t a creative based program, I got to learn so much about the industry and meet so many talented people who are now like family to me. It definitely solidified that I’m on the right path and following my passion.

When you were old enough to start seeking out music, where did you regularly find yourself (a certain record store / internet site / getting recommendations from a certain friend)? Who were some of the artists you first found and then were always on the lookout for?

In middle school, I can recall spending a lot of time just digging through the deepest, most random parts of the internet during the majority of free time. I would spend hours looking through Datpiff downloading free mixtapes or hours going through people’s liked tracks on SoundCloud. Weirdly, now I’m actually really grateful that I didn’t have more of a social life then and just listened to music all day. I’m trying to remember the stuff I mainly listened to around that time… Santigold, the xx, Gold Panda, Shlohmo, Flying Lotus, XXYYXX, Mykki Blanco, STRFKR… That kind of stuff.

I read you started producing in the sophomore year of high school. Whereas songwriting and singing are extremely recent interests. What brought around the interest for you in learning to produce? What’s been your favorite thing about producing?

I think I first discovered and downloaded Ableton Live the summer leading into freshman year of high school actually! I have absolutely no idea now what compelled me to start messing around with it. I was just deeply in love with all these electronic music producers I found on SoundCloud at the time, and I think I wanted to start trying to make stuff of my own. I have like 5 SoundCloud accounts and used to put out songs and then make new accounts so people wouldn’t find me. If you dig deep enough, they’re still out there. I would make these weird, soundscape-y electronic music tracks and a lot of remixes using random Aaliyah acapellas I could find on the internet. My favorite thing about producing is when you get into that groove when it just feels like everything is falling into place miraculously or adding one little aspect to something and it changes the entire game for the song, even if it’s something only I would notice. Those are my biggest adrenaline rushes, where I’m then jumping around my room listening on repeat.

Despite JDM Global being your solo debut you’re certainly not a newcomer. You were formerly of Toast with Claud and presently you’re a quarter of the Shelly super-band that unites you musically with Clairo, Claud, and Noa Frances Getzug as well as having produced for Claud and countless other artists too. Can you talk a little bit about the how/when/why’s of how these musical collaborations and projects came about?

I met Claire, Claud and Noa all in college at Syracuse. They’re like family to me. They’re also some of the most talented and inspiring people I’ve ever met in my life. It truly feels like they were placed in my life for a reason and I’m so blessed that they were. Higher power moment! Claire, Claud and I became best friends instantly freshman year of college and messing around with music together just came about naturally from being around each other all the time. The three of them know me and understand me more than anyone and it makes living/being/working together so amazing.

I read that JDM Global came about when you were trying to stay creative during the pandemic and, almost by accident, wrote you first song. What was your songwriting/creative process like for it for the other two songs? Was there an event or a specific timeframe where a large chunk of the lyricism came out for these tracks?  Where were you at physically, mentally when you wrote the lyrics/music for this?

Yeah! I made “Cake” in December and after seeing how my friends reacted to it, the other two came quickly because I was feeling so inspired. The process for all of them was about the same. I would make the instrumental one day, and the next I would listen to it on repeat and find the melodies and lyrics and then record! The sound and themes for the lyrics were inspired by some time I spent in LA during that fall of 2020. I came home to Houston for the holidays when there was almost that second wave of the pandemic, so the isolation of quarantine and the feeling of missing people and human connection played a major role in the songs, as well.

As this was your debut solo musical project, what mindset did you have going into the creating / recording process of the songs after the first one was written? Did you feel any sort of limitations when writing or recording them Which song(s) was the easiest / most difficult to create? Which track are you most proud of on this record? Why?

I think the mindset I had while creating the other two was to keep trying to outdo myself every time, but not in a way where I was putting intense pressure on myself. Definitely no limitations. I was just experimenting a lot. It was the most visceral and fun experience. It’s hard for me to say which of the songs was easier or more difficult to write. Each of the instrumentals came naturally and filling in the rest of a song with lyrics always feels like a fun jigsaw puzzle to me. My favorite and the one I’m most proud of would have to be “Cake.” It will forever be the first song I tried to write and it was the craziest feeling playing it back in the car for the first time. The song just feels really carefree and youthful and I always want to hold onto that feeling.

Did you find it helpful to be intentional when it comes to writing the lyrics / music? Like “I’m going to sit down and work on a song.” Or was it more ephemeral, like you’ve been kicking something around in your head for days, weeks, months, and then suddenly it comes spilling out? Or was it a mixture of both?

That’s a really interesting question because I feel like it constantly changes for me. Yeah, I’d say it’s a bit of a mix of both! Most of the time I could hear a song play in a restaurant or a friend puts me onto something I’ve never heard in the car, and I immediately get inspired, go home, sit down and create. My creative process is kickstarted in so many different ways. It’s always really random, but my favorite and best music comes from moments where I’m not trying to force anything out of myself. 

Did the production process for these songs change since the last time you worked on music? Is that process something that’s shifted for you over time? 

It’s definitely shifted over time. It shifts every day. The indie rock thing is really new for me, actually. I started producing by making electronic music. I also love to do a lot of sample-based/rap-inspired beats. I didn’t really involve a lot of guitar into my music-making process until this year. So it feels funny to be called an ~indie rock artist~. I’m excited to keep shifting, trying new stuff and showing people more of what I can do!

How hands on are you with the making of / direction of the visuals (press images, artwork) that accompanies the music? Do you feel like the art that accompanies one’s music is more / less important than it used to be?

Visuals are so fun and important to me, and I love being a part of that process, too. One of my best friends from Houston illustrated the “Cake” single artwork. Her name is Avery Hartwell and she’s sooooo incredibly talented. I loved going back and forth with Avery about ideas for the artwork just as much as I loved making the actual song. My friend Katie Reahl from college shot the pack’s cover art and all the press photos! Katie is an INSANE talent. I came to her with this idea of wacky, disorienting, 360 photos and she totally got the vision and helped me make it come to life. Then I had Avery add in some illustrations on top. My favorite thing in the world is working with my friends on stuff like this. I feel so lucky to know so many talented creatives. I definitely think the art that accompanies music is super important. It allows for this additional way for your senses to experience the music. I’d say it’s even more important now than ever, with the massive amount of music that gets released every day. A great cover art always stands out to me and makes me excited to listen! 

Lastly, what else are you currently working on? Any else fun coming out in 2021?

Working on some new JDM Global stuff, but also really excited to have some songs I helped produce/write for other artists coming out soon! Stay tuned 🙂