Gryph arrives with Nash Angeles as an artist fully stepping into his own mythology, a Nashville born guitarist with blues in his fingertips, reborn in Los Angeles with a newfound devotion to dancefloor alchemy.
His debut LP on Elbow Grease does not just merge two cities; it fuses entire musical lineages, folding rock grit, spiritual jazz warmth, disco shimmer and house music pulse into a sound that feels both sun-drenched and deeply lived in.
With co-producer Dave Aju and a circle of standout collaborators, Gryph crafts a record that moves with the looseness of a live band and the precision of a club architect, offering a rare kind of genre freedom that still lands straight in the heart. Nash Angeles is not just a debut, it is a declaration of a new musical identity taking flight.
Interview by Ellis May.
The album title blends two cities that shaped you. Beyond geography, what does Nash Angeles represent emotionally or creatively?
It is a bridge. Personally, spiritually, emotionally, and of course above all musically. It starts with the collaborative band experiences I had there and culminates with the studio and dance floor collaborations that I experience now in my new home of LA.
Do you ever feel tension between your Nashville roots and your LA present, or do they coexist naturally in your creative process?
I feel they blend well, especially as they do not seem to be represented so often. Tennessee is definitely more of the rock and blues roots, and LA is more of the jazz and electronic side, but I truly feel they both benefit from the sounds and approaches from the other side.
How do the rhythms, people, and energy of LA seep into your music in ways you did not expect?
Yeah, that jazz and electronic side mentioned definitely crept up and got me good haha. The scene in LA is so broad and open, and running into musicians and producers like Dave Aju who was the key collaborator on this project opened so many new musical doors for me.
You come from a rock and blues guitar background. How does that physical, tactile musicianship influence your approach to electronic production?
It has to feel real and raw, and has to be laid down. I dig that a lot of producers are programmer types, but I cannot work like that. Everything you hear are takes, often if not hopefully the first takes haha.
What changed in your writing once you started building tracks for dancers instead of bands?
Focusing on rhythm and really harnessing the power of bass line forward grooves. Repetition as a good and necessary thing.
When you are blending live instruments with electronic textures, what is the moment you know the balance is right?
Great question. In fact, Aju mixed this album three times haha. The first felt too electronic, the second landed too much like a live band album, and the third was just goldilocks right finally. We would be straight up lying if we said it was easy.
Do you have any personal rituals, habits, or environments that consistently spark your best ideas?
Just vibing with friends and listening to music of all kinds. One thing about me, Aju, and all the Point Winona Sound Labs crew is we work hard but we play hard too. Life, like music, is meant to be enjoyed, so a good bbq, dinner, party, etc always sparks the flames.
What does a great studio day look like for you and your collaborators?
We are blessed to have Point Winona which is at the top of Los Feliz Estates hills in NE LA, and it has a dope ass grill yard and a pool, so we usually start the day meeting at the Lazy Acres shop up the road and deciding what to buy to throw on the grill, stock up on Mexi beers and espolon tequila, then get to it, taking breaks to chill it up with the homies and dive into the pool and rejuvenate etc.
Was there a moment during the making of the album where something clicked in a way you did not see coming?
Yeah, I told Dave Aju I always wanted to make a dance music album and he humored me, but then about halfway into working on it I realized he was actually coaxing me more into flexing my roots and being myself, rather than imitating the material I was hearing at club and warehouse parties etc. It was revelatory and a huge reminder to always just be yourself.
Your album moves through disco, dub, Italo, jazz funk, R & B, and house. What does genre even mean to you at this point?
I mean, if we really boil it down, genre divisions exist primarily in tempo, pattern, and era created. In other words, useful for marketing but not for creation. If you love it all, make it all and mix it all baby.
How do you take influences as far apart as the Mizell Brothers, yacht rock, spiritual jazz, and The Doors and make them feel coherent?
Again, these are all such genius musical inspirations. I see the lines of similarity rather than division between them. And I feel that inspiration runs deeper if you close fewer doors and make fewer divisions.
When you are choosing sounds, textures, or harmonies, what emotional compass guides you? The funk. The groove always comes first. Then melody, counter melody. If I close my eyes and imagine getting down to it in some favorite environments, we are on the right track.
How has being part of the Elbow Grease and Point Winona circles shaped your confidence or direction as an artist?
These guys, Dave Aju, Rodney, Tavish DJ and co, are the greatest thing that ever happened to me musically, and I would say for all of the LA underground as well. Everyone eats and everyone is welcome. Such an inspiring team to be a part of.
What qualities do you look for in a vocalist or musician before bringing them into your world?
Do we vibe is number one and done haha. Oh I guess do they want to work is big too. Lots of talented folks out there that just do not show up.
How do you ensure collaborators understand the emotional or conceptual direction of a track?
If we vibe they usually get it from jump street, and we almost always become great friends after which is a big bonus.
How do you approach storytelling in a medium where people are often moving more than listening?
I feel narrative and arrangement are always important. What fascinates me, being relatively newer to the dance music scene, is how far from the garden of musicality things have often drifted. Do not get me wrong, I can get down to some wild minimal acid stuff at the rave too, but if you listen to the music of dance music roots there was way more live instrumentation and songwriting involved, and I just adore that.
What is the one feeling you hope people walk away with after hearing the album front to back?
That live music in dance music is still possible, that session musicians matter, and that the LA scene has a lot more to be discovered and celebrated, particularly works coming out of Point Winona.
Do you see your music as a bridge between communities, genres, or even versions of yourself?
I am just a messenger really, but definitely a proud representative of bringing these worlds together.
After creating such a hybrid, expansive debut, where do you feel your sound is heading next?
Dave Aju and I already have a separate side band which is more like latin soul, and I am already chipping away at writing my solo follow up which is currently leaning in a more new wave direction.
If you could design your dream live show for this album, what would it look and feel like?
No holds in reality barred: Jimi on guitar, John Bonham on drums, Jamerson on bass, then me on axe and doing electronic layers with Aju and the crew haha.
When you imagine yourself five years from now, what aspects of your artistry do you hope remain constant, and what do you hope evolves?
That is a big stay tuned, TBC.
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Gryph
Elbow Grease
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