CRÈME – “Deed”

CRÈME, the exciting project of Trixie Reiss (former The Crystal Method collaborator), released a new track today, “Deed”, that showcases her ability to craft engaging soundscapes, colorful melodies, and hypnotic hooks. Crystal Method fans will remember Trixie from her role as writer and vocalist on their debut platinum-selling album Vegas, which included their #1 hit “Comin’ Back.”

“Deed” dazzles with a crisp pop vocals enhanced by a bouncy key-laden twinkle to start, gearing into a bustling hook around the 40-second mark that projects a sort of murky yet danceable charm, akin to The Knife. Percussive involvement at 01:23 lifts it into a club-friendly setting before reverting to the bouncy pop. It’s a very versatile track and a testament to Trixie’s versatility as a songwriter.

““Deed” is a song that arose from a visceral dream about a situation that happened between a “Deed” (a man in drag who likes women sexually) and me,” Trixie explains. “It culminates with a reverse #metoo moment where I am the predator. When I sat down to write it, I fell in love with that arp FM bass and used it to create an off balance and unpredictable lead melody to set the mise-en-scène. “Deed” became a stage where I got to act out what mattered most that day…through a multi faceted lens.”

In addition to breaking down stylistic boundaries by mixing and matching vibes, it was important to her to flip the roles in “Deed”, using her voice as the one in control and to ask a burning question in the chorus.

Since her days collaborating with The Crystal Method, CRÈME has seen music technology grow rapidly, as music-making has become more accessible.

“Back then I used to record complex multi-track accepella songs and I was obsessed with my friend’s “profit 5” and “DX7” that I would spend hours tweaking knobs on,” she explains. “Then I met those guys who heard my stuff and wanted to use my voice and songs in the context of their music. It was awesome in so many ways but I’ve always felt that I have so much more in me, since I’d composed on the piano, made recordings and been in bands all my life. My relationship to music is as “creator”, it’s always been that way.”

“As far as my sound and stylistic direction, I’ve always used a DAW for recording midi and audio.
I started out with Reason, before the rise of Massive, Serum and Sylinth. Now the principals of recording and synthesis are the same but better, faster and way more accessible. Before, I used to work with collaborators who had expensive equipment and studios but the technology has progressively gotten better and better, so that now, using everything is quite instinctual and being able to make good music has become almost common place.”

“Since there is so much great stuff out there, there’s a kind of self created pressure to fit into a successful streaming mold. I try really hard to make things that sound like this or that but somehow I always end up sounding different and I’ve grown to accept that. I’m beginning to think it might actually work for me! I like difference but I still want to be able to feel heard; it’s that soft spot somewhere in between where I want to tell my story.”