J Gabriel & Connie Yin team up for The Rusty Slide

Convent Records welcomes back NYC duo J Gabriel & Connie Yin with their latest project, Rusty Slide—a playful, psychedelic club track accompanied by a slick music video.

J Gabriel, founder of Onysia and Convent Records, is known for his versatile approach to club music. Connie has been a key figure in NYC’s minimal scene for nearly 20 years. Their last release, 2021’s State of Mind EP, received major support on main stages at events like Sunwaves and Music On, with DJs such as Apollonia and tINI behind it.

Rusty Slide is catchy, light-hearted and instantly relatable. The music video, directed by Dennis Lucido, brings the theme of indecision to life with playful compositions, clever match cuts and dynamic transitions that reflect the track’s energy.

The video features a shortened version of Rusty Slide, followed by a 30-second preview of the duo’s upcoming vinyl-only release, Kiss and Hug, due out at the end of the year. We caught up with J Gabriel recently to learn more… 

Let’s start with The Rusty Slide—what made this everyday emotional tug-of-war feel like the right theme to build a track and video around?

Hmm I’d like to say it worked this way, like we had a concept and theme and then built a song around it but really it was quite an improvisational moment in the studio, if i’m remembering right. I think we were even asking in the moment what does this even mean haha. So we built the meaning afterwards? 

The way you and Connie trade vocal moments on the track adds a real narrative edge—was that structure intuitive, or something you honed over time? 

Yeah intuitive, the music had this edge so it sort of spoke through us. Particularly that bassline, I felt it was sort of telling a story and that’s where the lyrics came from, pretty sure. 

Was there a specific memory or night out that directly inspired the mood of The Rusty Slide? How did Dennis Lucido come into the fold, and what was the first idea or image that made you know he was the right fit for this project? 

Connie has some good experience doing music videos for her rock band projects, and suggested we go for it ! We knew shooting a bunch of green screen shots would allow flexibility and to build an aesthetic around that… We’ve both known Dennis for quite a while and he is a very versatile talent with a strong passion for music, we just knew that he would be able to channel the right style for this type of psychedelic trip vibe.

Do you see The Rusty Slide as part of a bigger storytelling arc with Connie, or more as a standalone chapter? 

Hmm I think thats an interesting question, I’d say both -  certainly it’s a proper follow up to our State of Mind project, and we should continue to do more in the future… Rusty Slide is a pretty specific thing conceptually, and stylistically maybe I’d like to pursue some real purist minimal / microhouse together next? Both of our releases are a bit of fusion of styles and have a certain sound – it will be cool to develop it even more. 

Your musical references often point toward the 1970s — how does that era shape your thinking when you're building tracks in the studio today? 

Yeah they achieved a quality in sound during that decade which is unsurpassed, in my view.  Like you mention it’s largely about texture, I like a certain roundedness in the sound, modern sound can be quite bright which is cool but you have to be careful. Because I think one of the worst things is if you do all this work and dedicate yourself to channeling your energy into music for the clubs, and then it sounds harsh. A great idea which isn’t executed quite right and then something hurts when it’s played on big systems. The magic moments depend a lot on achieving something which is going to translate sonically so yeah that 70s warmth and softness and they also had such great clarity and punch – that’s what I’m always endeavoring towards… 

You’ve described a kind of lifelong search for a “special sound.” What does that actually mean to you—technically, emotionally, spiritually? 

Yeah adding to my answer above, I mean you know it when you hear it right, it’s a craft and the parameters are continuing to evolve because the brain perceives sound differently as time goes on, at least I’m happy to report in my case I hear things differently than even just a few years ago haha (hopefully it indicates growth and learning lol). The technical answer is different for everybody, depending on what sound you’re going for. Like a track with many layers of synths and melodies and harmonies going on might take a different approach than a more minimal track with a big focus on sub bass lines and drums… Different problems to solve in the technical domain. But what i’ve learned is that all of it takes care of itself, more or less, when the right approach to recording is adopted. I’ve spent way too many hours reading all of the engineers' reports on experiences and opinions on the various forums, there is so much information out there. And my takeaways is you put everything into recording and choosing sounds which are going to have that impact, it’s not just coming up with the melody or bassline, it needs to be engineered correctly otherwise even a brilliant composition will suffer. This is extra extra true for club music. And even having the best synth isn’t going to necessarily give you what you ended right away, although that can make it easier - it needs to be programmed and recorded right. Yeah engineering is a whole art unto itself, and a technical skill which takes time and effort to develop. And I don’t claim to be the greatest engineer, even though I have a real particular sound I enjoy, some people are just really naturally gifted in that department. But I’m always trying to improve! 

Your label Onysia has become known for its “daytime-friendly” vibe — how do you define that sound, and why does it matter? 

Yeah I think it’s important to have a definitive sound as an artist, and as a label it’s also  the approach. At least all of my favorite labels have this, even if there's a range of styles. And I love daytime parties, I always prefer that actually it’s a different energy altogether. So yeah we select things that fit this vibe. Not every single cut but in general we go for this. 

Onysia Bandcamp

And with Convent, you’re pushing a different, edgier angle. What can we expect from that camp in the months to come? 

We have a lot going on with Convent, just put out two big 12”s, one with Thomas Melchior and the other from Steve O’Sullivan/Bluetrain so I encourage everyone to check those out. Up next we have the Convent VA II which will be a digital release and has a really cool range going, stuff from Tom Ellis, Tommy Vicari Jnr, Jay Tripwire, Steve O’Sullivan, Jeremy Sylvester and myself. There’s me and Connie’s next vinyl coming too, “Kiss and Do It” which has two Cabanne remixes. And then an awesome Jay Tripwire 12” with a super Bruno Pronsato remix which might be the first half of next year. 

How involved are you in shaping the remixes that appear on your labels — do you give direction, or let the artist run with it? 

Generally yeah I’m giving some commentary and direction on the project before the remix process begins, it varies how much. On the Fly Again Dubs from Steve O’Sullivan, there was a lot of discussion and back-and-forth as things developed, which was really cool. It’s interesting too, I find the more an artist is willing (or in Steve’s case even initiated and checking in on the progress regularly) in doing it as a conversation and arriving at something awesome together, the better the end results tend to be. I recently had a situation with a quite well known respected producer who has made classic records, but the attitude was here is my idea (with no input) here is the remix, take it or leave it. So from the beginning there wasn’t room for input - and then what got handed off was something I didn’t feel strongly about, and we were stuck and ended up cancelling. Which is unfortunate, it felt more like a business transaction or something than an artistic collaboration between the label and the remixer. Also you can notice that a lot of times there will be 2 remixes from the same artist on my own releases, I really like that approach. Because you might get something unexpected that’s really great, or feel like they have more to express with the given idea. I like working with artists that way, Lizz did that awhile back on my track “Afinite Tanze” like this really unexpected beautiful completely different style to the release we had planned something I hadn’t heard from him before (actually that was on Terence:Terry’s label) but I was like this is so good we need to put this out, and also do an edgy take too. So that’s what we did. 

You’ve mentioned wanting to challenge the genre silos that often form in dance music—how do you try to make that happen through A&R and releases?

I think a good way is to mix it up on the roster side, featuring artists in ways that might be unexpected. Signing material which is really strong but not necessarily what that artist is known for, showcasing a different side to them and then pairing it correctly, perhaps on a VA release with artists that you wouldn’t normally associate together.

What’s the most unexpected support a release has received so far—any shout-outs that really surprised you?

Yeah it happens, I think feedback on a release from LTJ Bukem was unexpected and quite cool since he’s one of the first electronic music artists i got really into. Nightmares on Wax as well, such a great producer across genres…

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Tell us about your upcoming reggae-inspired project with Scientist and Vaughn Benjamin. That’s quite a collision of worlds—how did it come together?

The first Scientist/J Gabriel collab featured Vaughn Benjamin and came out a few years ago, that also included a Mike Shannon/Deadbeat Remix. We decided to do another project together, this time the vocalist is Joseph Cotton which has a bit more dance hall style on the vocal . Yeah it came about both times with dub instrumentals i’d started and sent to Scientist who brings in some of his musicians to add their live instrumentations. And then flips it all during mixdown which he of course is renowned for, it’s not a normal mixdown. Actually there were quite a few steps involved heh, quite a lot of work doing these dub reggae songs, more so than my typical club music thats for sure. But it’s a great learning experience, a great challenge too, to come up with something really great and special. So the release “Fly Again” has 3 parts, part 1 has been released digitally for a little while now, it’s 5 tracks/versions of the song in the tradition of dub reggae. And then part 2 is the Steve O’Sullivan/Bluetrain remixes, which is a really awesome minimal techy almost big room tip. And part 3 are some J Gabriel takes which have a kind of synthesizer dub feel and those will come out pretty soon as well. So yeah big project, really quite happy how the whole things has turned out… 

How does dub, as a sound and spirit, feed into the minimal and house world you typically move in?

Well I’d say it has a pretty big direct influence, not just on minimal and house but it directly influenced the genesis of hip-hop as well as other genres. But for us, everything from the sonics, style of hard dry drums, how things are mixed, using basslines as the lead instrument, use of fx like delay/space echo, i could go on. Haha. 

New York has obviously shaped your approach to music and nightlife. What parts of the city still feel creatively alive to you?

For sure, unfortunately right now Manhattan is experiencing a real lull. Everything underground seems to be concentrated in North Brooklyn and Ridgewood which is the neighbourhood right next to Bushwick. A lot of activity going on these days that's for sure, it’s become a real adult playground over here lol. But the pendulum swings, so when there is an opportunity in Manhattan, someone will fill that void sooner than later - hopefully !

Resolute’s been a home base for you over the years – as it has for Connie, of course. What do they do differently that still feels fresh?

They continue to grow and evolve, they're the biggest promoter of minimal in the states now so… I think its a willingness to experiment and take risks that has always made them so great, you never know exactly what you're going to get. So that when they win, they win big and provide some magical events. There aren’t so many opportunities to experience that in the clubbing world (or maybe im missing something?) haha.  

If you could book a dream lineup for an Onysia/Convent night anywhere in the world, who would be on the bill and where would it take place?

I’d like to do a party with Thomas Melchior, Bruno Prosanto (Live) and Steve O’Sullivan (Live), Connie,  maybe in Berlin. Or somewhere unexpected like Hong Kong. But probably right here in NYC would be ideal.

‍Keep up with J Gabriel on Soundcloud and Instagram

Buy/listen to the release via Bandcamp

Listen to our premiere of Rusty Slide (J Gabriel's Let's Decide Mix ft. Bruno Pronsato) below