NuLif3 Turns Late-Night Chemistry Into Dark Tech House on “Dirty Talkin’”

For NuLif3, “Dirty Talkin’” started with a very specific kind of late-night energy: the point where texts and calls become playful, flirtatious and loaded with unspoken chemistry. Released October 2 via Almost Like We Met, the track channels that 2 a.m. tension into dark tech house, pairing a chunky bassline with trippy textures, teasing female vocals and a slightly swung groove built for dark rooms.

The production was designed to make that mood feel physical. The female vocals were pushed extremely wide across the stereo image, leaving the center open for a heavier low end, while an 808 tom became the bassline, something he describes as a game changer for locking in the track’s bounce. It fits the three words he uses to define his sound: chunky, hefty and trippy, with rolling basslines, sharp drums and wide-panned details pulling listeners deeper into the record.

The unreleased master was initially sent into demo pools with little expectation, only for the response to arrive quickly. He watched 5/5 ratings come in from Don Diablo, Case of the Mondays and Sacha Robotti, along with direct praise for his sound design from Kyle Watson, all while sitting on the floor in sweatpants. Signing the record to Almost Like We Met, run by Tom Kench and Pia, ultimately felt to him like “the only poetic conclusion” to the story behind the track.

The current project came from a much more personal reset. After going through a divorce, he asked himself what had genuinely made him happy before that relationship. The answer was music. Years earlier, he had played bass and guitar in punk and ska bands, but returning through electronic production allowed him to create independently rather than rely on a full band. That shift quickly developed into an obsession with sub-bass and sound design.

The early Dirtybird world became a major foundation for his approach. He points to Kyle Watson, Walker & Royce, Steve Darko and Sacha Robotti as particularly important references, from Watson’s precise low end to Walker & Royce’s ability to remain quirky and heavy. He also draws inspiration from artists willing to blur genre lines, including Claude VonStroke, Chris Lorenzo, Justin Martin, VNSSA, Nala, J. Worra and others. Even outside electronic music, the punk and ska roots remain part of his listening through artists like Streetlight Manifesto and Catch 22.

His relationship with rave culture has been shaped by experiences at Holy Ship! during the Destructo era, early Friendship editions, Dirtybird Campout and Wakaan. Those environments helped shape the way he thinks about groove, bass and dancefloor momentum. Shambhala currently sits at the top of his festival wish list, while getting back onto another festival cruise ship is also firmly on his radar.

Behind the decks, he rarely wants to arrive with a completely pre-planned tracklist, instead choosing a few key self-produced IDs or club records and letting the room dictate the rest. After the set, the connection becomes more direct through conversations with dancers and other producers and by handing out custom swag himself. Away from music, life includes snowboarding, hiking with his two Alaskan Klee Kais, who also double as unofficial demo critics, and an increasingly serious collection of more than 40 plants at home.

“Dirty Talkin’” arrives in the middle of a larger release run following “Reflexin’” on Sloth Records, with more singles, EPs and finished collaborations already in the pipeline. For this record, the message to listeners is simple: leave the overthinking at the door, lock into the mischievous bounce and let the track work, whether that means testing it through car speakers or hearing it on a dark club floor. His broader message remains equally direct: “Walk your own path, build something authentic from the ground up, and be the change you want to see on and off the dancefloor.” The rave goes on.