Nutritious On New York Club Culture, Analogue Instincts And The Energy Behind ‘Freefall’
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Nutritious has spent decades moving through different corners of dance music without ever sounding tied to one particular scene. Raised in New York during an era when club culture still revolved around local communities, long-form sets and physical spaces, he developed an approach shaped less by genre and more by feeling, movement and atmosphere.
That mentality still defines his work today. Whether blending cosmic disco, deep house, indie dance, nu-disco or techno, there is always a clear sense of musical identity running through it all, something rooted in instinct rather than category. It is a perspective that has taken him from East Village all-night sessions to major stages including Art Basel, Ultra Music Festival, Pikes Ibiza and Miami Music Week, while also helping establish his own imprint Liquid Culture as a platform centred around depth, intention and community.
His latest EP ‘Freefall’, currently climbing Beatport’s Top 10 Releases chart, captures that philosophy clearly. Built around themes of surrender, movement and emotional release, the project continues a strong run of recent material following ‘Ether’, which became one of the most played tracks on SiriusXM with over 200 spins to date.
For Nutritious, though, everything still begins with understanding energy on a human level rather than approaching DJing or production as purely technical exercises.
“Some people think about reading a room like it’s a technical skill,” he says, reflecting on his formative all-night sets in New York’s East Village scene. “But at the centre of it, it’s very human. People came to dance, connect and feel something.”
Those marathon sessions became foundational to the way he still approaches music today.
“The room tells you what it needs,” he explains. “The hour, the sound system, the lights, the energy on the floor, the first record that makes people loosen up. You learn when to push, when to let something breathe and how to keep the whole night alive by choosing incredible music played with complete conviction.”
That openness to movement between styles has remained central throughout his career. Rather than seeing genre as identity, he views taste and emotional consistency as the true connective tissue between records.
“I don’t believe identity comes from genre,” he says. “Genre is too scattered now to carry that much meaning.”
Instead, what matters is whether the music itself feels honest and emotionally undeniable.
“If the songs are honest, well produced and the sequence feels right, you can move through a lot of worlds without losing the thread,” he explains. “I trust my ear more than categories.”
Part of that instinctive approach comes from learning during an analogue era built around cassette tapes and vinyl rather than digital precision.
“When you come up in the analogue domain, nothing is smoothing the edges for you,” he says. “You have to understand imperfection, timing, tension, texture and physical movement.”
That process forced DJs to become more instinctive and adaptable.
“With vinyl, you have to earn the transition,” he explains. “That made me musical in the booth and on stage. More physical, more alive to what can happen in the moment.”
For Nutritious, a great set should feel completely unique to the environment surrounding it.
“A set should feel like it could only have happened once,” he says. “At that time, at that place, with those people.”
That same philosophy runs through ‘Freefall’, a record built around emotional momentum and surrender rather than pure functionality.
“Love, passion, faith,” he says when describing the EP’s central feeling. “‘Freefall’ is about surrendering to something more powerful than control.”
Across its three versions, the project explores that emotional space from different angles. The title track leans into movement and forward motion, while ‘Spiral’ introduces more raw soul, classic house influence and spiritual energy.
“Three songs,” he says. “One feeling explored from different angles.”
Alongside the release itself, his Liquid Culture imprint continues becoming a deeper reflection of where he sits creatively right now. Rather than functioning simply as another dance label, Nutritious sees it as an extension of a broader philosophy around music, wellness and cultural connection.
“Music isn’t decoration,” he says. “It’s essential to life. Like sunlight, air or water.”
That mindset also explains the meaning behind the name Nutritious itself, something tied closely to his wider work across wellness, publishing, film and mental health spaces outside club culture.
“Music is energy like food is energy,” he explains. “A performance is energy.”
For him, ancient ideas around rhythm, ceremony and emotional connection still feel deeply relevant to modern electronic music culture.
“Ancient cultures understood that sound, rhythm, movement and ceremony weren’t separate from wellbeing,” he says. “They were part of how people stayed connected to themselves and each other.”
That wider worldview naturally feeds back into his creative process too. Across publishing, psychedelics media, film scoring and cultural projects, he sees all disciplines sharpening the same creative instinct rather than existing separately.
“Film deepens your sense of scene,” he says. “Publishing teaches you how ideas move. Psychedelics and wellness point towards perception, transformation and what people are really seeking beneath the surface.”
Ultimately though, whether behind the decks or in the studio, the core intention remains simple.
“I’m more interested in music that carries depth and beauty and lifts people,” he says.
Rather than chasing intensity for its own sake, he wants records and performances to leave listeners feeling expanded rather than depleted.
“That’s what interests me,” he says. “Music that opens minds, raises the vibe and leaves people feeling more alive.”
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