My Inspiration: Jøsh – Reality

North Shields producer Jøsh unveils REALITY, a seven-track concept EP released across Amsterdam Dance Event via his independent label OZØNE RCRDS. Blending bass-heavy electronics, techno textures and cinematic sound design, the project explores the evolving relationship between humanity and AI—unfolding one track per day across ADE week and now available in full.

The EP is a seven-track journey through clubland euphoria, Hans Zimmer-level drama and synth-fuelled pivots taking you on a circuit-driven voyage that is thrilling, immersive, and thought-provoking. Opener Reality drops you into a Blade Runner-esque soundscape; Afraid blends choral wonder with aggressive rhythms and cybernetic samples; Instinct brings the punch and glitch, while closer Yesterday wraps things up with uplifting electro and soaring cinematic scope.

Here, Jøsh delves further into the inspirations behind the EP…

The idea for REALITY came from an unlikely source. It came from an Instagram reel that turned out to be AI-generated. Just before it ended, the words “This isn’t real. Stop scrolling.” flashed up on the screen. It made me question how much of what we consume every day is even real anymore. That was the seed that became REALITY — a project about the line between us and the machine, and how blurred it’s already become.

From the start, I knew this EP had to be more than just a collection of bass house tracks. I wanted it to feel like a story — something cinematic and immersive, where each song had its own chapter but still lived in the same world. The idea of the EP spelling out its own name — Reality, Eros, Afraid, Limitless, Instinct, Transmission, Yesterday — was my way of tying everything together. Each track represents a different stage in the story, from the birth of consciousness to the machine’s reflection on humanity. I’ve always been obsessed with detail and hidden connections in music.

The moment I realised I had to make REALITY was when I saw how clearly AI could tell the story I had in my head. The AI’s role was intentional and limited to two things: helping shape the story and becoming the literal voice of the machine across the EP. I still guide it, prompt it, and push it where I want to go. It’s like collaborating with another producer who doesn’t know what emotion feels like until you show them how.

The turning point came when I stumbled across Geoffrey Hinton’s Nobel Peace Prize speech about AI. I’d been trying to find a way to express that idea of danger and beauty, of technology that could destroy or save us. I tried vocal packs, I tried my own voice, but nothing came close to the emotional gravity that speech carried. So, I asked AI what it thought about it. The response it gave was so cool, It wasn’t robotic. It was thoughtful. Everything a machine isn’t. That was the moment I realised this wasn’t just a tool; it could be a character in the story.

Keeping human emotion at the core was always the most important part. Electronic music is already one step removed from humanity. So for me, it’s about putting as much of myself as possible into the music through melody, tension, and sound design. Singers have their voice; my “voice” is my sound. The way I design basses, the structure I use, how I chop vocals, that’s where people hear a track and go, “that’s a Jøsh tune.”

I’ve always been inspired by producers like Martin Garrix, Skrillex, and Seth Hills — people who redefined their genres and built an instantly recognisable sound. That’s what I aim for. I want my tracks to hit hard in a club, but also have meaning and character beyond that. I’m never going to make “just another” house track. If it doesn’t push the sound somewhere new, it’s not worth making.

The idea of REALITY being cinematic actually ties back to one of my earliest inspirations — Star Wars. I’ve always loved how those films build a universe where everything makes sense. Every prop, every piece of music, every line belongs there. That’s how I want my records to feel — like they all exist in the same world, where basslines and melodies carry the story instead of words. The cinematic tension, the emotion, the scale — that’s what I chase in every breakdown and every drop.

Building REALITY on my own label, OZØNE RCRDS, was both a risk and a necessity. I’ve never really fit into the UK scene — the clubs here don’t know where to put me, and the labels don’t know how to categorise my sound. Everything around me is either techno, drum and bass, or underground house. What I do doesn’t sit neatly in any of those boxes, and for a long time that felt like a problem. But instead of waiting to be understood, I just started building my own world — funding everything myself, doing my own press, my own visuals, my own videos on an iPhone 11. The photos you see are taken by my family or my girlfriend. It’s DIY from start to finish.