Your Criminal Nature Comes To Life

Mario R. Martin Breathes Life into Your Criminal Nature
by Geert Driver
February 2020

The first day of January 2020 saw the end of The Ghosts of Laura Palmer†, the decade-long DJ project from Mario R. Martin and Andy Gulotta. After 50 live DJ sets the duo called it quits, putting to rest the moniker and the “soulfunk” genre that oft brought them as much notoriety as it did imitators. From the ashes Martin erects a new musical project, Your Criminal Nature.

“Ten years of doing anything makes it repetitive and redundant,” says Mario R. Martin. “It was time to end the Ghosts because it started to feel forced. While I still love soul and funk, the Ghost project was telling an old story that I already told. So, when I really reflected on it, I had the most fun blending musical styles during live sets with other DJs so I didn’t want to feel confined by soul and funk. That’s why I started Your Criminal Nature.”

Your Criminal Nature, a name derived from the 2000 film High Fidelity, will see Martin focus on a wide spectrum of musical genres. “I did a number of Ghost sets where I strayed from the soulfunk norm,” continues Martin. “But it felt unfair to the traditionalist inside me. Your Criminal Nature picks up where the Ghosts left off.”

The closest parallel to Martin’s new analog musical project could be seen in his past work with fellow DJ, Justin Carloni. Together, the DJs would spin sets as “JAM” (Justin and Mario), but Your Criminal Nature will focus on a deeper dive into sonic obscurity, an area that Martin finds rewarding. “Having worked in the music industry, I was exposed to so many different styles of music,” said Martin. “Your Criminal Nature will allow me to pivot between records regardless of their genre.”

The first set by Martin as Your Criminal Nature is still in the works, but some of the artists expected to play integral roles in the project include: Young Magic, Cooper Temple Clause and Bring Me The Horizon versus A-Trak, Swedish House Mafia, Crystal Method against some familiar sounds like soul and funk, dark new wave, industrial and more. And yes, each set will contain a track from The Beta Band.

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