True
Message

Enter the raw spirit of vintage house and influences from a childhood rich in sound and "music tourism" — and you've got the project of Simon D, aka True Message.

In 2016, a text message urged Simon to visit disco mecca, NYC. It read, "and bring a USB." From dancer to DJ to known entity in the Toronto scene, Simon's story is one of discovering his place and sound in the music world.

He's formed a signature style through "any-genre-goes" sets on vinyl, to pinpointed club sets of a heavier bent. These often combine vintage and new records and draw on inspiration from a broad list of places, artists and DJs (mostly friends), and clubs ranging from very intimate to super-famous.

There's this question about media and it's often portrayed as a dichotomy. Unlike the modern world's tendency to dispose of the old, the notion of running a party on 1972 gear is pretty much intact (more or less) and not misguided either. (Like, dance-floors probably don't care that much if it's vinyl or digital, but let's also be honest… the world of vinyl has its allures.)

The urgency and simplicity of vinyl records matched quick with Simon's stylistic pairing of potent and paired down dance music. In around 2019, the records started making an entrance. Part refuge from the saturation of nightlife and part addiction, the digging started and never stopped. Shops from Victoria to Halifax; Valencia to Berlin; but especially his hometown of Toronto. They've all seen a well-caffeinated Simon, probably occupying a corner scanning through stacks.

A healthy nod to the past (but also not being married to it) defines his sets.