Auckland indie artist Felix The Thyrd goes to number one

Auckland independent artist Felix Mpunga – aka Felix The Thyrd – refuses to be put into a box.

The Zimbabwean-born, New Zealand-raised musician writes, produces and mixes all of his music, while also juggling music journalism and even modelling on the side.

His sophomore EP 808s & Heartstrings, released on August 8, has debuted at number one on the NZ iTunes album charts – without a management team or record label behind it.

The five-track EP also sits fifth on the official NZ Top 40 albums heatseeker chart and 13th on the NZ albums chart.

“It felt amazing,” says Felix.

“It’s cool seeing something that you've made actually have some tangible success that you can use.”

Equally tough to define is Felix’s music. An eclectic fusion of RnB, trap and alt rock, Heartstrings is a sharp departure from the more traditional guitar-based folk sound of his previous release, The Age of Uncertainty.

“If I was still playing folk music, I wouldn't really get my message across in a full way because I feel like limiting myself to just a guitar and my voice is kind of pigeonholing myself.

“Whereas if I can actually produce a beat, then the amount of different avenues I can have my music being played can reach more people and my music can resonate with more people.

“I just float with a whole lot of genres and create what I really feel at the time. That's what kind of steered me into a different sound for this latest EP.”

Fans of Kanye West will spot the reference to his 2008 studio album 808s & Heartbreak, which inspired the name of Felix’s latest release.

“It just came to me randomly one day because I was listening to a whole lot of Kanye when I was producing this EP.

“I didn't want to copy what he was doing but I just really liked that name ‘808s and Heartstrings’. I was using a lot of 808s and I use a lot of string sections in all of the things I do as well.”

If there’s one thing he does get from West is his penchant for pushing the envelope.

“I'm just trying to push the boundaries really because if you're trying to make it as an artist in New Zealand or any industry – and you don't have a team, you don't have a label, you don't have a PR, you don't have anyone behind you but yourself – all you can do is get some education, try to do something no one's ever done and hope to whoever that it's going to resonate with the crowd.”

Felix may be difficult to define but one thing’s for sure, he is an artist on the way up – and he might just tug a few heartstrings along the way.