Meet Casey MQ, the producer merging the electronic and the orchestral

Welcome to Meet the Producers, a CBC Music series that highlights Canadian producers making waves in their respective genres. Producers are integral to building the backbone of the songs we love: they turn ideas into fully fleshed creations, and because so much of what they do happens behind the scenes, we wanted to shed a light on them. 

As a music producer, singer, songwriter, instrumentalist and award-winning film composer, Casey Manierka-Quaile (a.k.a. Casey MQ) takes multi-hyphenate to new levels.

It's hard to pin him down: the music he produces for himself ranges from bubble-gum hyperpop (2020's Babycasey and 2021's Babycasey: ultra), to electronic-classical fusion (2024's Later that day, the day before, or the day before that). He's even more varied when working for other artists, crafting ethereal dreamscapes ("Crush" by Shygirl and Erika de Casier), futuristic hip-hop ("Connect" and "Alarms" by Cadence Weapon), sweeping orchestral music ("Fruit" by Oliver Sim of the xx) and experimental pop ("Idolize" by Dorian Electra). 

Manierka-Quaile was a fixture in the Toronto music scene as part of two bands, Unbuttoned and Spoons, during the mid-2010s before embarking on a solo career. When he first started playing with production, he quickly learned that he liked playing the supporting role in other people's visions: it gave him space to explore different musical avenues that he may not have gravitated toward on his own.

Through that exploration, Manierke-Quaile has racked up a nice list of production and writing credits for buzzy names in the left-field pop space: Austra, Oklou, Empress of, Cecile Believe, Vagabon, and more. 

The Casey MQ sound, dissected 

Manierka-Quaile studied classical music as a child, and he fell in love with electronic music as he grew up. In his production, he's interested in bridging his two worlds. Manierka-Quaile recently noticed that all his music has a harmonic sensibility that he's carried since childhood: "I still bring that musical ear that I've been engaged with my whole life," he told CBC Music.  

That proclivity is present throughout Later that day, the day before, or the day before that, an album born out of Manierka-Quaile' sessions at the piano: "With this album, a lot of time was initially spent on the piano, looking for elusive melodies, and then establishing the landscape in the production afterwards." 

By building melodies at the piano and then bringing electronic elements in afterwards, Manierka-Quaile grounds the music in a classical sensibility, then pushes the sonics further with pitched vocals, drum machines and spacey synths. It's an album of baroque pop ballads, with a tinge of electronica, that linger and float. 

While writing most of this latest album, Manierka-Quaile was largely alone. It contrasts his debut album in many ways, but most notably in tone and energy. If Babycasey is an in-your-face hyperpop nostalgia hit, this new one is a subdued, spectral descent into the inner psyche.

"I spent a lot of time alone, in a reflective state and ultimately, I wanted to make music with care and focus. So, there was a naturally more gentle nature involved with this material."

Along with Elliott Kozel, Manierka-Quaile produced a track called "Sugarcane Switch" on Queens, N.Y., artist Eartheater's album, Powders. It's another example of the producer merging the orchestral with the electronic: thudding bass and throbbing synths are the bedrock of the track, while majestic strings and woodwinds sweep overhead. "I started playing chords on this Mellotron, which is an electro-mechanical instrument that emulates strings," he said. "Then I added in the piano and it was getting this sense of the orchestral, but Eartheater wanted this frenetic di-di-di-duh to take it further." 

Manierka-Quaile's collaborative process is often organic: he worked on "Crush" with Shygirl while sitting at the kitchen table, deciding to finish the track in the spur of the moment. When working with his frequent collaborator, French cellist, singer and producer Oklou, Manierka-Quaile speaks of an "intersected process" where they feed off each other's ideas in the moment. 

He likes to be experimental and not overly precious, and finds that bears the most delectable fruit. "It's not about nailing it every single time, I don't think it should be assumed that every time [you produce] you create greatness," he said. "But bringing in the element of trying new things and playing around is so intrinsic to what I think are huge values for me."

Manierka-Quaile is adept at making music that's always building toward something, with a clear beginning, middle and end. That core tenet of storytelling through sound is what connects all his productions, regardless of genre.  

Stay tuned every month for new instalments of Meet the Producers to discover more Canadian producers who are making hits and pushing boundaries.