Hailing from Lisbon, Portugal, with a distinct commitment to immersive, multisensory performance, MXGPU have quickly become one of the most compelling live acts to watch in electronic music. As they prepare to release their deeply emotive new single, ‘take me home’ – already a fan favorite from their recent sets – alongside the announcement of their debut album ‘Sudden Light,’ the duo joins When We Dip for an intimate conversation about their creative process, sonic inspirations, and the unique world they’re building. Both the single and the album dropped on May 30th via their own label, Discotexas, marking a pivotal moment for MXGPU as they step fully into their collaborative identity. 

WWD: Welcome to When We Dip! “take me home” has already become a fan favorite in your live sets. Can you walk us through how it came together in the studio and what inspired it emotionally or sonically?

Like most of our tracks, it started from a simple draft; just an arpeggio and a beat forming the backbone of the song, plus some mumbled vocals that hinted at the melody. From that morning sketch, it evolved into a full song by the end of the day, complete with lyrics and structure. We just let ourselves follow the unique flow that emerged from that initial spark. It felt like home to us. Sonically, there’s this constant synth arpeggio that gives the sensation of being guided throughout the song, almost like it’s taking us home. Thematically, it’s a proper love song that explores the idea that when you truly love someone, sometimes all you need is time and space to simply be; together, unpressured, and real.

WWD: Your performances are known for being deeply immersive — from lighting and visuals to even scent. How do you translate that level of sensory detail into a recorded track like ‘take me home?’

Our recording process is very much about keeping the humanity of the performance along the way. We like unpolished, big, bolder moves, juxtaposed with finer details that take us days to accomplish and a lot of back and forth. Truth is the texture, be it in the choice of vintage, slightly out of tune synthesizers, or lots of field recordings attempting to give the music a sense of context, put it in a physical space or moment. The lyrics also evoke physical images and sensory metaphors. Placing Gui’s vocals front and center is also important to convey that “reality”.

WWD: You’ve described your upcoming album ‘Sudden Light’ as a world-building experience. What kind of world are you inviting listeners into with this project, and what themes are you exploring?

‘Sudden Light’ is an interruption. It signifies a moment of what was once dark coming to light. Metaphorically, it’s something emergent, transient, a change of state, something happening. When Lucio Fontana decided to slash an empty canvas with a knife for his “zips”, suddenly there was implicit movement in what would be a static work of art. A “memory” of something impactful happening. We felt the set of songs we crafted for this record all shared the same DNA, they could change context depending on how, where, and with whom you listened to them. A world which was clean, comfortable, and soothing could turn into power, chaos, and raw emotion when experienced live with other people. Like if songs could retain in them a “memory”, the “scars” of having been played in a club.

WWD: There’s a strong visual and conceptual element to MXGPU. How do inspirations like James Turrell or SEGA loading screens actually influence your sound design or stage setup?

We’re deeply fascinated with the idea of Gesamkunstwerk, or total work of art, where a piece strives to make use of as many art forms as possible. Visuals are not just an accessory, but a logical continuation of the music. We love the idea of being swept away into a completely new world, with new rules. The audience comes into our shows expecting to be surprised, a challenge we welcome too. Our show being always “in the round” places us conceptually closer to storytelling around an open fire than to a live concert on a plain stage. That anticipation is palpable, you can cut the air with a knife, sometimes we can even hear the “gasp” the first moment the first laser comes on – that’s actually yet another reason the album is titled “Sudden Light”.

WWD: Coming from solo careers as Moullinex and GPU Panic, what was the turning point that made you realize this collaboration needed its own identity as MXGPU?

Somewhere along the way, things just became bigger than 1+1. There’s no exact moment, but one day we found ourselves 100% immersed in this project, somewhere between the writing of ‘the fall’ and ‘take me home’ and the first live tours we did together. Things have been effortlessly magic, in the studio and live, and this kind of magic needs its own name. We needed to distance ourselves enough from our solo outputs to feel even more “real”.

WWD: You’ve released on respected labels like Crosstown Rebels and Watergate, but you’re releasing ‘Sudden Light’ through your own label, Discotexas. What does that independence mean for you creatively?

We’ve always felt a strong sense of creative independence, even when releasing on other labels like Crosstown Rebels and Watergate — and we’ve been fortunate to feel very much at home with them. But releasing ‘Sudden Light’ on Discotexas, our own “family” label, holds a special meaning. There’s something powerful about having a team that’s deeply involved day-to-day, fully committed to the music, and emotionally invested in the project. Discotexas is driven by passion, friendship, and a genuine love for what we do. It’s the natural home for ‘Sudden Light’ and for MXGPU’s first full-length.

WWD: The dance music scene is flooded with DJs, but live acts like yours remain rare. Why do you think the live electronic format is so important right now — and what does it unlock for you that DJing can’t?

Don’t get us wrong, we LOVE DJing, but playing your own music live is an irreplaceable feeling. It’s like being on a tightrope with your innermost feelings to give you balance and support. We feel the connection between the two of us and between audience and performers is much stronger when playing live. We attend many live performances ourselves, and they often resonate more with us on a deeply emotional level. We strive to create that bond with the audience every time we play.

WWD: We agree! Thanks for the chat 🙂 

‘take me home’ is available here