Borgore on the State of EDM: "There's Nothing New or Exciting"

Asaf Borger has been a lot of things.

"At Mansion, I'm free to try new things and play the new stuff I'm working on."

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The 27-year-old DJ's nearly decadelong career as his alter ego, Borgore, has taken him many places. He started his very own record label, Buygore Records, collaborated with pop superhero Miley Cyrus, and has released tracks on some of EDM's biggest labels. His laundry list of accomplishments is trounced only by the maddening number of days the Tel Aviv native has spent on the road.

For his return to Mansion, Borger promises to push the envelope. "We've been working on an EP, me and some of my favorite rappers. I can't really say who, but I'm just so ridiculously excited about this record. I literally got to work with everyone who inspires me and who I want to work with." Moving away from the dubstep, trap, and electro style that listeners have come to expect, he's now delving heavily into hip-hop. "We have this one kid on the label at Buygore, I don't want to say too much, but if he makes all the right moves for his career, he could easily be the next Tyler the Creator."

The shift in creative direction isn't exactly a sharp left turn for Borger. Lately, he's been entrenched in Atlanta's legendary hip-hop scene. "There's so much hip-hop and so many rappers coming out of Atlanta. It's like a cultural hub."

He's no stranger to Miami either, but it hasn't always been a pleasant relationship. During a 2013 show at Story, his set was cut short because of alleged complaints from the VIP section. "It was just a bad booking, honestly. I wasn't giving them what they needed, and they were just looking out for their customers."

This is an older and wiser Asaf Borger, at least more so than the one who sent a series of frustrated tweets after the show, including one that read, "Jesus where the fuk r u I hate everything I want to fight."

"I was frustrated artistically, but you know what? They told me I'd never play Story again, and less than a year later, I was playing. There's no bad blood.

"That's what I love about Mansion," he continues. "It's always a good time. I can just go and play whatever I want to play. I can play all the Calvin Harris in the world when I play a place like Story, but at Mansion, I'm free to try new things and play the new stuff I'm working on. Mansion has such a great sound system, and they always treat me very well."

Borger says he's also shifting away from the dynamic of writing "bangers" and is now more interested in writing songs.

"I'm moving away from 128 [bpm]. There are so many songs now, but they all sound the same, take "Animals" or "Tsunami" for instance. There's nothing new or exciting. The people I'm looking up to now are like Skrillex and Diplo. I want to write songs rather than write bangers. I want to be true to myself as an artist and create the music I want to create, collaborate with the people I want to collaborate with."

Asked who those people might be, Borger responds despondently: "Well, my dream collaboration is dead. I would've loved to have done a track with Amy Winehouse."

For now, though, Borger has his eyes on Miami. But don't expect to see him in the club during his downtime. "I don't do much in Miami," he says. "I like the beach and I love the food, but I spend most of my time working on new music in the hotel. I think Miami is one of those cities that plays a huge role in the deciding factor of new music, how it's changing, and what's going to be hot. It's inspiring."