House music label Ascension on Wax present Toronto Hustle & Sean Roman’s ‘The Unity’ EP. This duo have had a real buzz to them of late with strong releases on Wolf, Local Talk, and Freerange this past year. Now with AoW, this is another EP which truly delivers for the house heads.
Side A is complimented by vocals from Detroit legend Javonntte, and a mesmerizing remix by 90’s deep house pioneer Abacus. Side B is for those deeper, early morning hours with a hard-hitting dub mix followed by a deep house roller. This versatile release is for those with a love for that iconic 90’s US East Coast sound.
Off the back of their latest offering we decided to catch up with the production team to find out a bit more about the EP and their journey!
WWD: Hey Guys, great to meet you! What’s happening in your world at the moment?
SR: Thanks for having us. Right now it’s a grey spring in Toronto. And we are getting ready to release our EP with Ascensions On Wax, working on some new music, and prepping for our show in Toronto on April 26th in Toronto at Boogie. And I believe Mark is getting over the flu…..
TH: Thank you for having us! Yes, this flu really knocked me out over the past 3 days. As Sean said, right now it’s a gloomy grey April in Toronto. We are currently gearing up for our final Toronto gig on April 26th at Boogie before we head off to the UK and EU for our spring tour! We are also getting new music ready for some solid shows!
WWD: Congratulations on releasing ‘The Unity’ EP feat. Javonntte on Ascension on Wax. Can you talk us through the release?
SR: It was a cool project to put together. It was early in me and Mark collaborating. So he did what he is great at and connected the dots in terms of the label and all the artists and remixes such as Javonntte and Abacus. Mark can take it from here….
TH: Yeah this is a very special one. We have reconnected with our regular collaborator Javonntte from Detroit, and we are really happy to have deep house icon Abacus work his magic yet again on one of our productions. I have been a big fan of AOW since the first Glenn Davis ep!! For this ep, we did vocal mix, a late night dub, Abacus remixed the title track “When You Look at Me and we rounded off the release with a track Sean had in his secret stash called “Run The Numbers” We really are proud of how this ep has taken shape and the promo reviews have been really inspiring to read!
WWD: How did your collaboration as a production team come about?
SR: We are both from Toronto and have played alongside each other over the years. I saw what Mark was doing with his label Selections and was impressed. I sent him some music and he put it out. The next logical step was collaboration! Mark was telling me he wanted to get back in the studio and we took it from there. He already had all these ideas to bring to the table…
TH: Yes Sean just said it best. We have been friends and have played together over the years. Sean is a super talented producer and has released on my vinyl only label, Selections Label. I have been producing for over 10 years myself with releases on Distant Music, DNH, and Strobe to name a few. I had been itching to get back at it and Sean had asked me to drop in to get some ideas flowing. I had written a vocal and had a loop going for a track called “Deep In This” When I sent it to Sean he loved it and we immediately jumped in and banged out a full ep that eventually dropped on Freerange Records that also had a remix by our good friend Demuir of Purveyor Underground!
WWD: What’s the easiest & hardest part of collaborating?
SR: The easiest part is sketching out ideas, the hardest part is finishing them! I think me and Mark are lucky in that respect.
TH: Yes, the easiest part is getting the ideas started. But, Sean and I have a really great flow together and even in times we may disagree on a path, we will always find a middle ground and wrap up the project with no issues. That is a rare thing these days. I also learn so much from watching Sean’s workflow, that had been a massive bonus for me.
WWD: Where and when was the EP made?
SR: The EP was made last year. And me and Mark’s parts were made in my home studio in Toronto’s West end where me and Mark both live. I imagine Javonntte’s parts were in Detroit….
TH: I started a loop in my studio, really just some drums and keys… and sent the loop to Sean. Then Sean will work his ideas and we got a solid arrangement going.. then we sent Javonntte the lyrics and the track to sing over.. then he sent us the stems and we then finished the track together. We will usually do the Dub mix in the same session and then the Final Cut. Abacus sent his remix (within hours of receiving it, which is crazy too lol)… and there you have it.
WDD: Did you use any notable gear or plugins to produce the EP?
SR: We used a Korg M3R for the keys, it’s a synth module from 1989 that has a lot of classic house keys on it…
TH: I’ll be honest. I was using Maschine and an akai MPC studio for the first few collabs but since then I have been using a lot more of abeltons features, along with the Korg.
WWD: What attracted you to work with Ascension on Wax?
SR: I didn’t really know much about them until Mark introduced me to the label…Excited to meet the AOW crew in Berlin next month though!
TH: I believe Max messaged me first but don’t quote me on that lol. Both Max and Lavan have been incredible to work with and this whole process has been amazing so far. We can’t wait to hang with them in Berlin in May. One thing that definitely attracted me to AOW was the quality over quantity approach to running a label. Something I myself do with Selections 🙂
WWD: For those who are just discovering your music, what do you hope they feel when they listen?
TH: I hope that they dance, feel happy and inspired. A big smile doesn’t hurt either.
SR: I hope they feel it’s authentic, and it puts a smile on their face.
WWD What’s been the highlight of your career so far? Any particular moment that stands out?
SR: Personally, DJing in places like Japan, and Russia. Also getting to work with amazing people and labels has been great (Shouts to Local Talk, Freerange and Wolf!!!!). We are about to do some of our first overseas gigs together, I am sure that will be a highlight!
TH: I think for me, after over 30 years, the biggest highlight for me is the last 5 years running Selections, DJing alongside people like Frankie Knuckles (RIP), and pretty much all my hero’S, and releasing on labels like Local Talk, Freerange, WOLF, Distant music etc Also, played an amazing event in Brooklyn at the end of 2023 at House Of Yes Alongside my good friend Demuir and the legendary Derrick Carter. That place was off the hook!
WWD: Can you share some insight into your creative process? Any rituals or methods that keep you inspired?
SR: Weed.
TH: I definitely get contact high from Sean’s weed lol, that helps. I will usually find my inspiration from the people that came before me. All my hero’s, producers and DJs that I admire. I am always getting ideas and inspiration from them.
WWD: As someone deeply involved in the house music scene, how do you see it right now?
SR: I will let Mark take this one!
TH: A lot of people may disagree with me. Especially those in my age bracket and who have been at this as long as I have. But.. that being said, I LOVE the scene just as much today and I did back in 92/93. While things have changed on how music is consumed, the quality of music that is coming out right now is incredible. At least for the genres that I am into. I get the same excitement now when I hear a really dope ep or new track that I did back in my late teens. I love how vinyl and the art of digging has come back to the forefront, and I love how the younger generation is really getting back to basics and purchasing records again. It’s a beautiful thing to witness.
WWD: What’s one thing you’ve learned about the music industry that surprised you?
SR: Whatever you do don’t pay full price for the Waves plugins because they will always go on sale…..
TH: Nothing surprises me anymore. But, getting your publishing in order is something I didn’t realize so many people leave out… it’s money that you earned, and that you deserve.
WWD: Finally, What does the rest of 2025 hold for yourselves?
SR: I will be releasing an album on my label Lately Bass, and some releases for Bare Selection, and 9d5dance. Mark what do we have on deck as THSR??
TH: The rest of 2025 is going to be a busy one! Selections has a stacked schedule from now into 2026! We both have a tour coming up in May! Follow up eps for Freerange and WOLF, as well as a lot more studio sessions and labels that we are excited to release on, but can’t say just yet, so stay tuned for a lot more THSR coming your way!
WWD: All sounds amazing, congrats and thanks for the chat 🙂
‘The Unity’ EP is available here