Since meeting in the heart of Sydney’s once-thriving Kings Cross district ten years ago, Set Mo - the production duo comprised of Nick Drabble and Stu Turner - has become one of Australia’s signature dance acts, boasting 150+ million plays on streaming services as they become a trademark addition to festival line-ups and club billings around the country (and beyond).

Initially, the pair began as DJs in Sydney’s late-night house music dens, quickly becoming known as a duo that would traverse through dance music’s many edges within their sets. It would be in these DJ sets that their extensive knowledge of disco, funk, house, and techno would become clear; a blend of textures that would naturally seep into their sound as they began experimenting with production themselves not long after.

A decade later, Set Mo is one of Australia’s most consistent and successful modern-day dance music acts, with a list of accolades and accomplishments that span almost as long as the list of clubs and festivals they’ve played internationally within their long-winding history. They’re a rare act with just as much success in strobe-lit nightclubs as they do in radio and streaming, boasting a platinum-accredited single (‘I Belong Here’) and multiple gold-accredited singles (‘White Dress’, ‘See Right Through Me’), and consistent triple j high rotation amongst sold-out national tours and festival slots at Splendour In The Grass, Listen Out, Beyond The Valley and more. Before long, Set Mo was a hallmark act of a growth spurt for Australian dance music; their anthemic electronica captivating audiences wherever they’d travel. They’ve sold out national tours, played international dates, have stream counts in the tens of millions and even have the approval from musical pioneer Brian Eno; Set Mo being an act amongst electronica’s upper echelon.

Now, two years after their sound-defining and at that point career-encapsulating debut album Surrender, Nick Drabble and Stu Turner have grown - a lot. Amongst the chaos of the last two years, they’ve evolved from experiences both positive and negative, including Drabble starting a family amongst a global pandemic and Turner’s journey of self-discovery following the end of a long-term relationship. “There’s been a lot of changes,” the pair laugh.

It’s something that reflects in the pair’s musical growth, as shown on ‘Feelings’, a groove-shaking return to form that that showcased a sense of production evolution as they commence a new chapter of their journey. Likewise, it’s something further built upon with ‘Something To Dream Of’, an uplifting and re-assuring new collaboration with Melbourne-based musician Camp 8.

‘Something To Dream Of’ taps into the experimentation of production and songwriting that has kept Set Mo busy over a two year period largely absent of shows, capturing a sense of deep appreciativeness as the duo reflect on their journey thus far. “This song is about the feeling of starting a new chapter and leaving your comfort zone to chase something greater,” the pair say of the single. “It made us super grateful for the life we live, the opportunities we have and the support from our nearest and dearest to make what we do as a ‘job’ a reality. I had to call my parents all emotional to thank them for everything they’d done for me.”

It’s a theme that weaves itself amongst the ebbs and flows of the single’s uplifting and euphoric-building production and the lyrics that it pedestals, as well as in an accompanying video worked on alongside esteemed director Michael Dole (Flume, The Avalanches), filmed in New South Wales’ picturesque Northern Rivers. “We explore the themes of attachment, loss and preservation,” Dole explains the video, further emphasising the euphoria of “letting go” that’s ingrained into the single’s empowering lyricism.

Following the release of ‘Feelings’ in March, ‘Something To Dream Of’ tracks a continued evolution for Set Mo - something to be further revealed through more music to come. “Our new material explores these changes in our lives, and the positive or negative consequences you can find with change,” the duo detail.

This new material will continue to emerge over the next few years, ushering in an exciting new chapter for the Set Mo story as the duo come out of a period of quietness more in touch with themselves and their music than ever before. “We’re very much back again,” they tease.