Some producers spend years in the background before making their mark. For Sonnet, the Melon EP isn’t just a debut on 1 More Thing. It’s a personal return to form after time away from public releases. What began as a single track submission quickly turned into a full five-track project, blending sweet melodies, darker edges and a subtle nod to early UKF-era sounds.

With DJs like A.M.C, John B and High Contrast already throwing support behind the release, and Rob Swire himself downloading the full pack, this one’s landed before it’s even out. We caught up with Sonnet to talk about demo drop pressure, cinematic intros, his DIY synth called Sonus, and why there’s plenty more still to come.

From demo drops to full release, how did the Melon EP go from a few tracks in the 1 More Thing inbox to a five-track statement piece?

I pretty much had one tune finished and I think that was ByeBye! I noticed 1 More Thing had posted about their demo drops and immediately sent it in. Based on the reaction from that stream I told myself I’d have to make a tune every week for the next demo drops. That’s essentially how the EP started! 

I hadn’t really put much of my music out there for a very long time (maybe about 6/7 years), so I was never sure if it would be well received. That first stream gave me some confidence actually to continue to work on music again! 

Let’s Go is a bold opener. It’s dry, punchy and wastes no time. Was that built as a set starter, or did it come together more naturally?

I always start my songs as if they were opening a set; I never write a drop first or work on drums. I pretty much try and create an atmospheric bed. I really enjoy listening to good cinematic intros to songs, so I always attempt to replicate that in my own music. 

Be honest, how did the name Melon end up as the title track? Was it a throwaway joke that stuck, or is there some deep fruity symbolism we’re all missing?

The actual, genuine answer is… I’m awful at naming songs. I normally, after finishing a track, look to my right and say to my girlfriend ‘Just say the first word that comes into your head’ It just so happened that after finishing that track, Melon was the first word she thought of. From there, it just stuck. Nothing more to it! 

Accentus brings a heavier, darker energy compared to the rest. What was your mindset when putting that one together?

I create a lot of what I like to call ‘sweet’ music, which I enjoy making, and I also like mixing it with slightly heavier drops. However, my idea for Accentus was that after 3 tracks of sweet and cute music, it would be cool to completely polarise that with an outright dark and moody song. 

CareForU carries a warmer, more rolling vibe, with a few subtle switch-ups along the way. Was that one built around a mood, or more of a technical exercise?

CareForU came about after I was messing around trying to create my own plugin with FL Studio patcher. I combined several different synthesisers that would play at different octaves, all pushed through incredibly heavy distortion. It essentially allowed me to write a bass line and a melody line all in one. That synthesiser mess, which I now call Sonus, is pretty much used on every track I make. 

It’s probably an incredibly convoluted and backwards way of making music, but I like that I’m the only one who has it. 

Bye!Bye! was included in the press pack but didn’t make the final EP. What made you decide to release it separately as a free thank-you instead?

It was the first tune I made for the demo drop. I really love this song, but we thought it'd be best to leave it off the EP as it seemed like a DJ tool more than a tune on the EP that tells a story. It's picked up a lot of support, so Dave and I decided that we would plan to release it for free after the EP has settled down a bit!

1 More Thing founder Dave Jenkins described this EP as a fresh take rooted in old school rules. Is that something you aim for when writing, or does it just come through in your style?

It’s not something I’ve actively thought about when making my music, but I can agree with Dave. Having had some time away from constantly listening to the EP whilst making it, I’ve noticed that it does have some old-school retro/arcadey vibes to it. I think that comes purely from having listened to so much DNB growing up, I tend not to listen to too much DNB these days, but I always find myself going back to my school/college go-tos (Pendulum, Chase and Status (more than alot era), John B, anything UKF put out whilst I was in secondary school! 

You’ve had support from names like A.M.C, John B and High Contrast. What sort of reactions have stood out so far?

Honestly, the support and feedback from the likes of those people you’ve mentioned have absolutely blown me away. A highlight has to be either K Motionz playing my tune at Rampage and then again for his summer sessions, or having Rob Swire (Pendulum) download this whole EP and leave feedback. As mentioned before, he has been and will continue to be a colossal influence on me and the scene, so knowing that my music exists somewhere on his USB or hard drive still doesn’t feel particularly real. 

It’s been a while since you last put music out publicly. How does it feel to be stepping back in with this kind of reception?

It's been a very long time!! It feels unbelievable to have received such an influx of support before the EP has even been released. 

I used to make house music under the name WATSN, and I'd become very disillusioned with the way the scene was going. In my spare time, just for myself, I used to make dnb (this was a good 6/7 years ago, if not more). 

I really hadn't stopped making music, I just didn't publicly release anything. I wanted to make sure that what I was making was unique and actually something I would enjoy listening to. I feel like I've got there with this EP, and now it's time to step out of the shadows! There won't be a long pause between the next release either, we've got a lot more planned!  

And finally… if you could take just one drum and bass track, by any artist from any era, to a desert island, what would it be and why?

This is an incredibly hard question. After much deliberation and a Rocky-style montage sequence of me running up some stairs holding several dnb records. I will have to say: 

Pendulum - Plasticworld ft MC Fats and TC, it has everything you’d ever want in a tune. One of the most beautiful intros that’s ever existed, with what I believe is an oboe and a sample of creaking ship noises (unbelievable). The fluid vocals of MC Fats carrying the intro into that even more fluid bass line in the drop, followed by even more beautiful harmonies, shouldn’t even be possible. I first listened to this song in 2007, and I still regularly listen to it to this day. I still try to play it in all my DJ sets. I would be pleased to hear it on a desert island, if anything, in the current state the world is in. I welcome it. 

If, for whatever reason, I end up being allowed to take two tunes (I’m being cheeky here), I would take Noisia - Motion Blur. How they managed to do so much with so few elements on this track, and still keep the listener engaged, is amazing. 

Big thanks to Sonnet for sharing the full story behind Melon EP. From forgotten plugins to Pendulum shout-outs, this one has all the right ingredients for a standout debut. The EP is out now via 1 More Thing, with “Bye!Bye!” dropping soon as a free thank-you to the heads who have shown support from day one.