Pyongyang City Sessions

Strong statements of intent are always a good way to start a year.

Manchester’s Synkro proved himself a force to be reckoned with in 2010, releasing some of his finest work to date in the Autonomic framework, while still maintaining a presence in the wider bass music sphere, showcasing his diversity and a new sound with the superlative ‘Reservoir’ bw ‘Just Say’ on Box Clever.

He has very kindly put together a mix (bottom of the interview) for us with 2011 firmly in mind.  Packed full of dubs, exclusives and forthcomings it will help to illustrate why 2011 will be the year when Synkro finally takes his deserved place amongst the luminaries of the electronic music world.

We caught up with Joe to pick his brains on the coming year..

First question, this is a sound of 2011 mix right?

Yeah, but more like a mix of 2010 into 2011.  Obviously some of the stuff by me, Indigo and Biome is a few months old and elements of some of the other tracks are old-ish but most people wont have heard them yet.  Kind of like end of 2010 into 2011.

What have you taken out of 2010 that will influence/inform you in 2011?

This year (2010) I’ve had less releases in a year than I’ve ever had, last year I put out about 10 releases whereas this year I’ve had four.  I feel there has been more quality control, what has gone out has been a higher quality of work.

This reduced output, has this been your decision?

Yeah definitely, also over 2010 I didnt’t really make any dubstep, which is mainly what I’m known for, I put out one dubstep release that I had made months ago. I feel that I’m changing in my sound and going back to what I always wanted to do.

Which was?

Really, Drum and Bass, but not Drum and Bass as its known as a genre but what has happened with the Autonomic thing ,that’s the main major influence that has changed my sound personally over this year, but its not so much a case of changing, more about fitting in.

So you’ve adapted your sound to fit in that Autonomic bracket?

Well, I think I already fit in with it without really thinking about it, it was already there and I’ve just taken it onboard.  I haven’t just focused on just putting out dubstep releases, I’ve tried to focus on just making more quality music.

What does autonomic mean to you?

A respect of older music.  If you try and keep up with everything that’s new you end up tripping over stuff that’s already happening, the autonomic sound is taking from music that has been there for years and putting it in a new context.  Its made me listen back to music I heard when I was younger that inspired me.

Give us some names..

Groups like Loose Ends, Zapp and Roger, stuff that I wasn’t necessarily conscious of when I was younger but was there.  The whole 80s Rnb/Soul/Funk thing is a massive influence, it was always around me but I never really picked up on it until the podcasts made me think.

So the podcasts have been an influence?

Yeah, definitely.  Its interesting too how the tunes of mine that dBridge and Instra:mental have put on the podcasts fit in with the influences without me even really knowing it, it made me wonder where my sound really came from and prompted me to go and look deeper.

I always thought your roots were inherently Dubby?

Well they always have been, that’s why I make bass driven dubbed out sounds.  80% of my production is reverb and delay, which are obviously dub techniques.  You might not pick up on it initially but delay is a big part of my production, if the layers of delays and reverbs weren’t there, it would sound dry as fuck.  That all comes from the dub that my dad used to play me.

Whats happening in the first few months of 2011?

I’ve got a vinyl release with Versa on (US label) Pushing Red sometime soon, which should be good, I’ve been in touch with Heath who runs the label for a while.  Me and Versa have got a similar sort of style and appreciation for chords, so it was good to work with him.  Another tune of mine ‘Sketch’ is going to be available as a digital download on Kasra’s ‘Critical’ label soon too.

How about on a 170 tip?

Well, ‘The Way’ is forthcoming Autonomic at some point in the near future, with an as yet undecided B side.  ‘Guidance’ by me and Indigo should be coming out on Exit at some point too.  ‘Prologue’ is coming out on Blackout Music with ‘Summer Blues’ on the B side, again sometime in the near future!

How did it feel for you and Indigo to be included in the Mosaic release?

Sick.  We didn’t realise we were going to be part of that.  We knew those tunes were going to be released on something to do with Autonomic or Exit but when the idea came together obviously we’re honoured to be a part of it.  It’s a big thing for Drum and Bass and Electronic music in general.

Do you ever feel disconnected living in Manchester, when, although some of the artists (Abstract Elements, ASC) live abroad, the main hub of the sound you follow is in London?

Not really, I don’t like to claim territory with music.  Good music is good music and just because my music is made in Manchester, it doesn’t mean its Manchester music, I don’t see it like that.  Music is worldwide and its just good to be part of something as established as Exit, as I said, its an honour to be a part of it.  We don’t keep in contact constantly with all the artists involved but there is definitely a mutual respect amongst us.

Other than Guidance, any more plans for collabs with Indigo?

Definitely, we’re constantly working on tunes, whether its working in the studio together or just passing parts to each other, we’ve got a lot of things going on.

How come you work so well with each other?

We share a lot of influences, we like similar sounds, progressions, ideas, even down to pieces of ambience or noise.  We’ll settle on some ideas that must sound completely obscure to some people, but we find that it fits where it needs to be.  We also come from different musical backgrounds, Liam came from Techno and tends to do a lot of live automation and on the spot editing rather than working in a loop and getting things super tight whereas I came from producing Drum and Bass and I need everything to be perfect, samples cut up right, no clips.  It works though, I tidy up bits that he does but he makes bits that I do more raw.

Biome is another brilliant Manchester producer, you’ve been working with him right?

Yeah, Indigo works more closely with Biome than I do but we are working on bits together.  Nothing is set in stone but there will be at least three tunes by all three of us ready to go out, no ideas on what label or anything.

Any new producers we need to be aware of?

On the Drum and Bass arena mix I did, the second tune is by a guy called Stickman (part of the PYC collective, one half of System Erra and one half of Dark:Up) and I’ve been listening to his music for a long time.  He’s a good friend and I’m confident that his tunes will do something big this year, I’ll always support him.  Mode, who features on the Mosaic release is from Bolton and he’s another young talent, he’s doing big things with his other alias ‘Until Silence’ (Third tune on the mix) Also Dub Phizix is another Manchester producer who I feature in my DnBtv mix.  Also, Versa is another producer doing big things.  Obviously not that new but I’m also intrigued by Boddika.

Have you experimented with that sort of sound/bpm that Boddika and others are looking at?

I don’t want to pigeon hole myself into one genre, even when I was making dubstep I tried to cover the whole spectrum.  I feel that over the past three years I have found my own sound and now I can just apply that sound to any tempo I feel like.  I’m not necessarily trying to fit into a genre, I’m just trying to make music that I’m satisfied with; if people feel it along the way then that’s a bonus.  If they don’t, then they don’t, I’m not trying to make music to please other people anymore, I make music that I would like to listen to, I know that sounds selfish but..

I think that’s a philosophy that is more likely to draw your best work out of you, no one is more critical of your work than yourself..

One thing that people might have picked up on is that I was supposed to be releasing an album last year, the reason I didn’t is because I felt a bit rushed into it.  I don’t know for definite but I feel that this year I’m more ready to put something together, instead of just picking a collection of tracks that could be 12”s.

Do you want to use existing tracks or create something entirely new in the album format?

Bits of both, ideas from tracks I’ve made.  I might have ideas that are two years old but could still form part of the album, obviously though it would all end up being new music, only elements and ideas and parts of my sound.

What are your predictions for the music industry in 2011?

I think genres are dying, I think more and more it’s a lot more about a track, it doesn’t matter about genre or tempo.  Its reflected in club nights, there isn’t a night you can go to now without hearing pretty much every genre.  Physical records sales are dropping and the music industry is relying more and more on the Internet.  Now it’s not so much about the record label pushing music on the people, but people pushing music on the labels.  The mainstream and the underground are merging because people do want to listen to everything these days, that’s not a prediction, this is happening.

Is this a good thing, bad thing, or just something that’s happening regardless of opinion?

Bit of both really, it’s just the way the industry is going.  It makes it more relevant for producers to make music for themselves, because the audiences are always there but it becomes about whether you are in it for the money or the music.  There are benefits obviously, if you’re an underground producer who could crossover and make a track for the mainstream that could make some money, its up to you if you want to do that.  I’m sure there are a lot of producers who are capable of doing that but it’s all about your integrity.

The producers I work with though are all in it for the music, no question about that.

The attitude towards the industry between fellow producers is quite good in Manchester..

Definitely, I think that might be because there isn’t as much demand for it to be about the money up here, the scene isn’t as big as it is in the south.  There is pressure in London to be part of that mainstream thing.

I think there is more space to breathe up here..

There is a scene up here but artists, like you say, do like their own space.  We do work together but we like to push our own sounds too and not rely on other people’s success.

Anything else we should know about?

Well, I have been working on a live act recently, most of my productions at the moment are based around a live format.

Do you enjoy that more than processing?

Yeah, I come from a live background, being a drummer.  I’ve used the last few years to gain confidence with a computer understanding how to make the sounds I want electronically but as I said, I’m going back to my roots.  Seeing Mount Kimbie,Dusk and Blackdown and Submotion Orchestra live made me want to pull away from Dj-ing and focus more on a live product.

Would you like to end up with a full band?

I’m working on my own things, but me and Indigo have been working with a keyboard player, violinist and a vocalist and a band will come out of that though it might not be associated with me or Indigo.

What role do you two play in the group?

Mainly engineering but in a live set up, we will be on the stage and we will both be triggering samples and playing things in live.  Me and Indigo both come from a live background originally so we understand what it takes to work as a unit, like I said before we both gained a lot of inspiration from the three acts mentioned above.

A big turning point for me was coming on after Submotion Orchestra had played (at Locked Soundsystem) and I was just embarrassed, we couldn’t do our sound any justice just standing there and playing CDs after what they had just done live.  It made me wake up to the fact that it’s not about the hype; it’s about what you believe in personally, that’s what 2011 will be about for me definitely.  I want to be able to perform what I make live, instead of just playing it on a CD.

Do you think you will be able to put more of yourself into live music?

Definitely.  Anything that I have produced, even if I have played live elements into it, it is still trapped in time, it’s a recording, that will always be what that is.  If you go and see an artist live you want to see something different from that recording.  With the technology these days anyone can be a DJ, and the essence of DJing is just selecting tunes, whether you have fresh ones or not.  Coming from a live background I feel that I should pay that some respect and give the audience something they can’t give themselves.  I want to bring more emotion to the audience and have a greater connection; I want them to listen to something they won’t be able to listen to again.

That said, I will still be producing..

Heres the mix link, tracklisting below…

Download PYCMIX002: Synkro