MakeItGood x FatKidOnFire #56 - Ghost Note

We’re back with a bang with our latest MakeItGood x FatKidOnFire feature. After featuring the Perverse boys, our first ever production duo from New Zealand, we’re back there 10 days later interviewing a producer who featured heavily in Perverse’s guest mix…

When we first discovered Perverse, we also found a few other producers pushing the dungeon sound that we’ve grown to love so much. None of this Skrillex-like “insert filthy dubstep comment here” noise; dubstep how it grew up sounding in the underground clubs in London way back when. The good stuff that introduced some of us to the genre, back on Caspa and Rusko’s FabriceLive.37.

So when we came across Ghost Note, who quoted the same love for that dubstep compilation, you can imagine our excitement. And when Jacob offered us up a guest mix it almost got too much! We got him down for a chat, to find out what his influences are and what’s in store in the coming months. Find Ghost Note on Soundcloud and Facebook and grab the DL link after the interview below…

Who is Ghost Note? 

Ghost Note is the name I produce the music I love under, it’s kind of a bonus that some other people enjoy it as well.

What got you into mixing and producing dubstep? 

One of the things that really got me into dubstep is the way producers would use space in their tunes, almost putting emphasis on what isn’t there… It’s something you don’t find in most electronic music. The earlier dubstep had such a focus on rhythm, atmosphere and emotion that just seemed to fit in with my tastes perfectly.

I think when I stopped enjoying the music I had to play as a DJ (when things started getting all heavy and wobbly) it really motivated me to bring back those vibes via my own music.

What’s your style - big, dark basslines or as filthy as possible? 

I’m focused on deep bass, organic atmospheres and scattered drums with a raw dark garage influence. I do my best to avoid crystal clear over-compressed production, it makes for loud and crisp tunes but it takes away so much of the natural ambience that adds to the atmosphere of the track.

When it comes to more dancefloor-orientated tracks I prefer to focus on rhythm and bassweight rather than ear-abusing wobbles and growls.

What software do you use to produce your tracks? 

Mostly FL Studio 9, I’ve used Ableton and Logic in the past but I find I work best with FL.

Turntables or CDJs? 

Turntables when I can, although it’s pretty difficult having to cut acetates of my own tunes in New Zealand and I don’t like to play Serato, I’m not a fan of having a laptop anywhere near me while mixing.

How long have you been producing and DJing? 

I’ve been DJing for around 4 years now, I started playing around with production about 2 years ago but have only really made it my focus for the last 6 months or so.

What’s been your best gig and if you could DJ alongside anyone, who would it be? 

Really enjoyed opening for Distance last year, he’s definitely one of my favourite producers and the gig was plain mental.

I think Kode9, Mala and Kryptic Minds would be at the top of the list… Followed by Ruckspin, Loefah, Breakage and Jack Sparrow.

More than anything, I’m looking forward to doing some gigs over summer with Perverse and Tallan. They’re both pushing the deep dubstep sound coming out of New Zealand right now!

Who are your top 5 dubstep producers at the moment; and why?

1. Author – I kind of get two for one here, Jack Sparrow and Ruckspin are two of my favourite producers and their collaborative album is going to be my release of the year.
2. Kryptic Minds – Huge influence on my own sound. By the looks of some of their recent mixes, they’re sitting on a lot of fresh tunes so I’m hoping for another album soon.
3. Kode9 – He wrote a book on sonic warfare, how could his music not be amazing?
4. Formless – One of my favourite up-and-coming names and every tune I’ve heard has been quality, looking forward to seeing where this guy is going!
5. Perverse – Hit the studio with these guys earlier in the week, absolutely prolific producers… They’ve been dropping quality tunes every few days since they started. They’re starting to get some serious DJ support and I think everyone should keep an ear out for them doing some huge things in the future [hear hear, we agree]!

What’s the future of dubstep - where do you see the genre going? 

I see a lot of dubstep-influenced sound being popular for the next few years, I see a lot of established producers mixing the dubstep vibe and ethic with other genres. Future bass, garage and 2-step vibes are constantly evolving, I’ve heard some incredible music down around 95bpm happening recently too!

For dubstep as we know it, I’m seeing deep meditative vibes along the lines of 2006-2007 era dubstep coming back in a big way with far more advanced and innovative production. Dungeon sound!

Any forthcoming releases we can look forward to? 

In the last week I’ve dropped a 7 track E.P “Phantom Frequencies” [go cop from Juno!] along with a few free giveaways on my Soundcloud and Facebook page. Future releases are in the works already too, so keep an eye on Facebook for updates!

Have you got any advice to upcoming DJs/ Producers? 

Make the music you love because you love it, your music should be a reflection of who you are. I think too many people are trying to emulate other artists rather than do something unique and innovative, so really focus on forging your own sound. I think the most important thing is to practice… Lots! Critique your own work and don’t be afraid to challenge yourself to improve aspects of your production.

So we’ve had a hugely insightful interview from Jacob and now we’re getting to the really good bit. Ghost Note’s mix is 45 minutes of pure bassweight and features some pretty serious dubs. Check the free download (as always) and hit us up if you’re feeling it. We know we are!

Ghost Note x FatKidOnFire mix by FatKidOnFire

Track list:

1. Doctor P - Big Boss (Ghost Note’s Bro City Boss Dog Bootleg)
2. Tallan - Lure
3. Ghost Note - Nine Nights
4. Perverse - Aurorae
5. Ghost Note - Akira
6. Ghost Note - Disappear
7. Perverse - Keras
8. Ghost Note - Unknown
9. Ghost Note - Seclude
10. Perverse x Ghost Note - Untitled
11. Ghost Note - Dynamic
12. Ghost Note - Havana
13. Ghost Note - Weight o’ Eight
14. Ghost Note - Akira (Rinsey Jones remix)
15. Mala - Forgive
16. Burial - Night Bus (Clueless remix)

Let us know what you think of Ghost Note mix and interview via Twitter or Facebook.

Lara

MakeItGood x FatKidOnFire #53 - Perverse

We’ve had a fantastic run with our recent MakeItGood x FatKidOnFire features. We’ve celebrated our 50th – with an exclusive EP from Killawatt and a fantastic guest mix from Sweden’s Dubstep Bastards (along with interviews with Thelem and Holland’s TMSV). Today sees yet another first for us, with our first interview with the Auckland-based Perverse. Brett and Alex have been releasing some massively exciting dubstep way out in New Zealand and their mix is testament to the skill coming out of Australasia at the moment. Keep locked to their Soundcloud account for their latest tracks (they’re on a serious roll at the moment releasing clips every few days) and follow them on Facebook for everything else. Keep track of these guys – you are going to be hearing a lot more of them!

1. Who are Perverse?

Perverse is a duo of Alex (Zander) and Brett (Ducer) from Auckland, New Zealand. We were both born on the opposite sides of the world and we feel it’s our years growing up in those different countries, mixed with the lifestyle here, that has drawn us to the sound that is dubstep, and given us freedom to bring those experiences and feelings and put them into our songs.

2. What got you into mixing and producing dubstep? What’s your style - big, dark basslines or as filthy as possible?

Well, both of us were messing around with producing for a short period of time. We had mutual friends who introduced us to each other because they thought we might work well together, bring each of our own strengths to the table and see what we could come up with. We sat down and made a tune and felt quite in sync. This stemmed into the sound you now know as Perverse. Alex started producing DnB and Brett started with hip-hop. We both loved the deep, dark traditional side of dubstep and felt we could put our own touch on it. We tend to lean towards the darker, sub-heavy side of things as realistically that represents our personalities perfectly.

3. What software do you use to produce your tracks?

• Alex - I use FL Studio 9 and a bunch of VSTs and plugins.
• Brett - Logic pro and multiple AU’s and plugins.

4. Turntables or CDJs?

For us it’s been vinyl as that’s the hardware we own. Personally, we like the feel of the moving vinyl and the almost intimate interaction you have with the hardware. Serato is awesome for playing out those digi-only tunes and for those of us that don’t have any vinyl releases as of yet…

5. How long have you producing and DJing?

Collectively about 2 years but seriously around 3 months ago.

6. What’s been your best gig and if you could DJ alongside anyone, who would it be?

• Alex - Noisia, sick night. I would love to DJ alongside Kryptic Minds.
• Brett - For me its a tough one between Kryptic Minds and Kode9. I would love to play next to Kryptic Minds – they epitomise everything i love about dubstep.

7. Who are your top 5 dubstep producers at the moment; and why?

In no particular order:

1. Kryptic Minds - originators of the “dungeon sound”. Dudes can do NO wrong. If their name is in there we know it’s our buzz
2. Distance - The dude is so, so versatile yet has this sound that is unmistakable
3. Noisia - Their versatility and top quality productions are unmatched
4. Mala - His traditional sounding percussion and interesting basslines are impossible to ignore. He could literally do no wrong
5. Loefah - BASS! The king of sub bass hands down. His minimalistic percussion and heavy bass are unparalleled.

8. What’s the future of dubstep - where do you see the genre going?

We like the direction it’s going at the moment, back to the traditional style from a few years ago. It’s slowly moving back towards that with all the artists here pushing it (Truth/ Optimus Gryme/ Ghost Note/ Tallan). To be honest we just make what we make because it’s the sound we both feel. No matter where dubstep goes, we’ll continue to do our thing and not pigeonhole ourselves.

9. Any forthcoming releases we can look forward to?

We definitely have some hush-hush stuff being sorted at the moment. But we’d like to give a shoutout to Requiem Audio, Optimus Gryme Recordings and DiaMind Records and all the others that are helping us out and showing interest in us. Our goal is to get a vinyl release so that’s what we are slowly pushing for.

10. Have you got any advice to upcoming DJs / Producers?

First and foremost, respect. If you show a producer respect you’d be amazed at how friendly most people are. There are very few egos in the scene that we have experienced, and all that took was just saying a casual hello and not being pushy about things. Be persistent and dedicate time and effort into this, it’s definitely not as easy as you first think… Trust us the effort shows. Kutz from the UK actually gave us that advice and it was never taken seriously until a few months ago. For us it was LOTS of late nights, early starts for work, back into the studio. Always try and finish a project, making 16 bar loops is a bad habit to get into. And lastly we’d like to give a shout out to Ghost note, Tallan, Vyron, RDG, Disonata, Percept, Kasket, ARtroniks, Optimus Gryme, Droid Sector, Boot, Sook, Compa, Bunzer0, Crisis, NoMan, Formless and everyone else for the support.

The Perverse guys have seriously done themselves proud with this mix. More than half of it features talent from New Zealand and almost the entire track list is composed of unreleased premium bassweight. This is one of our favourite mixes from the entire series of MakeItGood x FKOF features, so grab the free download below and get it on the stereo. Be sure to let us know if you agree!

Perverse x FatKidOnFire mix by FatKidOnFire

Track list:

1. Soulware - Return to the Source Part2 (dub) NZ 
2. Perverse - Tepidus - (dub) NZ 
3. Arkotypes - Impulse (dub) NZ 
4. Kuss & Obi - Ursa Minor (dub) UK 
5. Perverse - Mizrahi (Forthcoming Requiem Audio) NZ 
6. Mala - Eyez ( ARtroniks Rerub ) (dub) Belgium 
7. RDG - Minacious (Forthcoming Dubliminal) Denmark 
8. Perverse - Shaitan (dub) NZ 
9. Tallan - Eyes up (dub) NZ 
10. Optimus Gryme - Subtribe (dub) NZ 
11. Perverse - Gibberish (dub) NZ 
12. Percept - Altered State (dub) UK 
13. Bukez Finezt - Hungry Bowser (Forthcoming Bassliebe Records) Germany 
14. Disonata - Shadow Catchers (dub) UK 
15. Optimus Gryme - Dreamstate (dub) NZ 
16. Ghost Note - Dynamic (dub) NZ 
17. Perverse - Glacier (dub) NZ

Let us know what you think of Perverse mix and interview via Twitter or Facebook.

Lara