Hade: For starters, tell me something about yourself.
SM:My name is Greg Axelrad, I hail from Detroit, Michigan in the states. I've been playing music in some form all my life, and played in bands throughout the 90s as a teenager, then got into making electronic music of many styles in the late 90s/early 00's.
Hade: How would you define the sound of Submorphics?
SM:I guess my sound is a bit nostalgic of 1970s and early 80s warm, soulful music, mixed with classic jungle breaks and usually a dancefloor aesthetic. I try not to be too influenced by drum&bass trends, and choose to just make music that appeals to me, and hopefully has a bit of shelflife to it. I sample a lot of obscure old soul, jazz, rare groove, funk, and even classic-rock records from used record stores in the Detroit area. I love the art of digging for samples, its something I've gotten really deep into over the last 4 years or so. I also play a lot of the instruments in my tunes, I have a '72 fender rhodes, a Gretsch hollowbody guitar, and various synths.
Hade: What dragged you into the dnb sound?
SM:I didnt get into dnb until the late 90s, but wasnt hooked until discovering Good Looking Records around 2000 (I was a bit late.) Big Bud, LtJ Bukem, Makoto, etc really struck a chord in me with their more melodic stylings, and big vibes. Then in 2001 i started buying dnb records after discovering calibre, marcus intalex & st files, hospital records etc.
Hade: ow's the drum and bass scene in Detroit and in the USA in global? Is it still dark oriented or is it finally heading into more luqiud direction? Maybe there is a balance?
SM:The dnb scene in detroit is very very small, there have been various weeklies over the years, and i'd say we get an average of 10 headliners a year only. Mostly dark stuff like Tech Itch, Dylan, Raiden, Evol Intent, but LTJ Bukem, Nookie have come through recently. The biggest dnb scenes in America are in Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, New York, and maybe Texas. Theres lots of places in the states i still havent played yet though. Yes evil, dark dnb is bigger in America, with lots of producers making that style. On the more musical end theres myself, Atlantic Connection, Random Movement, Saburuko, Bachelors of Science, Stunna, Will Miles, Chino, Autumn, and many more coming through.
Hade: What's your favorite gig so far?
SM:I'll answer that one in February... so far in the north america, i'd say probably LA or canada.
Hade: Now let's get to the production part. When have you started producing?
SM:I started producing around 99 with various styles of electronic music (house, downtempo, some aphex twin type stuff, etc.) I got serious with dnb production around 2003ish, but had made some dnb before then.
Hade: What's your studio setup?
SM:Studio setup= macbook pro, running reason, cubase sx and recycle. I have a focusrite saffire audio interface, Event TR-8 monitors, and various hardware and instruments as mentioned earlier.
Hade: What would you recommend to the young producers ?
SM:Make music that appeals to you, dont worry about the latest dnb trends, work hard, and get lots of feedback- it helps to know what youre doing wrong.
Hade: Now a personal question, do you have girlfriend?
SM:Sorta single at the moment haha
Hade: Finally say something you would like to add, can't wait to see you in Skopje!
SM:I wont be in Skopje long, from about 22:00 until 06:00, but I'm excited to check out a city I haven't been to, and I'm sure it will be a wicked night!
Interview by Hade www.skopjeclubbing.com.mk |
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