JIMMY EDGAR

Playing games with music, using three EQs, no compression, nor reverb. Welcome to the glorious mind of Jimmy Edgar

Playing games with music – the Warped mind of Jimmy…

Jimmy Edgar signed to Warp Records at just 18 and has released four albums blending electro, funk, hip hop and techno, not to mention DJing across the world. He has used every type of tech imaginable, from custom software, to pure analogue hardware. Here he goes more EQ than compression, as he tackles our 15 questions…

How did you get into music? 1

JE: “Hello, I’m Jimmy. I became interested in music because it was reflective of my highest excitement. I love the whole process of creation and having fun with visual aesthetic. It’s amazing because I am always learning too!”

2 When and how would you say you became successful, or at least able to make a living from music?

JE: “I see success as the freedom to do what I want, when I want to. I was making a living from music from before I left high school. Even though I had taken odd freelance art projects here and there, music is always my main focus. I started DJing internationally when I was 19 and signed to Warp Records.”

3 What is your overall philosophy or approach when it comes to music?

JE: “Get into your zone and go with the flow for initial ideas; this is vital to starting ideas. This can start with anything including making beats, composing on a keyboard or playing with sound files. From there, I get creative with arrangement ideas and adding in new sections and movements. To finish a song is a big challenge for me as I go through the process many times and I mix while I produce. This is when I start to sculpt and design the sounds a bit more as that can be time consuming.”

4 When and how did you discover the route to computer music making and how has it changed the way you work?

JE: “I have been making music on computers since I was a teenager – I am very excited by new technologies. I started doing sound design in Cool Edit and making beats in FL Studio. My favourite thing to do is push the boundaries and discover the limitations of software.”

5 Tell us about your studio gear? JE: “My studio is based around Ableton sending out channels from an Apogee Symphony. This goes into a patchbay that eventually leads into a Burl B32 Summing Mixer. This runs through a master channel that includes the API 2500 and Maselec MPL-2 for peak limiting. Then it hits the Burl ADC to capture back into the computer via SPDIF. My patch point is the central station of my studio and I have patchable points to all my other equipment. My studio is always changing; however right now I’m using a large Serge modular, Quantech QRS, Eventide H8000, Nord G2, and Elektron Monomachine. Everything will get tracked through an API lunchbox with various preamps and EQ.”

What are your five favourite plugins? 6

JE: Waves Q10. “I love this EQ. It’s very easy and fun to use. I recently discovered subtractive EQing, so I am applying it to everything and it’s made an amazing transformation to my mixes.”

Waves R-Vox. “I use this plugin quite a bit to hit about -1 or -2dB from any given track. I find it’s very flexible for sounds without a lot of transients so I end up using it a lot since it’s pre

configured and I can just drag down the big slider for great results.”

Fabfilter Pro-Q. “EQ is so important to my mixes now that I like to have different options. I got turned onto this one recently so I am exploring the capabilities and learning about linear phase.”

Tritik Moodal. “I use this plugin to add weight and volume to sounds. It’s a resonator that can add harmonics on adjustable levels. Modal synthesis is a big part of my sound and this plugin has a great quality to it. I almost never use reverb so this takes care of what reverb is supposed to do for me.”

SIR Audio Tools StandardCLIP. “Wow this one is very useful! I don’t use compression and limiting very much, so this plugin replaces that and adds some more harmonic distortion to my sounds to give them a bit more life and less dynamics. Sound quality is extremely high!”

7 How does a Jimmy Edgar track typically start out?

JE: “It can start with an idea of any kind. A beat, a melody or chords. I like to play games with music when I am coming up with ideas for myself. My session last night was playing with chord progressions and reharmonisation using the Studio Electronics Omega 8. I wanted to see if I could make a song that each bar is its own song and doesn’t repeat. I like to have fun and make my own parameters.”

8 How do you know when you have finished a track?

JE: “It is when I am so excited to wake up the next day and listen to it. I also know a song is finished when I want to send it to anyone; I want to play it for them and watch their reaction.”

9 Any specific production tricks?

JE: “I feel as though I am a sculptor more than a musician. I ‘see’ music more than I hear it. I have almost no capability to remember anything I hear so I have to make a visual representation; that’s why I like using computers because of the visual feedback. Often when I am working on music I am constantly taking sections and sounds out, making sure the idea is full and there. I always remove any ‘silent’ audio from vocals or tracks. I’m highly clean and organised with my music. I love working with the summing mixer because I am limited to the amount of channels. My tracks never start with complicated ideas; they are always just a few sounds and if I can make that bump then I know it’s worth adding more. It has to have this solid foundation first, otherwise i won’t have the interest in working on it any more.”

10 Have you been involved in collaborations for this project?

JE: “Yes, I am currently working with 10k. Caash, Miguel and a lot of other vocalists. At this time, I am sending out instrumentals and receiving vocals from artists. I like this process but I am looking forward to relocating to Atlanta where I will link up with vocalists in real life again!”

11 What is on your wishlist in terms of studio gear?

JE: “I would love to try an SSL Sigma and I would also love to get some PMC monitors.”

12 What would you like to see developed in studio tech?

JE: “I would like to see more hardware like the Nord G2 Modular. This has incredible potential and amazing sound quality. More digital exploration on new synthesis like the Elektron Monomachine; less analogue synths trying to be something else.”

13 Any advice for playing out live?

JE: “Have a telepathic communication with the audience and understand the flow. This is how you become a great DJ, by finding that balance between creating an energetic substance and unexpected moments that engage the audience. It’s not as clinical as it sounds; it’s about having fun and surprising them, but also having the patience to do that very slickly.”

14 And from working in the studio?

JE: “Cancel all distractions! David Lynch said something that I felt. “As a painter, every four hours of painting equates to one hour of actual painting,” and although I don’t necessarily agree because I feel super efficient in the music studio, I think it’s relevant. And from Timbaland, I’ll paraphrase: “Do what you love otherwise you will burn yourself out”. You really have to follow your passion otherwise you will give into discouragements so easily. If you’re doing what you love, you won’t even have eyes for moments that could otherwise deflate you.”

15 What have you got planned? JE: “Many platinum records. Arigato money!”

Jimmy Edgar’s latest album Cheetah Bend is out now