TN:122 James Blake
Tape Notes
English - September 26, 2023 23:01 - 1 hour - ★★★★★ - 132 ratingsTechnology studio album albums artists bands behindthescenes johnkennedy music musicproduction newmusic Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Thanks to Audiomovers for supporting this episode. Their Listento Plugin has been a gamechanger for us and we use it across all of our remote interviews and recordings.
To see their full range of plugins, visit audiomovers.com and use the promo code TAPENOTES1 at checkout to get your free month (usually only two days).
In this episode, John is joined by James Blake to talk about how he wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Playing Robots Into Heaven’.
With the idea of simplifying his solo work primarily with synths and drums, James shares his process of crafting an album with the purpose of getting away from the computer, reflecting on the impact it had on his creativity and mental health.
A true master of modular synths, he talks us through the long journey learning to create ‘listenable’ music with them, discussing the ways in which they are able to create sounds that he couldn't have imagined.
Listen to discover the enlightening advice James received from Universal's Head A&R, how to best record your voice if you plan to pitch it, and how to adopt the mindset of making music for fun.
Tracks discussed: Loading, Big Hammer, Playing Robots Into Heaven
LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES
linktr.ee/tapenotes
Listen to ‘Playing Robots Into Heaven’ here.
Republic Records, Polydor Records, UMG Recordings
Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective
GEAR MENTIONS
Thermionic Culture Fat Bustard
Sequential Prophet 8
Native Instruments Massive
Intellijel Metropolis
Make Noise MATHS
Make Noise Black and Gold
Soma Pulsar-23
Roland SH-101
Roland TR-8S
Roland TR-909
Erica Synths LX-02
OEK Sound Soothe
FXpansion Geist
Valhalla Reverbs
Valhalla Vintage Verb
API Desk
Logic Pro
OUR GEAR
https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear
HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you'd like to help support the show you can donate as little or as much as you'd like here, (we really appreciate your contributions :)
Donate
Or you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns.
KEEP UP TO DATE
For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:
Instagram: @tapenotes
Twitter: @tapenotes
Facebook: @tapenotespodcast
YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast
Discord: Tape Notes
Patreon: Tape Notes
To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!
Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk
TAPE NOTES TEAM
Will Brown - Executive Producer, Engineer & Editor
Tim Adam-Smith - Executive Producer
Will Lyons - Editor
Andy Tindall - Videographer
Guy Nicholls - Production Assistant
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Thanks to Audiomovers for supporting this episode. Their Listento Plugin has been a gamechanger for us and we use it across all of our remote interviews and recordings.
To see their full range of plugins, visit audiomovers.com and use the promo code TAPENOTES1 at checkout to get your free month (usually only two days).
In this episode, John is joined by James Blake to talk about how he wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Playing Robots Into Heaven’.
With the idea of simplifying his solo work primarily with synths and drums, James shares his process of crafting an album with the purpose of getting away from the computer, reflecting on the impact it had on his creativity and mental health.
A true master of modular synths, he talks us through the long journey learning to create ‘listenable’ music with them, discussing the ways in which they are able to create sounds that he couldn't have imagined.
Listen to discover the enlightening advice James received from Universal's Head A&R, how to best record your voice if you plan to pitch it, and how to adopt the mindset of making music for fun.
Tracks discussed: Loading, Big Hammer, Playing Robots Into Heaven
LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES
Listen to ‘Playing Robots Into Heaven’ here.
Republic Records, Polydor Records, UMG Recordings
Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective
GEAR MENTIONS
Thermionic Culture Fat Bustard
OUR GEAR
https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear
HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW
If you'd like to help support the show you can donate as little or as much as you'd like here, (we really appreciate your contributions :)
Or you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns.
KEEP UP TO DATE
For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:
Instagram: @tapenotes
Twitter: @tapenotes
Facebook: @tapenotespodcast
YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast
Discord: Tape Notes
Patreon: Tape Notes
To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!
Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk
TAPE NOTES TEAM
Will Brown - Executive Producer, Engineer & Editor
Tim Adam-Smith - Executive Producer
Will Lyons - Editor
Andy Tindall - Videographer
Guy Nicholls - Production Assistant
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices