Recently our bouncer iLikeMeSumChicken had the privilege of interviewing the wonderful producer Aether, straight out of Glenrothes, Scotland. Enjoy this brief glance into his world!
JACR: Hello Aether! How are you doing today?
AETHER: I’m doing good thanks, and yourself?
Glad to hear it! I’m doing pretty well myself, thank you! My first question to you is simply, what did you have for breakfast this morning?
Aha, I had nothing more than a glass of milk
Ahaha, getting the protein in there I see! 1%, 2%, or skim…
Semi skimmed, I think, haha.
Sounds delicious. So how has 2015 been treating you so far? What do you have in store?
2015 has been great so far, I finally got ‘round to upgrading the “studio”.
Sounds awesome! The quotation marks around “studio” has me wondering what it looks like.
Well, it’s only a home setup although I’ve upgraded a lot of components. I purchased Komplete 10 Ultimate as well as the Kontrol S49 keyboard. I also purchased a Rode NT2-A condenser microphone and Zoom H5 field recorder. So in my head, I like to think it’s a studio, haha.
Ahaha, that sounds like a studio to me too! It helps when you can get everything you need in one place. Then you can keep putting out sweet, luscious tunes for our ears to hear. I know many, including myself, really saw you spring onto the scene when your track Silhouette was uploaded onto Sheepy’s channel last February. What were you thinking when you started to receive all this attention? How did this change things for you professionally and personally? Furthermore, how exciting was it to recently be promoted on Inspector?
When I received the message from Sheepy saying he was interested in uploading “Silhouette,” It took me a while to comprehend haha. He pretty much put me on the radar, then to receive not only another upload on MrSuicideSheep later that year with my track “Stargazer” but to have Inspector Dubplate upload one of my tracks, it’s still so surreal when I think about it. Receiving all the positive feedback really motivated me to write a lot more, but to also continue to improve and evolve my sound over time, which is why from my “Prologue EP” you get a taste of what’s to come this year.
I can only imagine, yeah! I was just about to ask you about the EP actually, but I think you may have already answered my question! I was going to ask if the word “prologue” indicated that we were going to hear lots more from you this year, and I have a feeling we will!
Prologue is exactly as the title suggests; it’s an introduction to my next release, which will be my first album!
Can’t wait! How far into the creation of this album are you at this point? Do you have a release date in mind yet, or is it too early to be thinking about that?
Well I started writing yesterday, so I only have a few melodies at the moment. With regards to the release date I’d estimate sometime in March if things run smoothly.
We shall definitely have our eyes peeled for it! So if you had the chance to collaborate with any musician on the planet, who would it be and why?
Hmm, that’s a tricky question as there are soo many haha! Sorrow & ZES I think would be outstanding. Both are unbelievable producers and the music they make I just naturally connect with.
Ahaha, those would both be awesome collaborations! I embarrassingly only first heard ZES when he released his “Hindsight” EP late last year! Glad to hear you’re a fan too! So what have you found yourself listening to lately? Any specific artists or track you’d like to open our eyes too?
As of lately, ZES’s “Hindsight” EP” is something I’ve been listening to a lot of. Emancipator, Eskmo & Phaeleh‘s albums have also been on repeat, as well as a few tracks I stumble upon on Soundcloud. One in particular, “I’ve Been Secretly Falling Apart” by Owsey, Jernalism & Resotone.
I’ll have to check those out! Awesome! So, if you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
I would travel all over the world! I’d love to meet all the musicians I speak to online in person. I’d also love to see all of the beautiful places on our planet, as there are so many amazing landscapes out there. Even here in Scotland, up north there are fantastic and inspiring sites, so that gets me really excited to see what lies over the ocean!
Just wait. Soon you’ll get a chance to tour, and then you’ll be able to travel to all of the places you are wanting to go to! I was wondering actually, what would you recommend people check out if they found themselves in Scotland?
The Isle of Skye. Probably my favorite place in Scotland. The Fairy Pools in particular which I am still yet to see, I’ve been there before but the weather was too bad see anything. So many beautiful landscapes too so I’d absolutely recommend the Isle of Skye to anyone and everyone.
Sounds like an awesome spot! If I ever find myself down there I’ll definitely check it out! So what do you find yourself doing in your free time? Do you watch any television shows or play any video games or things of the sort?
When I’m not writing music, working or at college, I do tend to play video games with friends. Right now it’s GTA Online, as it’s just a sandbox where we can all just mess around. Though I’m super excited for the release of Halo 5. I’ve been a huge Halo gamer since I first discovered Halo 2 on the original Xbox.
Have you had a chance to play the beta?
I have actually, it’s a shame I’m so bad at it hahaha. When matchmaking I tend to favor the SWAT game type as it’s the only one I’m close to being good at. From what I’ve played though, Halo 5 is going to be epic!
I’ve unfortunately only had the chance to play the beta for like ten minutes at a friend’s house, but I agree. It’s pretty fun! So who would you say has been your biggest influence when it comes to your music?
Musically, Asa, Culprate and Sorrow have been the most influential over time but as of recently, it would have to be ZES.
Those are excellent artists to be influenced by. So, I don’t want to put you on the spot, but I myself am a big advocate of excellent puns and so I was just wondering: what is the best pun that you’ve ever heard?
Interesting, there are lots of funny puns I’ve heard but I just cannot remember them as of right now; though I do remember this one: “I’m reading a book about anti-gravity. It’s impossible to put down.” I thought that one was simply amazing.
Ahaha, puns are just one of those things that the worse they are, the better they actually are. It’s wonderful! So where do you see yourself in say, 5 years from now? Or better yet, where do you hope to see yourself?
In 5 years from now, I would like to be living off of my musical work. Be it from my personal creations, or even commissioned projects for games and animation. Any job that allows me to write music.
Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but you are going to school for a program relating to music?
Correct. I’m currently studying my third and final year of Sound Engineering at Fife College.
That must help you when it comes to writing music I would imagine. Being able to properly manipulate the sound is a skill that is important when it comes to creating a beautiful piece of music, which is exactly what you do!
Thank You! It is actually the reason I started recording my own instruments and samples.
Oh! So it was you playing the keys and other instruments on tracks like Stargazer? I always find it impressive when an artist can truly create these days. When you record real instruments, it’s a different kind of sound than one that is simply computerized. I like that I’m hearing that realness in the sounds you’re creating!
I think Stargazer was the last track I never recorded real instruments on haha. But all of the tracks from the “Prologue EP” have either guitar or percussion recorded by myself.
Ahaha, awesome man. I can’t wait to hear what’s next! So I have one last question for you… I go by the name, “iLikeMeSumChicken” on plug.dj, and I was just wondering: do you like chicken too..?
Chicken is awesome! I can’t recall having any chicken that I have not enjoyed!
I feel you on that man… I feel you. On behalf of the Just a Chill Room staff and all of our plug.dj room members, I’d like to thank you for taking the time out of your day today for this interview! It was truly a pleasure, and I wish you the best of luck in 2015. We hope to see you soon on plug.dj!
Thank you! It’s been great chatting! I’ll be sure to visit the room as often as I can! Cheers!
Follow Aether here:
Soundcloud – Facebook – Twitter – YouTube