Written Interview with Deft for FWD.DJ 2018

Listen to the mix here: http://www.fwd.dj/mix/fwd98-deft/

Your career has really built up a lot of momentum in the last couple of years, I think both because of the consistent quality of your productions and also the proliferation of your type of sound in the global scene. Have you learned any interesting lessons in the last half decade? Do you feel like your life has changed?

There have been major events that have happened over the past 5 years, both personally and with work. My outlook has changed a lot on life and music, and learning to adapt to this change has been tough.

But, something that I think is really important that I've learnt over this time is that perspective is really important to understand, internally and externally.

One of the things I love about your music is that I really never know what sounds/genres I’m going to hear in a new Deft release. How has it been for you to stick to your ground and push those boundaries? What would you suggest to other producers looking to branch out from both a creative and commercial perspective?

It's always great to keep people on their toes with music I think, but that hasn't necessarily always been my intention! I think I was just fortunate enough to be part of a generation of producers where experimenting was encouraged and pushing your ideas to different places was a good thing. It hasn't always helped in terms of categorising or placing me as an artist though..!

My suggestion to producers is to just have a focus of what you want to achieve and stick to it, things will just follow on from there.

Do you still produce in Fruity Loops? How do you think your DAW impacts your work flow and creative output?

I do still use FL yes (I'm praying for the day it comes to Mac..), I've been using it since I was 12/13, I'm 28 now and very set in my ways, ha. It works for me, there are definitely features and techniques that don't work as well as other DAWs, but you find ways around this to make it work for you. It might not always be the most productive or efficient way to do so but its just part of ones process. But each to their own, whatever works for you!

What does your studio look like right now? Favorite hardware and software?

I'm currently sharing a studio with some other guys from WotNot Music. We've got a lot of gear inside as 5 people are contributing to the room, but I'm mostly in the box. I'm really feeling Olufar Arnald's Kontakt instruments at the moment. Nostalgic sounds!

What are the 3-5 biggest techniques you’ve learned in the last 5 years for improving the quality of your sound and sound design? I really feel like you’ve stepped up this area of your game as you’ve matured.

Approach: I've tried ('tried') to go with 'less is more' over the past year or so, and really strip things down with my music and work with a few core elements. I have been relatively successful..!

Room treatment: Soundproofing, bass traps, speaker positioning etc really makes a big difference when you're mixing.

Equipment: I bought a second hand pair of Mackie HR824's a year or so ago which has been a big change, not sure I've quite gotten used to them yet!

What are some of the coolest/weirdest new VSTs that you think people should know about?

I haven't gotten anything weird in a while, Glitchmachines make some pretty intense plugs though.

Do you have an underlying musical philosophy that drives your sound or creative decisions?

If it sounds good, excites you and makes you feel something then its most probably going in the right direction.

What can you tell our listeners about this mix? Looks like there’s a bunch of new Deft tracks on it!

Yep, some unreleased bits from me inside, my remix for Artificial Intelligence on Metalheadz, some cuts from Havelock's new EP on 20/20, some new music from the Cosmic Bridge camp, some old favourites and some new favourites.

What’s coming up for you in 2018? What should our listeners keep their eyes and ears out for?

Later this year - keep an ear out!

Tags: Deft, Fruityloops