E.S.O

 

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us today. For our readers who aren’t familiar, can you tell us a bit about yourself?

Hello. In a nutshell, I’m an Englishman in Berlin who makes music and runs a record label.

You are producing under the alias Earth Space Object (E.S.O). What is the meaning behind this and how did it come about?

I’ve lived abroad for 5 years now, and after watching Brexit unfold from afar, along with the UK’s increasingly cosy relationship with nationalism, I’m really not certain where my country is anymore. I feel comfortable saying I’m a European, and I love Berlin, but there’s still part of me that is unsure about where I belong – and I guess this is where the name came from. Of belonging to Earth and space but nowhere in particular.

You recently launched your record label Public Relations. What is the idea behind the label and what plans do you have for it?

The idea behind the label was born after waking up from the first lockdown with a newfound unwillingness to wait around for someone to say they’d like to put out my music. I had a few contacts from previous endeavors so decided to just go ahead and do it myself. Regarding plans for Public Relations, for the foreseeable future, you can expect a lot of E.S.O releases plus remixes from friends and idols.

The latest release ‘Versions’ is a remix package for your originals Red Curtain and Magic 777. Amarcord and Ian Blevins are the remixers on board, can you tell us about your relationship with them and how they came to remix?

Well, I’ve known Ian for around 4 years as he’s currently residing in Berlin and we once shared a flat together for a short time. I’ve always loved his music and when I decided to put the feelers out for a couple of remixes, he was the first person I asked. The second person was Amarcord, who I’d never met. But on the same day that I’d asked Ian, I came across Amarcord’s Age Of Intimacy EP online, and immediately knew he’d be perfect – if he agreed. So, I reached out and luckily he did. I couldn’t be happier with both remixes.

 

When making music, do you have a particular process or does it vary? Can you tell us a bit about it?

I tend to start with a rudimentary beat before finding a bassline or chord pattern I like. From there it’s vocals, which often determine how far I continue with an idea. I got into making music as a singer, so I can quickly feel out whether or not I can create a decent melody. If I do, I continue building the track. If not, I start again. I realised quite soon after I started producing that trying to force vocals isn’t worth the effort because it never works, not for me at least.

Can you tell us who your biggest musical influences are and why?

There’s lots of different music that I enjoy. Some of it bookmarks certain moments in my life but nothing has a completely direct influence on what I do. If I take anything away it might be a certain mood or ideas regarding the speed and structure of my songs. In a more general sense, the songs or artists I like often lead me in attempting to capture that feeling you get when you connect with something you love.  Off the top of my head, a few of the artists I often go back to are Deux, Virgo Four, Black Marble, Modern Art, and Cocteau Twins. But then I can also go to a club (not recently obvs) and might hear an Italo, New Beat, techno track, whatever, that I love, have no idea what it is or who it’s by but then still carry the buzz of it back into the studio.

As you are based in Berlin, can you tell our readers some good tips for visiting the city?

FUK’s, my local. It’s a cosy affair.

Are there any projects you have coming up that you can tell us about?

Just working on more E.S.O stuff but there’s also a track Amarcord and I collaborated on that’s coming out on a different label. More on that soon. Cheers!

*****

E.S.O Links:

Bandcamp: https://earthspaceobject.bandcamp.com/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/___e.s.o/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/earth.space.object