Fresh off a release on the Artist Intelligence Agencies Pantheon, Shadients hard hitting electro based tracks are beginning to turn heads in the electronic music world. Having already released on the ever popular, Inspected label and with an upcoming release on industry superstar, Mat Zo’s label, Mad Zoo, there is no slowing down this talented producer. We got a chance to talk to Shadient and have him give us an insight into what fuels his grimy bass tracks and how he approaches his productions.
SoundShock: Hey, thanks for chatting with us! Before we get into any technical questions, who is the person behind Shadient?
Hey! My real name is Morgan. I’m 19 and currently living in Essex, England, which is sorta near London. I’ve been making music for almost 9 years 🙂
What made you want to start making music and get into production?
It’s a really long-winded story that a lot of my friends are probably tired of hearing because I used to talk about it a lot, but my background in music goes back to when I was super young, like maybe 3-4 years old. My parents used to play music in the house ALL the time. I got into production, however, through my dad listening to lots of french house compilation CDs in 2008-2009ish. I fell in love with Justice’s “Phantom PT. 2” and discovering a DAW was the best thing in the world for me.
What is one piece of advice that you wish you knew when you started out making music?
The one piece of advice (that i’ve only recently learned to take on board) is that there is absolutely no rush. Music isn’t going anywhere. There’s no rush to make the next big thing in music. Whether you’re a producer, engineer, songwriter, hell any career — your life is going to be a rollercoaster. You will have ups and downs where some of it you will expect and some of it you won’t. In the end it’s all part of the cumulative learning process that shapes you into the best you that you are today, so take your time!;
A big sticking point for producers is not being able to finish tracks. Do you have any specific techniques that help you get past this?
Honestly, I’m the worst person in the world to ask this question. I recently counted the amount of project files i have in my “unfinished/WIP” folder and it’s looking to climb into the 3,000’s now, but if i were to give advice on that front, i’d say to definitely dedicate different days between focusing on small details and days where you are looking at the big picture.
“Whether you’re a producer, engineer, songwriter, hell any career – your life is going to be a rollercoaster. In the end it’s all part of the cumulative learning process that shapes you into the best you that you are today, so take your time!”Shadient
What are your go-to effects and processing chains at the moment?
It varies quite often! I discover new software/plugins everyday, but if I had to say like 3 of them, it’d be DSP Nightshine (fantastic compressor modeled on the Alesis 3630), Image-Line’s patcher, and FL studio’s default wave shaper.
How do you approach writing your drops? Do you start with the drums, bass sound design? And how do you get past that 8 bar loop into a full drop?
Most of my songs start out by accident. In fact, I think all of them do, but the general theme of how they all start is just through me fucking around with new plugins or sample packs.
How do you approach writing your drops? Do you start with the drums, bass sound design? And how do you get past that 8 bar loop into a full drop?
I wouldn’t say I’m a competent enough producer to warrant giving definitive “how to” ways of getting big loud tracks, but one thing I know a lot of the big guys do (through analyzing) is heavy compression and attention to frequency content between sections.
Your mixes make great use of the stereo field to keep the track interesting, especially in the drops. Are there any specific techniques you use to create this interest in the stereo field?
I pay less attention to the left/right side of things and more to the mid/side of things. I always make sure the main elements are in the mid and the fluffy fun details are in the sides. Sometimes, if i’m bored, I will spend an entire session mixing the track with the master switched to mono just so i’m double sure that it works in mono.
With so much of the music sounding similar out there right now, how do you develop a signature sound that is true to you and expresses your own unique voice?
So right now there’s a huge focus on “signature sound” and “being original.” I think the message here is very very true and it means very well, but for a lot of people this can be a very intimidating and daunting task! What a lot of people don’t know is that YOU ALREADY HAVE A SIGNATURE SOUND!! You are making your music! There is only one you in the entire worlds population! If you’re looking to sound unique sonically, it can be really fun to glue together key core elements from your favorite music that has stuck with you (favorite music from your childhood).
Releasing on Pantheon, releasing on Inspected and now an upcoming release on Mat Zo’s Mad Zoo label. The sky is the limit for you right now! Do you have any tips for producers out there looking to get their music onto big channels and labels?
It’s quite simple really! Make good music and it will be heard. I promise 🙂
“A lot of people don’t know is that YOU ALREADY HAVE A SIGNATURE SOUND!! you are making your music! There is only one you in the entire worlds population!”
What can we expect from Shadient in the near future?
I don’t really have any plans other than to release my upcoming ep, Winter = Reality, then finish two more EPs and eventually an album 🙂
