29.12.11

A Recommendation - Davwuh - Pharaoh

This is a combination of recommendation and interview really. Today, we've got the Liverpool-based producer Davwuh in to tell us a little about himself, and his new self-released album, Pharaoh, which is a collection of tracks with AMAZING drum and synth work, quality vocal snippets that are perfectly placed, and pummeling relentless bass. Check it out here (or by clicking the artwork below), and read on to see what the man himself has to say...


NT: Hey man, can we get an introduction for those that haven't heard your stuff yet?
D: I'm Davwuh, a 25 year old producer from Liverpool, UK. I've always made dark, deep dubstep, but experimented with wobble tracks before returning to make darker sub-bass tracks in the future garage style on my new album Pharaoh.

Davwuh - 2 Souls

NT: How long have you been producing music? What sort of styles do you produce?
D:
I started making music when I was 13 or 14, so over 10 years ago now. My first "program", if you'd call it that, was Music 2000 on the Playstation, where I was making cheesy chart trance music with the premade samples. That led to Dance Ejay on my PC when I was 15, Sony Acid when I was about 16 and eventually getting Reason when I was 19 which I have been using consistently for the last 6 years or so. All that time I was learning music theory, practicing guitar - and I have dabbled with playing the keyboard a bit too.
I produce all kinds of styles of music and across my HDD you'll find hundreds of songs I've written ranging from prog rock, to metal, to film soundtracks I have done for friends and my own enjoyment. As for electronic music, I've tried it all - DNB, psytrance, house etc. But my main style is dubstep and garage and has been since around 2006 when I first got hooked on the sound - I immediately tried to emulate it. From there, future garage evolved and I latched on to that as it was always closer to my original sound, which was similar to the likes of DMZ, Skream, D1 etc. than the popular dubstep sound of today. I've tried my hand at louder, wobble-based tracks and had some success with my last album, but that sound really isn't for me, future garage is what I'll be doing going forward - or at least a loose variation of future garage.

NT: Who or where do you take influence from, musically or otherwise?
D:
I could list all my favourite artists and say they are my influences, but musical ideas are usually borne out of the most unexpected places. I could be listening to a song by a band like Tool and hear something that inspires me, which results in me making a future garage or dubstep track. And vice versa - I could be listening to Burial and end up writing a prog tune just from a flash of inspiration or a small idea that grows into a full work. As for my overall sound, I'm influenced by concepts like sci-fi, cyberpunk, spirituality and esoteric things. Writers like Philip K. Dick, William Gibson and their great novels are something that inspire me too. My last album 'Samurai' was inspired by my love for Japanese history oddly enough, and I did an enthusiastic write-up all about that when I put it out.

But if I had to liken my current sound to any other producer I would perhaps say Burial, Joy O, or maybe Ghostek but my music is still vastly different from their music.. Most future garage producers from those signed to the unsigned are very original in their own approach to the sound, much more so than other music scenes I find. Browsing around on Soundcloud you'll hear just as much good, original stuff coming from unsigned producers as you do from the labels. As for my sound, it's just a big blend of everything I like really and my music tastes are all over the place.

Davwuh - This Love

NT: Can you tell us a little about your album, Pharaoh?
D: Pharaoh is really the album I've always wanted to make. It has a loose concept and the album cover which is a blurred, colourful, distant image of a Tokyo street kind of sums up the mood of the album. Gone are the rigid dubstep drums of old and in is more rolling, organic percussion that blends well with the deep sub bass that runs throughout. Little vocal cuts here and there, euphoric synths, dark strings and the midtones of the rhodes piano sound all make up the sound. Some tracks even have keyboard solos which I guess you could call progressive dustep or progressive garage, but I don't get held up on names. I prefer to make music suited for private listening rather than being aimed at filling a dancefloor, which perhaps makes me different from a lot of producers. Though I feel a lot of producers in the future garage scene now are becoming more and more like this too, as it is a darker, more subtle sound in many regards.

The first track for 'Pharaoh' I made over a year ago and the last one I finished only a couple of weeks ago, so it has been a long time in the making. It has been a bit of a rollercoaster year for me and it's a great personal achievement to put this album out, which I am really proud of. I've always been a fan more of albums than single releases, like Burial's first two albums and I feel my album flows like an overall work and has a running theme to it, rather than it just being a collection of songs. I'm interested in creative writing as well as producing music, and I wrote a free verse write-up to accompany the album which you can find on my blog or on the Bandcamp site where the album is up for sale.

Davwuh - Untold

NT: Do you have any other releases planned?
D:
I love doing remixes of tracks just as much as I like making originals and I have an ambitious idea for an album full of remixes that I'm working on next. When it's done, Night Tracks will be one of the first to know.

NT: Finally, if you had to pick your three favourite "Night Tracks", what would they be?
D: Hard to narrow it down to only 3, but here goes...

D1 - Mind And Soul - I think D1 is an early producer who gets a bit overlooked and even though Midnight Request Line was the first dubstep track I ever heard, D1 was probably the first producer to make me sit up and take notice. Mind and Soul came a bit later I think, but it's such a sweet tune, I'm a sucker for that rhodes keys sound.

Joy O - Hyph Mngo - Bit of an obvious choice, but it's such a tune.

Skream - I (Loefah Remix) - Just one of the most menacing bass lines ever

NT: Thanks for your time man! So there you have it, check out his album, Pharaoh, available on his bandcamp now!