The Swindle Interview

Published On August 13, 2015 | By Leah Kennedy | Music

UK producer/DJ Swindle discovered his love of music at just eight years old, when he learned to play the piano. Fast forward to eight years later, when he acquired a set of production equipment, and started to create on his own. At 16, Swindle began creating records like a madman, gaining traction with local music fans, and eventually, some major artists and producers. Since then, he’s released a large body of work, and has stolen the hearts of music lovers everywhere with a dubby, jazzy, grime-funk sound that’s all his own.

He’s toured around the world and worked within major labels – including Deep Medi, Butterz, and Brownswood – which he feels have opened him up to “experiences that have massively inspired him as a person.”

Swindle’s latest record, “Peace, Love & Music,” (release date: September 25) could be depicted as a movement: to collaborate with artists, experiment with global genres, and become immersed within a multitude of cultures, ultimately producing a body of work that accentuates their qualities and uniqueness along with his own.

The album displays distinct differences among the track selection, highlighting several genres from London Grime, to uptempo Bristol beats, to the Glasgow and Mungo Hifi sounds; influences from the Far East, including Tokyo, Shanghai and the Philippines; and sounds from Cape Town, Amsterdam, and his hometown feature with the Swindle Live Family. The cultures’ diversities and defining characteristics are evident; but according to him, most people are “about the music” for the same reason, no matter where you’re from.

In a recent conversation with us, he said he’s been greatly influenced by early jungle and drum n’ bass music, from the heady, rhythmic patterns, to the dark, deep, intertwining layers–characteristics that reflect each genre, respectively. “The mix of sounds, influences and genres within them amazed me; that’s why I like making music that switches direction,” he stated.

He’s thankful for the time he’s put forth into traveling the world, learning the cultures and genre styles that get people excited. It’s helped him produce a great album; and now, he’s headed back on the road for the album tour to spread the love and share the wealth of music knowledge and culture. “Music has taken me to these places,” he says, “so I trust in music to keep guiding me.” For Swindle, there’s never a “typical day” in the studio, and no two days are quite the same.

At times, his brainstorming process is strategic, like an idea or a thought that sticks inside of your brain and lingers around for awhile, becoming louder and more repetitive until you finally act on it. But his creation process can be more go-with-the-flow:

Sometimes, I’ll stop whatever I’m doing to run to the studio and record an idea I’ve got going around in my head; sometimes, I’ll sit at my keyboard and just play what comes out. There’s no plan most of the time… I still let making music be fun, and I don’t want that to change.

Catch Swindle’s performance at the next edition of Lazercrunk at Brillobox this Friday, August 14, at 10PM. Resident DJs Cutups & KEEB$ will bring their blends of bass heavy beats to the stage as opening support. Tickets are $10 with presales available, and can also be purchased at the door.