TN:45 Ghostpoet

John is joined by Jack Patterson and Grace Chatto of Clean Bandit to talk about how they wrote, recorded, and produced some of their early hits. Clean Bandit are an English electronic group formed in 2008, known for blending classical music with electronics and pop. While they gained early attention with the track ‘Mozart’s House,’ their 2014 hit ‘Rather Be,’ featuring Jess Glynne, won a Grammy and earned the band global recognition. Now pop mainstays, they have released numerous chart-topping collaborations, including ‘Rockabye’ and ‘Symphony.’ With two studio albums to their name and new music on the horizon, their most recent work sees them teaming up with Anne-Marie and David Guetta. In this, part one of our conversation, Jack and Grace look back at their process of creating ‘Rather Be’ and ‘I Miss You.’ In addition to discussing how they programmed the synth at the very centre of their early music, the pair recount stories of writing on the Tube and possibly one of the most intense vocal sessions of their career. Tracks discussed: Rather Be, I Miss You TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. ROLAND Get 10% off Roland Cloud Ultimate Membership with the code TAPENOTES RC-1024 at rolandcloud.com MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LISTEN to ‘Rather Be’ here.  LISTEN to ‘I Miss You’ here. Atlantic Records UK LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS Antares Harmony Engine Soundtoys Little Alterboy XLN AUDIO RC-20 reFX Nexus Synth That Sound Drumline Ilya Efimov Plugins Spectrasonics Keyscape Mellotron AKAI EWI Midi Controller Native Instruments Kontakt Conny Plank's SSL Desk Ableton Operator Synth Ableton Avid ProTools OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

20 Elo 20241h 32min

John is joined by Alex Cook, better known as A. G. Cook, to talk about how he wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Britpop’. A. G. Cook, is a London-based artist and producer. After studying at Goldsmiths University, he founded PC Music, a label shaping hyper pop with artists including Hannah Diamond and Danny L Harle. His debut solo albums, ‘7G’ and ‘Apple’, arrived in 2020. In addition to his own music, Alex has shared his production talents with numerous pop icons, including Jonsi, Madonna, and Caroline Polachek, and Charli XCX. In May 2024, he released his third studio album, ‘Britpop’, a 24-song exploration blending pop, experimental electronics, and acoustic sounds. Catching up at Strongroom Studios, Alex guides us through the three distinct chapters of the album, digging into the production and song writing approaches he took to make them stand out. As well as sharing some intricate plugin demos, we hear stories of developing a harmonic style, meticulous automation and what it means to be an aggressive listener.   Tracks discussed: Heartache, Serenade, Lucifer TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LISTEN to ‘Britpop’ here. New Alias LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS Soundtoys Filter Freak Waves MetaFlanger Deamtonics Synthesizer V  Reveal Sound Spire Xfer Serum Xfer OTT Sonic Charge Synplant 2 Logic Compressor Native Instruments Reaktor Native instrument Razor IK Multimedia Mixbox Udo Super 6 Synth Sonic Academy Kick 2 Arturia Vocoder V Melda Productions M Bit Fun Electro Harmonix Pitch Fork Roland TR-606 Roland Juno Synth Rode Microphones Sony C800G Shure SM58 Arturia DX-7 Soma Synths Lyra 8 Logic Pro OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

6 Elo 20241h 59min

We’ve been having a look back through the Tape Notes archive to bring back some of our favourite early episodes that you may have missed. This selection is our conversation from November 2019, with Sam Shepard, Floating Points. EPISODE NOTES In this episode John heads to EMS4 studios in Shoreditch to chat with Floating Points a.k.a Sam Shepherd, about how he recorded and produced his latest release, Crush.  Talking from deep within Sam’s musical laboratory, we peer behind the curtain and find out how Floating Points music is created and crafted, pulling apart some of the tracks from his second album along the way. We get to hear how live performance and classical music are a serious influence in his writing process in addition to experimenting with the impressive number of synths he’s collected over the years. Geekery is in abundance in this episode.  Listen to find out why space was scant in Sam’s student bedroom, who sick Anna actually is and why sometimes all you need is a Yamaha Reface CS in your backpack.  Tracks discussed: Last Bloom, Annasickmodualr, Bias. TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE   LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES  https://linktr.ee/tapenotes    Listen to 'Crush' here. 'Crush' - Pluto Records, Ninja Tune. Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective    GEAR MENTIONS Logic Pro Ableton Sibelius Akai S950 Sampler API Desk  ARP 2600 ARP Rhodes Chroma Buchla Synth Korg Volca Beats Marshall Time Modulator MAM ADX1 Dunlop MXR Flanger Neve Preamps Publison Infernal Machine Multi-Effects Processor Roland EV-5 Expression Pedal Yamaha CS-70 Yamaha Reface CS   OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

30 Heinä 20241h 21min

John is joined by Kieran Hebden, better known as Four Tet, to talk about how he wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Three’, along with a selection of his other work. Following his start in music writing and recording as part of post-rock band ‘Fridge’, Kieran released his debut solo album as Four Tet ‘Dialogue’ in 1999. Since then, his constant experimentation and blend of hip-hop, jazz, krautrock, electronica, dance, and folk have seen him become one of the most innovative producers of today. He has released twelve albums as Four Tet, remixed artists like Radiohead and Bjork, and collaborated with Burial, Fred Again and Skrillex, among many others.  Sitting down together, Kieran breaks down his production journey and writing process, sharing the samples at the core of each track and reflecting on his approach to the most important element, the arrangement. Digging into the production details, he shares tips on keeping loops alive, making kicks pop, and the subtle textures that help place a track in its own world. Tracks discussed: Daydream Repeat, Skater, Looking At Your Pager TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LISTEN to ‘Three’ here. Text Records LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS Soundtoys Little Alterboy Soundtoys Microshift FabFilter Pro-L2 Izotope Ozone Maximiser Native Instruments Kontakt Spectrasonics Omnisphere Roland TR8 Arturia DrumBrute ATH-M50X Professional Monitor Headphones Sennheiser HD25 OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

16 Heinä 20241h 55min

John joins Kasabian producer, songwriter, and frontman Serge Pizzorno to discuss the band’s latest record, ‘Happenings’. Kasabian, an English rock band formed in the late 1990s, burst onto the scene in the early 2000s with iconic anthems like ‘LSF’ and ‘Club Foot’. Since then, they have released eight albums, earning multiple NME Awards and a Brit Award for Best British Group in 2010. Sitting down with guitarist and co-founder Serge Pizzorno, the conversation dives into his production journey—from experimenting with a loop pedal at eleven years old to collaborating with renowned producer Mark Ralph. Serge shares insights into his hours-long loop jams, reveals how he transformed an Asda voice note into a fully-fledged track, and discusses the secrets behind crafting iconic riffs. Tracks discussed: Call, Coming Back To Me Good, G.O.A.T. TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LISTEN to ‘Happenings’ here. Sony Music LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS XLN Audio RC20 Soundtoys Decapitator Soundtoys Little AlterBoy Valhalla Reverbs Atari ST Sampler OctaMED ARP 2600 Hofner Bass Moogerfooger Delay Behringer PRO-1 Roland TR-808 Fairchild Compressor Cubase Distortion Fruity Loops OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

4 Heinä 20241h 35min

John is joined by singer, songwriter, and producer Charli XCX, as well as producers A.G. Cook and George Daniel, to discuss how they wrote and recorded the album ‘Brat’. Charli XCX first saw success collaborating on Icona Pop's 2012 smash hit ‘I Love It’ and Iggy Azalea's chart-topping single ‘Fancy’. Since releasing her debut album in 2013, she has continued to innovate and energise the music scene, earning a Global Impact Award in recognition of her contributions to pop. More recently, Charli released her sixth album ‘Brat’ working alongside George Daniel and PC Music pioneer A.G. Cook. Sitting down with Charli, A.G., and George, the three cover a range of topics including the inspiration behind each track. As well as treating us to plane demos and stories of testing tracks in Charli’s club at home, the trio discuss how they approach collaboration, and break down what truly makes something Brat.  Tracks discussed: Club Classics, Apple, 365 TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LISTEN to ‘BRAT’ here. Atlantic Recording Corporation LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS Native Instruments Reaktor Native Instruments Razor Celemony Melodyne Antares Autotune Xfer Serum Xfer Serum Presets Soma Pulsar Malekko Manther Synth Logic Echo Logic Pro Avid ProTools OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

19 Kesä 20241h 32min

John is joined by IDLES' Bowen, along with producer Kenny Beats, and producer and engineer Mikko Gordon, to talk about how they wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘TANGK’. Idles are a British post-punk band who gained recognition with their 2017 debut album ‘Brutalism’. Known for their gritty, powerful sound and explosive live shows, their five albums to date have earned them nominations for the Mercury Prize, BRIT & Grammy Awards. Their latest record, ‘TANGK’, sees the band team up with producers Nigel Godrich and Kenny Beats, and digs into topics of love and gratitude, all while maintaining their signature Idles energy. Linking up between Kenny’s LA studio and Mikko’s London studio, the trio discuss how they utilised the different strands of experience and expertise from all involved. As well as dubious covers and Christmas day demos, they share stories of writing team breakouts and the unexpected moments that came when they drew inspiration beyond their usual domains.  Tracks discussed: Roy, A Gospel, POP POP POP TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LISTEN to ‘TANGK’ here. Partisan Records GEAR MENTIONS Venn Audio V-Clip Electro Harmonix Loop Station Electro Harmonix POG Pedal Moogerfooger Pedals Vongon Pedal Beyerdynamic M500 Mic Electro-Voice RE10 U47 Microphones 1176 Compressor API EQ 560 Shure SM57 Empirical Labs Distressor Altec Solid State Mixers Altec Tube Mixers Augspurger Speakers Yamaha Disklavier Piano Ableton Saturator Ableton OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

30 Touko 20241h 48min

We’ve been having a look back through the Tape Notes archive to bring back some of our favourite early episodes that you may have missed. This selection is our conversation with Matty and George of The 1975, recorded back in March 2019. EPISODE NOTES John ventures up to Spitfire Audio to meet with Matty and George from The 1975 to talk about how the album 'A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships' was recorded and produced. Somewhat bleary eyed after a massive night at the Brits (scooping two awards), the boys reveal the inner workings of The 1975's production methods and writing techniques. We're treated to demo versions and extensive track breakdowns from their award winning album, showing what it takes to create a 1975 hit. We get to hear why Matty scats to write lyrics, how George uses a Barry White bass trick for creating lush vocals, and hear THE definitive explanation of side-chain compression. Tracks discussed: I Like America & America Likes Me, How To Draw / Petrichor, It's Not Living (If It's Not With You) TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 50% off. MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your 25% discount HERE LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Listen to ‘A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships’ here  Dirty Hit, Polydor Records, Interscope Records Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS Arturia Synth Emulators Izotope Vocal Synth Korg Legacy Collection Moog Shure SM58 Teenage Engineering OP1 Waves CLA Vocal Plugin Yamaha DX7 Yamaha Reface DX Logic Pro Cubase OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can donate as little or as much as you'd like here, (we really appreciate your contributions :)  Donate Or you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  Twitter: @tapenotes  Facebook: @tapenotespodcast   YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk TAPE NOTES TEAM Will Brown  Tim Adam-Smith  Will Lyons  Nico Varanese  Guy Nicholls  Jessica Clucas Katie-Louise Buxton  Seb Brunner-Stolovitzky  Jonathon Coughlin

14 Touko 20241h 27min