Rob Macleod

Where are you based?

Glasgow, Scotland 

What influenced the sound behind your debut EP on In The Event of Capture Records, titled Pàrtaig?

I wanted to make something that combined my love of warm, emotional, electronic music with my Scots Gaelic heritage. Trying to bring a stomping barn dance vibe and the club energy of Glasgow together. I tend to see my music on two sides of the fence.  Either being industrial and driven, like Glasgow or slow and melancholic, like the Outer Hebrides. I wanted to try and fit these two headspaces together, so set out to make a bunch of tracks that contained both, rather than being opposed to each other and this is the result.

How did you approach the recording and production process for the EP?

It was varied.   Mostly trying different composition and structural techniques and pieces of equipment out.  The majority of it was made on my modular system, mostly just jamming with bleeps and bloops, hooks, samples and percussive things then fleshing out ideas and parts until they came together in a satisfying way.

What track are you most excited to play live when the time comes, and why?

Hard to choose!  The title track definitely, but it’s Yamazona I’m most excited to hear.  It’s got a dense thump and a slightly odd but glowing feeling to it. I think it will be potent over a big system.

The title of the EP is the gaelic word for Partick which is where you’re from in Glasgow. What do you think makes the city’s nightlife and club scene so special? 

A satisfied Glaswegian crowd is a formidable force. When an artist plays the right song in the right setting, crowds just explode with energy.  It’s spontaneous, No one can really predict it but when it happens, you get this intense feeling in the air which is palpable for everyone involved. It’s hilarious, genuine and long may it continue! I personally think it’s a combination of endless optimism and being continuously disappointed by the weather that gives us that extra special something. 

What is your creative process like and how much has lockdown influenced this?  

Good question.  It’s definitely changed since last year but I’m not sure if that’s entirely lockdown related or just that things were naturally at a crossroad for me in terms of my workflow.

 I’d been working on my studio setup for about 3 months prior to lockdown to encourage this new process so they weirdly dovetailed in March. Suddenly I had a lot of extra time and a new studio environment to distract me from the external chaos. I think I possibly did a year’s worth of problem solving and ironing out snags in a week, and got straight into making music with a sense of urgency which I think was in part due to the anxiety of the situation.

In my creative space, I’ll typically have thought about something that day or I’ll become aware of being in a certain mood.  Pick a sound, possibly manipulate a sample or find a nice oscillator tone and within about 5 minutes I’ll have a basic idea, then I just follow my instincts. Sometimes I can feel it instantly adding up, sometimes it doesn’t. I just try to trust my gut and ignore my head. 

How did you begin working with ‘In the Event of Capture’?

Through a mutual friend who had sent ITEOC a bunch of tracks I’d been working on late in the summer.  We then got in touch and discussed the possibility of doing something together and it all just seemed to naturally take shape from there. 

When did you first decide you wanted to make music? 7 years old. Listening to a compilation of electro music. As soon as I heard a synthesiser/drum machine/sequencer combo for the first time. I will never forget it. I was instantly obsessed. 

Who are your biggest musical influences?

Cristian Vogel, UR, Boards of Canada, Delia Derbyshire, Carl Craig, KDJ, Aphex Twin, Stefan Betke, CAN, Parliament Funkadelic. Also by my two grandfathers, who were both musical.

Once the world can dance again, where are you most excited to play?  

Any outdoor music event, preferably in the sunshine

What does the rest of 2021 hold for you? 

Clearly keeping myself and those around me safe and well, and hopefully lots of interesting musical adventures.  Getting more confident performing with my modular system (in the studio for the moment).  Releasing more music, I have an album ready that I think explores the more experimental/weird side of my musical mind. It’s turned out sounding like I am having an internal conversation with my ancestors via a modular synth! Really keen to work with a filmmaker and bring other dimensions into that. Have an  EP in a similar vein to Partaig which is done and dusted and some other tracks recorded and ready for something. A thumping summer party track that’s almost finished. Lots of music, Be nice to get to the Western Isles at some point later in the year (lockdown permitting)  just to breathe and remind myself of life outside the city. I daydream that I’ll be able to take a battery operated drum machine with me and I’ll find a PA system setup on the beach to entertain myself with the seagulls and sheep all nodding along.

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