His mixes may have given you a case of “gluteus shakimus” at a club in NYC. If not, you’ve heard some of his late night grooves on Adult Swim. Machinedrum recently dropped his ninth release, Want to 1 2? He will be adding to the list this Spring with his next release, entitled Want to 3 4?. Back from his recent trip to Europe and sick as hell, we caught up with the one and only machinedrum and picked his brain about the circuits behind the man and his music.

UI:  For those that aren’t familiar, you've been at this for about 9 years and have compiled 9 separate releases?

machinedrum:  Well, the machinedrum project has been in existence since my high school days, so about 1999 or so.  Yeah, the first record came out in 2001.

UI:  That's quite some time ago.  That's really before electronic projects sort of exploded.

machinedrum:  Yeah definitely, maybe a few years before the laptop musician invasion.

UI: You really had to work with some of the more difficult programs from back in the day.  What was that like?

machinedrum:  I started with all kinds of gear but quickly narrowed it down to just my computer and controllers around the same time as the IDM boom.  I still use the same software--impulse tracker.

UI:  That's a crazy thing to just “up and learn”--it's quite complex.  Did you have any influences?  Anyone to show you the ropes?  It's something that definitely takes pratice.

machinedrum:  I knew a lot of masters, that’s how I grew with it.  Because the files were so small and contained all the samples and sequences in like a 1MB file, whole communities were formed and that’s how I learned.  Nerding out in high school was mad cool--nothing else to do but spend all day in #trax on irc.

UI:  I notice lot of blends and samples utilized from a variety of music ranging from jazz to techno.  Have you succumbed to the might of the Mac for ease of use?

machinedrum:  I’m using a Mac, yeah.  Bought my first one 2 ½ years ago but only because it can run windows.  Plus, impulse tracker has been emulated for Mac OSX.  The thing I find so great about it is that it’s so limiting.  It really forces me to play with sound in new ways I probably wouldn't think of--with a whole studio of gear at my fingertips.  You can’t get past the need to keep up with new software and sound design tools.

UI:  With a full studio, there’s certainly a lot to pick from.  When writing a song, do you have an idea of what you'd like to do in the beginning?  What's the writing process involve for you?

machinedrum:  It’s always different.  It usually starts with a spark and those sparks come from all kinds of places.  Maybe I’ll be playing around with samples in my library and I’ll hear something that makes a beat pop in my head.  Maybe I’ll be sitting at a piano playing some chords and I start singing a melody over it and somehow--that gets converted into an electronic piece.  I try to be in and around my working environment as much as possible. It’s really important to grab onto those ideas as soon as they reveal themselves.

UI:  What sort of stuff you'd been listening to lately, in your day to day routine?

machinedrum:  I've been listening to a lot of my friend’s music; Letherette, Calmer, , Jimmy Edgar, Bibio, Body Language, Throwy, Theophilus London, Jesse Boykins III, Addiquit, Lazer Sword, Megasoid, a new project me and my friend Praveen are working on … so much!  Outside of what my friends are doing, I guess I've been listening to a lot of juke and ghetto tech like DJ Deeon, DJ Slugo, and DJ Nate and also some soul and 80s dancehall.

UI:  Alright, now I’m sure this comes up often--but that's totally you on some of those Adult Swim interludes, right?  How did that come about?

machinedrum:  Yeah, they've played my stuff on there.  They asked Gabe from Merck Records to send them a discography for use on Adult Swim.  I've only witnessed it once but my friends hear it pop up all the time.  Those Adult Swim guys know what’s up.  They were bumping Dilla, flyLo, and Madlib--all kinds of good shit.

UI:  You recently released a new album in May 2009, Want to 1 2? What sort of stuff have you been working on for your next release?

machinedrum:  There’s a follow up to Want to 1 2? with some remixes from Bibio, edIT, Lazer Sword, and others.

UI:  You have shows coming up on the October 14^th and 22^nd.  Anything new we can expect to hear?

machinedrum: I’m doing a strict booty set on the 14th set so be prepared for “gluteus shakimus.”  On the 22nd at Santos Party House, I’ll be playing live finger drummed remixes of songs off of my two albums Want to 1 2? and future release Want to 3 4?

UI:  Sounds like a hell of a time.  We’ll definitely be looking forward to your next release, Want to 3 4? coming March 2010, correct?

machinedrum:  Yes! And may the light of Christ touch everyone who reads this!  Amen.  Wrap up an interview with a spiritual cleansing!

UI:  Indeed!

Be sure to visit www.machinedrum.net for more tracks for your listening pleasure.  You can check out other artists at www.normrex.com and the normrex podcasts at www.normrex.libsyn.org.  For upcoming events near you, check out www.cassettenyc.com.

Photos courtesy of x-melo photography and machinedrum.