Creative inspiration can come from just about anywhere. Other musicians, childhood memories, nature or just a particular sample you can’t get out of your head.
For west coast beat producer ‘Young Citrus’ it’s often a certain sound or sample that he just knows he wants to work with or chop up. As Citrus explains about his recent release ‘sleep’ -
”I was really inspired by the piano sample - it's so chilled out and relaxing. Oftentimes, I turn to music when I need a break from the stresses of day to day living. It's honestly therapeutic.”
Young Citrus grew up listening to ‘The Album Leaf’ and ‘Nujabes’; their chilled out, peaceful sounds can be heard as a definite influence on his own productions today. Also working with sample based techniques, Citrus creates beat-heavy sound collages, layering chopped up clips with original riffs and basslines. For his latest track ‘sleep’, Citrus started with a sample and ran with it. “Once I heard the sample, I knew I wanted to chop it up and build around it. I added some drums, a bassline, and a wavy guitar with a bunch of reverb on it to give it a surf-rock inspired chill vibe.”
Grab this lofi siesta as a free download over on his Soundcloud
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Electronic and Acoustic worlds collide with California's - Doombird
In a time where we have analog elitists, gear lust and synths with hefty prices tags it’s refreshing to find a group of musicians that is focused on what really matters- the music.
Songwriter Kris Anaya and producer/arranger Joseph Davancens have been writing and performing as Doombird for a decade. In the last year Cory Phillips (bass), Ben Edrington (guitar), and Fernando Oliva (drums) have joined the band, anchoring the live performances. As a quintet, they create a hybrid of live instrumentation and electronic sounds, as evident on Past Lives (2016). With their newest EP, Twin Prime, Doombird continues to explore the tension between the analog and the digital.
What’s so special about the group is that they skillfully combine the strengths of acoustic, analog and digital instrumentation and production techniques so well. Think the fatness of analog synths, harmonic variance of acoustic instruments and the clean, precise sound of digital. The sonic palette they work with is truly diverse, throw on top of that the amalgamation of various genres and styles into their music, from electronica to indie, you’ve got the formula for a unique and exciting musical experience.
And that’s exactly how I’d describe their most recent release, The ‘Twin Prime EP’. 5 tracks of cleverly crafted indie, electronica, and post-rock that carry a variety of flavours throughout the album while remaining cohesive as a start to finish listen. The EP is really pushed to it’s full potential with an expertly tweaked mix full of colour and clarity from Bob Cheek (Band of Horses, Tera Melos, Chelsea Wolfe, Deftones, Two Sheds), and the final bit of polish applied by the mastering of Eric Broyhill (!!!, Chon).
Make your ears happy and go grab the EP on Bandcamp or stream it on Spotify
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