A.T. Interview and Free Download

The weather might be a flop but one person intent on making Summer last longer is A.T. (Abstract Talent) who drops his new “Sunshine & Gunshots” EP on the 29th of this month on WPF Records. Considering that A.T. also released his last EP, “Henry VIII” not so long ago, I thought I’d ask him a few questions about future releases, making Grime and Drum & Bass, experimenting with tempos, and more. And, being the generous type, A.T’s also given out a track that you can download below.

GrimeDisciple (GD): You recently released the “Henry VIII” EP, how has that been received so far, and, for anyone that hasn’t heard it yet, how would you describe the tunes on there?

A.T.: Yeah man, big up WPF records. From what I’ve been told, it’s been received pretty well, I’m just appreciative of any support really. “Plasma” and “Bang” were up on the WPF soundcloud a while ago and those two tunes got very good feedback back then, so it’s all good. In terms of describing the tunes: proper Grime, to be honest, but abstract at that, the tunes have their own feel respectively.

GD: So, what started you out making tunes in the first place, was anyone an influence on you?

A.T.: From when I was young I was just always drawn to the instrumental side of music,  and more time I would block out the vocals if the beat was that good [he laughs]. Sometimes I’ve actually zoned out in the cinema just listening to the soundtrack. I love orchestral stuff, it conveys a lot of emotion.
In regards to Grime influences, Waifer is definitely one of the top ones for me. I used to stay up late listening to Matty D shows on Rinse, pure Slew Dem – it was sick! As for other influences, there would actually be too many names to mention to be honest, because I listen to A LOT of music and that’s why I end up making a tonne of different things.

GD: Yeah, I know you’ve actually released Drum & Bass tunes in the past.

A.T.: Funnily enough, that was the first ever Drum & Bass tune I ever made, and ,basically, I made it because I’d been talking on and off to one very sick DnB producer on Soundcloud. I sent it to him, he introduced me to the label behind the release, they liked it and yeah, it just went from there. Since I’ve got a few more DnB/Jungle tunes here that could get released, I just need to sort some things out.

GD: Do you have a preference for making a certain genre, and what is it that you like about making Grime?

A.T.: I prefer to make grime if I’m honest. I’ve got tunes that are definitely not conventional but, because of the boundaries of grime continuously being broken down, it can still pass for it. Grime allows for unlimited creativity.

GD: You’ve recently been playing around with some 130bpm stuff, how’s that coming on, and are we likely to hear more of that soon? What did MssingNo make of your “Brandy Reflip?”

A.T.: There’s definitely a possibility for that. The MssingNo track was just a spur of the moment thing. I randomly stumbled upon the Brandy tune and thought ,“fucking hell, this is deep!”, so I downloaded it and just had an idea of playing around with it. Yeah, MssingNo actually contacted me and said he liked it, which I was pleased with; I sent him a few more tunes as well.

GD: So now you’ve experimented with Drum & Bass, full on Grime bangers, and a more slowed down sound, how do you think your music will progress next? Any plans to make any other kinds of music?

A.T: Progression wise, I’m just going to keep finding different elements I can add to my Grime really and just go from there. I definitely plan to make other music, but I’m not prepared to go further in detail as I still need to think things through, as I know what I ultimately want to do will take YEARS of work [he laughs]!

GD:  Going back to the “Henry VIII” EP, the promo that WPF Records released said that you’d been sending them a tonne of music for ages, and that you’d both worked together to pick the best tracks to make up the EP. How many tunes were there up for selection, and how did you end up choosing the ones that you did?

A.T: As you’re aware, WPF Records have a tonne of my tunes so picking the one for the “Henry VIII” EP took a while; the main aim being to release a very solid debut release for myself. Originally just “Plasma” and “Bang” we’re going to be released together, but the decision changed later once “Henry VIII” was made. Keeping tunes back, has really allowed me to develop various styles, so there’s a lot of follow up tunes sounding similar plus a whole heap of tunes which are completely different.

GD: It seems like you have a tonne of songs on your hard drive – tell me about the one you’ve decided to give away today, your remix of Wiley’s “and Again”. Why did you decide to remix it, and is this an indication of you being up for working with MCs/vocalists?

A.T.: I just decided to fling the vocal over it  and see how it sounded; I’d tried with a few other beats first but this one worked the best for me. I have no problem working with MCs etc, big up Armzout though, I’ve done a lot of work with him, and he’s just put out one Rap project and the Grime stuff will come soon.

GD: How do you go about making your beats, and is there one piece of production equipment that you just couldn’t do without?

A.T.: This varies all the time, sometimes I can actually hear something in my head so if I’m not in a position to make it then and there, I write down the parts of what I hear; for example what drums, the drum pattern, what type of sounds etc, and the overall feel of the track. Other times I might just make random drum patterns and then just vibe from there. It’s actually hard for me to explain as I’ve even forgot how I started loads of tunes [he laughs]. As for a piece of equipment, I’d have to say a software related one; Kontakt. This is my go-to virtual instrument to get something cracking as I have a tonne of instruments for it. I’ve only just recently started using it as a sampler and it is fucking powerful! You can do a tonne of stuff on it.

GD: What’s coming up next for you in terms of releases? When can we expect to hear something else from you?

A.T.: For the time being, look out for the “Sunshine & Gunshots” EP which features Summer-ish Grime; a lot different to my “Henry VIII” EP. More will be revealed when it’s finalized but I will say just look out for one project with the MssingNo re-flip on it.

GD: Finaly, can you suggest a film or TV show that isn’t obvious, that you think is worth checking out?

A.T.: I’ll say two as I’m currently watching them. I’m a fan of the American dramas like: “Sons of Anarchy”, “Breaking Bad”, and “Boardwalk Empire”. I stumbled upon “Hell on Wheels” and I decided to give it a chance; it is SICK! So yeah I’d say that for one. The second one is a new anime, and I’m not into them that deep but it’s called “Akame Ga Kill” and it is crazy.

The “Sunshine & Gunshots” EP is out on 29/9/2014, so keep an eye out for that, and don’t forget to follow A.T. on Twitter and Soundcloud to keep updated with his future releases.
You can also cop the “Henry VIII” EP from Google Play, iTunes, and other places.

Shout out to King Huff for coming through at the last minute with the artwork for the download too!