Part 1

Name: Jesse E. King aka Dubmatix
Nationality: Canadian
Occupation: Producer
Current release: The new Dubmatix album ReWired is out January 20th via Echo Beach.
Gear Recommendations: For dubbers, I’d recommend the BeniDub Digital Echo box. It’s versatile and sounds great.
The other two plugin companies I’d recommend are FabFilter (the EQ, Limiter and Multi-Band Limiter are excellent) and SoundToys - the Echo Boy Jr is one plugin I use on most tracks. It’s easy to use, sounds great and you can customize each preset as you need. Both companies produce top quality, useful and usable plugins.
My main audio interfaces are UAD Apollos which have been rock solid and I employ their plugins on everything, the only downside is the cost and that you are required to have a UAD audio interface.
 
If you enjoyed this interview with Dubmatix and would like to find out more about his music, visit his official website. He is also on Facebook, twitter, and Soundcloud.



What was your first studio like?  

My father is a musician and always had recording equipment around the house – from a Dokorder Reel-To-Reel 4 track that I learned on, and then an AKAI MG1212 (an early digital tape mixer and recording machine) which I used for almost 15 years. It allowed for 12 tracks to be recorded.

The tape was just about ¼" smaller than a beta tape size and cost about $30 for 10 minutes of 30ips or 20 minutes on 15ips. Not a lot of recording time for the cost (this was the 80s/early 90s). I learned that you can take high quality VHS tape, unspool it and then re-spool old AKAI tapes so you had great quality and the price was maybe $5.   

I built a recording studio in my parents' basement when I was 18. I’d graduated high school and took a year off. It had a drum booth, main live room and mixing booth. I would spend hours there every day recording, learning, recording and writing songs.

The drum booth was about 20 feet away and as I played and recorded all the instruments, I’d have to hit record, run to the drum booth, set up the tempo in my head and start playing – careful to keep time and hum the song in my head so I’d know where the chorus’ and bridge was to add drum fills and build the dynamic range.

It was a great learning experience on playing a song, and all the parts, from start to finish with no editing.  
 
How and for what reasons has your set-up evolved over the years and what are currently some of the most important pieces of gear for you?

For a few years in the 90s I stopped playing music and recording. I was a little frustrated with playing the same gigs, recording but not really doing anything with the songs and the Internet had just started which fascinated me. I taught myself HTML, Photogshop, built websites for people, learned about marketing and business – all things that would become so important for me as an artist just a few years later.

It was when ACID Pro, the DAW by Soundforge at the time, came outxq that everything started to coalesce. I had bough the Yamaha Motif 6, a few guitar pedals and a 4x4 audio card. That was the beginning of my current set up which, like most studio heads, has collected more gear and toys that necessary but something I’m passionate about.

Today my main go to gear are the UAD Apollo series audio racks. Reaper (DAW) as my main DAW for recording, editing and mixing. It was very similar to ACID in its ease of use and quick editing features. My secondary DAW is Ableton for developing ideas quickly. Fender 1986 strat, 1973 Fender P-Bass, Motif6, Benidub Digital Echo, Boss Digital Reverb, Korg Kaos Pad 2.
 
Some see instruments and equipment as far less important than actual creativity, others feel they go hand in hand. What's your take on that?  

I think this really comes down to the person creating. Growing up with gear and analog mixers, playing instruments allowed me to create a wider variety of music and have a more human feel. Again, it depends on what your goal musically is.

For me, I wanted to emulate the style and sounds of King Tubby and Marley, Hendrix, and others, and the only way to achieve that was by playing live instruments. But I didn’t need to be chained to classic tape machines and analog mixers. They are wonderful to have and use but costly and require ongoing maintenance which makes it difficult for most aspiring musicians / producers to pursue a career.  

It was having an affordable DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) like ACID Pro (late 90s) that I could record, edit and mix quickly and for virtually no cost. For me, this was the perfect marriage of analog and digital coming together. If you listen to my music you’ll hear that blend of live instrumentation and digital.
 
A studio can be as minimal as a laptop with headphones and as expansive as a multi-room recording facility. Which studio situation do you personally prefer – and why?  

I’m still very attached to instruments and having options with the various sounds they produce but I also use a lot of ITB plugins and sounds.

I started with a synth, drums, guitars, bass, headphones and a few mics. Today, after 20 years, I’ve built up a nice collection in both worlds, analog and digital, as I like to have the option to experiment with sounds and play them live. I might get up one day and say, I want to record only live instruments or only digital.

I have the tools to make this all possible but I always remember 20 years back when I had only a few pieces of gear and a basic DAW - I recorded Champion Sound Clash that way so it reminds me that you don’t need a lot of gear. What you need is the patience and desire to experiment with what you have as you can always come up with new sounds.
 
From traditional keyboards to microtonal ones, from re-configured instruments (like drums or guitars) to customized devices, what are your preferred controllers and interfaces? What role does the tactile element play in your production process?  

I’ve used to miss the faders on a mixer when mixing ITB songs. I’ve had the Pro Tools midi controllers, Behringer BCF2000 but over time I really got used to relying almost solely on the mouse. The exceptions are when I’m recording dub fx and live instruments now.

I collect anything that’s interesting such as the Arturia Microfreak or Korg Minilogue, MicroKorg, synth with sounds that you may not find anywhere else that also allow you to tweak the rotary pots by hand to create something you wouldn't get inside the box.

Tactile instruments, keys, devices play an important role in most music I create simply because it’s fun to touch something and be spontaneous, reacting to the music with your “vibe”, creating something you can’t replicate in the box.
 
In the light of picking your tools, how would you describe your views on topics like originality and innovation versus perfection and timelessness in music? Are you interested in “music of the future” or “continuing a tradition”?

I realized very early on that my interest was more in creating the sounds I heard on records I loved - from Tubby, to Hendrix, Beatles, Marley and many other great albums. It was those sounds (both how they were played and the actual sound of the instrument with effects or tone). These fascinated me and became my challenge - to create sounds that were similar. Not perfect. Not fresh. Just sounds I liked.

Over time what happens is that, while trying to emulate these artists, producers and albums, you end up creating your own sound. I began to have people telling me I had a sound. I didn’t understand what they meant until I looked and listened and finally realized that yes - I have a sound. But it was unintentional.

Timelessness is subjective. I approach the creative aspect of music based on what I want to hear which is a mashup of 90s Hip-Hop, King Tubby, Marley, Spear, Clash and so many others that influenced me deeply.

Music of the future is just music that continues to evolve. Looking at say, dubstep, it now has it’s place and there will always be fans and producers. But what came out was the wub-wub bass sound and style that has spread across other genres. Trap music will always have a place but the element that also spread across to other genres is the drums and more so the hi-hat pattern styles that define Trap. (along with the 808).

Most would regard recording tools like microphones and mixing desks as different in kind from instruments like keyboards, guitars, drums and samplers. Where do you stand on this?  

I approach music and creating with an open mind. The difference of using mics, mixers and instruments is that you can have a more “human” touch that is difficult to replicate with midi.

Example, if I’m playing a guitar skank, each time I hit the strings, my hand pressure will be slightly different, as will the force of my pick hitting the strings as well as the timing. Even if I try to execute each skank exactly the same, they will never be 100% and that is what gives us that feeling that can be more perceptible to our sense of timing and sound.

Our ears automatically detect these slight variations. If you listen to a song where every aspect is quantized and it sounds too “straight”, your ear / senses will tune out as there is nothing to keep them engaged and actively listening.

I tend to utilize a little of both. I might program the kick and snare,especially for a steppers style song, but I want variations in the patterns so I’ll record myself playing hi hat live. Combined together you get a balance of militant groove with something the ear will remain engaged with.