[INTERVIEW] Andreas Tilliander – TM404 (live Roland jams)

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http://www.attackmagazine.com/features/ ... der-tm404/

In the first half of the 1980s, Roland produced a string of instruments which would go on to define genres and change the course of musical history forever. The SH-101, MC-202, TB-303, TR-606, TR-707, TR-808 and TR-909 are iconic pieces of equipment, without which electronic music would sound very very different. In fact, the only member of the x0x series which is a bit of a dud is 1986′s TR-505. The less said about that one the better…

The latest project from Swedish producer Andreas Tilliander – best known for his output under the name Mokira – is a tribute of sorts to the x0x series, based entirely around sounds generated by two 202s, four 303s, two 606s, a 707 and an 808 and released under the pseudonym TM404 (a nod to the rumour that Roland avoided producing a ’404′ model in the original x0x series because the number four is considered unlucky in Japanese culture).

The resulting album, TM404, is an engrossing, experimental work which is one of our highlights of the year so far. TM404 builds on the classic sounds and tropes of house and techno without falling into the cliches – a style which has seen Tilliander’s recent music described as ‘Detroit techno without the techno’. Andreas himself has described it as ‘somnolent acid’.

We spoke to Andreas to find out a little more about the ideas behind the album, question whether a project like this fetishises the equipment and to discover how he took on the challenge of programming an entire album using the 303′s notoriously fiddly sequencer.

Attack: Tell us about the roots of the project. Did you decide in advance to make an album based entirely on the classic Roland gear or was it an organic process?

Andreas Tilliander: The funny thing is that I never had an album or concept in mind. I recorded the first couple of tracks just as a joke for my friends. People kept telling me I was crazy collecting all those Roland boxes. I had the entire series, but I also had several of some machines, like the 303 especially.

I wanted to show them that it’s possible to use several 303s in one track. You just have to have some imagination and good will. I filmed it just to show them that I didn’t overdub it or anything like that.

Did you program everything on the album using the built-in sequencers? How much did that shape the composition of the tracks?

The MC-202 is a bitch to program so in one of the tracks I’m actually sequencing that particular machine using a computer. All the 303s and the drum machines are programmed on their respective unit. That was part of the fun and what turned out to be a concept. Having all these machines – or rather instruments – playing at the same time at a loud volume was pure bliss. I would have a sequence running for two hours, seriously, and I was afraid to ruin it all by touching a single knob.

"Twisting knobs and connecting cables to rusty old echo boxes is pure therapy.”

The 303s are impossible to program if you want them to play whatever melody you’ve got in your head. It’s more about deciding what harmony they should play and then you have to program, program, program until you’ve got something you like. The best patterns or melodies happen by accident. That’s actually what made me turn to the 303 about ten years ago. At first I was a bit tired of its sound so I would use the internal sequencer to play my other synths, but I rarely used the 303 as a synth. I put out three Tilliander 12″s on my own label in 2007 and most, if not all, of those recordings have a 303 in them. Perhaps that was the first time I released something that really had the 303 playing. I think that the track ‘Cold As Ice’ actually reminds me a bit of TM404. Most of the sounds in that song are done using TB-303s and filters such as the vocoder.

Did you find that the sequencers limited you?

No, not at all. That was what triggered me. I swear by my 303 sequencers just because you don’t really know what to expect while playing with them. In my studio I’m lucky enough to have the best hardware sequencer – the Sequentix Cirklon – and the best soft sequencer – Ableton Live – and I love composing with those but for the TM404 project it was important to rely on the TB-303.

Was there a lot of editing and processing after you recorded the audio?

No editing at all, actually. Not a single cut. On some parts I went back and added some effects while mixing, but I didn’t edit the tracks in any way. It’s actually even the first takes as well. Perhaps I fooled around a bit before recording but as soon as I pressed record, there was no turning back. The next time I might record more than one take of each song, but I think it’s charming that it’s sometimes a bit clumsy.

“If you put together a unique set of musical instruments and effects, you're bound to create something special.”

When I had about half an album, I started realising that this could in fact be interesting to people other than me and my friends. That made me think a bit and for a while I got a bit locked while spending time in the studio. Recording music for myself is one thing, but when you suddenly start thinking there’s an audience, it’s suddenly not that fun to have made ‘mistakes’ while recording.

There are some moments of the album that have lots of humming sounds in the recording. That’s because I had my audio cables too close to the electrical power supplies. That’s one of the things I didn’t mind while recording for my own enjoyment.

How difficult do you find it to avoid falling into the cliches of house, electro and techno when using iconic gear like the 202, 303 and 808?

It wasn’t difficult at all. The very first tracks I recorded were not techno or house in any way. After a while I might have broadened the concept a bit.

So far I’ve done three live sets as TM404 and I can tell you that it’s a bit hard to resist falling into old habits and playing techno when there’s a floor full of people staring at you. As soon as you add something resembling a 4/4 beat – like a back beat hi-hat – people start to whistle and scream.

My plan is not to turn TM404 into yet another main floor act or into DJ tool techno 12″s, though. This is about something else. I’ve got other projects where I’m most happy to play in front of an audience which is there to dance, drink and find someone to bring back home afterwards.

Is there a fear that the technology will become more important than the music itself?

Yes. It’s funny because again I did the TM404 recordings as a very geeky thing with no album or even release in mind. So when I uploaded those videos to YouTube I labelled the vids by naming them after what instruments I was using.

“If you stare into a laptop the whole day, you want to do something else when you get home.”

When there’s suddenly an album coming out, it perhaps spoils the fun of listening. You know what you’re going to hear. If you listen to a track called ’303/303/303/606′ you’re gonna hear three TB-303s and a TR-606. Nothing else.

On the other hand, if you listen to something like The Beatles, you know you’ll hear two guitars, a set of drums, a bass and one or two people singing about love and/or freedom. I don’t think The Beatles would have named their songs ‘guitar/guitar/bass/drums/vocals’, though. Pity. They did quite good for themselves anyway…

Why do you think there’s been a resurgence of interest in recreating old-school approaches to music making?

I think it’s because it sometimes really is too easy and non-creative to make music using just a computer. There are sample packs that you can download that will make your productions sound like Burial, or if you prefer you can make music like Swedish House Mafia. In fact, the members of Swedish House Mafia use those sample packs themselves.

When you can buy recorded hooks, drum beats and basses it means anyone can sound like you. If you put together a unique set of musical instruments and effects, you’re bound to create something special. Of course it’s not all about the equipment, but when it comes to electronic music it really helps if you’ve at least programmed your loops yourself.

Perhaps it’s also due to the fact that a lot of people interested in producing electronic music have day jobs where they spend their time in front of a computer screen. If you stare into a laptop the whole day, you want to do something else when you get home. Twisting knobs and connecting cables to rusty old echo boxes is pure therapy.