This summer I’ll be doing a string of interviews supporting artists performing at festivals! Nick Murphy, aka Chet Faker, performs at Lightning in a Bottle Festival this weekend, he answers three questions below.
Synth History: What are the top three pieces of gear you’re currently using and excited about?
Nick: Analog Heat. Originally I bought it to bring some guts to the live show synths but it has ended up on top of my studio monitor and I use it on just about every drum track in the past few years now.
Vestax DSG-05 12 bit sampler. it's basically a vintage sampler converter in a box. Can change pitch too. Sounds amazing. I use it on anything that sounds flat or boring..
Alesis Andromeda A6. The greatest synth ever made.
Synth History: What were some of your biggest influences growing up?
Nick: I listened to a lot of the chilled compilations so Ibiza or Ministry of Sound CDs etc.. that's probably why I end up writing slower stuff. My mum played a lot of Motown and 60's brit pop, too. I was a massive Jeff Buckley and Dylan fan as an early teenager, but was playing Fatboy Slim's 'You've Come A Long Way Baby' the whole time, so kind of a mess..
My dad's partner gave me The Avalanches CD and Propellerheads which I was super into, too. Honestly, watching my brother playing a cracked PS1 RPG game while I DJ'd Fatboy Slim music on my dad's hifi and drinking cans of Fanta might be the happiest memory of my childhood.
Synth History: If you could collaborate with anybody (at any point in time) who would it be and what would you make?
Nick: Someone I vibe with.. music feels super intimate to me so to share the process I usually need to feel comfortable with their personality before anything musical.
I honestly think I’d write better music vibing out with my friends even if they didn't know anything about music rather than getting in a room with a famous musician just because I like their sound.
That’s my honest answer but I guess I didn't really answer the question so how about Eddie Hazel?
Catch Chet Faker at Lightning in a Bottle fest this weekend.
References: Synth History Exclusive.