Words by Art Jefferson
Photography by Bradley Lloyd Barnes and courtesy of Ashworth
If the key to success is hard work, then producer Joe Ashworth shall be rewarded tenfold. Whilst having built a reputation for pumping out release after release, the Londoner defies the quality over quantity rule, rather incorporating both with each single being an incredible and unforgettable piece of music.
Ashworth’s brand of house and techno oozes with refinement and sophistication yet doesn’t alienate dance floor patrons, which makes it highly understandable why he has been championed by the likes of Pete Tong, Maya Jane Coles and Laurent Garnier, just to name a short few. With tracks released on various labels including Native City, Ajunadeep, Arkhive, NeedWant, Sneaky and more, within a couple of years Ashworth’s name has spread throughout the UK and into international territory.
With the title of engineer and sound designer also added to his impeccable C.V., Ashworth has also created scores for various films, as well as fashion runway shows including Louis Vuitton and Rick Owens.
Ashworth’s debut LP entitled Grain is a textured journey of electronica, embedding bits of techno, house, dub and more, whilst stretching passed all conventional borders. Incorporating a number of field recordings, Grain is a testament to Ashworth’s scientist-in-the-lab-like approach to music and his mission to go beyond the norm in order to create beautiful and masterful art. Undeniably, this art will stand in all its glory.
In 2014 alone, you pumped out a slew of releases and remixes. I want to talk about your impressive work rate. How many hours in a day would you say you spend working on production?
Ashworth – I spend anything from 6-12 hours a day in the studio, and try to keep something close to ‘office hours,’ so I generally keep away on the weekends unless I’m particularly busy. I’m not always working on my music though, I also work on sound design, composition, music scoring for films, mixing down other peoples’ tracks, even a bit of mastering sometimes.
Getting into your history, when did you develop your love for techno and do you remember the first record that you heard which made you want to start producing the sound?
Ashworth – I think it was either The Chemical Brothers’ Exit Planet Dust or Leftfield’s Rhythm and Stealth. I was massively inspired by the sounds they created and I listened to them on repeat. I think what appealed to me most was that the music sounded limitless. Unlike a band, or even an orchestra, restricted by how many people are playing, and what instruments they are using, electronic music felt like you would never know what was coming. I had the playstation game ‘Music’ on the playstation, and remember using it to try and copy the tracks myself even before my parents bought a computer. In my teenage years, I got really into drum and bass, especially producers such as Photek and Teebee. I liked the mysterious, dark quality to their music. In term of the music I’m making now, I remember seeing Ellen Allien deejay about 10 years ago, having not heard of her at the time, and the music she was playing clicked with me straight away, I think that had a big effect.
Can you talk about your sound design and film scoring work a bit?
Ashworth – I fell into it by chance in a way, after having been asked to help a friend who was working for a fashion brand. One bit of freelance work lead to another, and I’ve been asked to work on all kinds of projects. I’ve spent the day making music with Rick Owens, scored music for a short porn film, scored a few pieces of music for the Tate. Sound design, scoring, and engineering has always been my part-time job, running in tandem with producing my own music and DJing.
You definitely brought over the aspect of sound design into your latest LP Grain, using field recordings and more. Can you describe the creative process with recording the new album?
Ashworth – It was all pretty free-form (as much as working on a comptuter can be). When I was recording the album, I would begin with a vague idea, and continue working until I felt like I was losing momentum, and then just start something else. I wasn’t overthinking or questioning things as I was doing them, and really enjoyed the process. The field recordings were mainly collected beforehand – some I recorded myself, some I borrowed off my friend Aggborough, I think I found a few more specific things on the internet. When it came to mixing, and editing the album, things got pretty nerdy and technical, but in the writing stage it was very spontaneous.
There so many brilliant tracks on Grain. What I was most impressed by was the fact that, whilst the elements of techno, house, dub, etc. are there, you’ve seemed to broaden the sound almost transcending any particular genre – making it simply, excellent pieces of electronica. Was that the intention when you were working on this record?
Ashworth – Thanks! I’ve never been able to stick to one genre, so I have had to find different ways to keep my music cohesive (for example, the sound pallette, or certain grooves that I like and use a lot). I hadn’t decided to record an album until I had already made quite a few of the tracks, and from that point, after NeedWant convinced me that an album format would really work. There are some dance floor tracks on the record, but there was definitely a point where I made the decision to do what felt right musically rather than functionally. Each track was a spark of inspiration that I took to it’s conclusion. I made around 30 tracks in total, so the label and I picked the best 12 that fitted and flowed together, did a bit of extra editing and that resulted in the finished product.
You have collaborated with a number of producers as well, one being Citizenn. With those sort of collaborations, do they push and challenge you in a manner that wouldn’t normally happen when working on solo material, or are you guys so in tune with one another musically that it’s a streamlined process?
Ashworth – Citizenn and my other collaborators (Kiwi, Aggborough etc) were all mates before we got together in the studio. We have always bounced our own tracks and ideas off each other for feedback. Collaborating is amazing because you learn everyone’s little tricks, shortcuts, and thought processes, but mainly for me it was about having fun and making music for the hell of it. Most of the collaborations I have recorded have ended up not coming out, but I don’t think any of it was time wasted. Collaborating is also a nice way of escaping your comfort zone without feeling weird about it.
As a DJ, you have played loads of shows. In terms of sound, what are some of your top choice venues that you enjoy spinning at? I ask this because, it should be noted that you’re also an engineer and sound is essential.
Ashworth – It’s a predictable choice, but I think on balance, Fabric still has the best soundsystem I’ve heard, and a brilliant, completely uncompromising music policy. Having said that, I played in Nordstern (Basel) recently and that came very close. All the walls were covered in 12 inches of wood, so the room was acoustically perfect and the system was crystal clear, with an amazing crowd.
I know that you’re a work horse in the studio, so are there any upcoming projects that you can talk about?
Ashworth – Aside from touring and releasing the album, which is my main focus, I have a few records coming out later in the year under secret aliases, and I’m starting to line up a few, straight-up club music releases for later in the year.
http://www.joeashworthmusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AshworthLondon
https://soundcloud.com/joeashworth