“Those things you think are distractions, that’s what you should follow…tinker and just have some fun. Creativity will be spawned.”— Bass Kleph
In this interview I sit down with established producer Bass Kleph. He’s been in the industry for nearly 2 decades, from being a drummer in a major label signed band to releasing on the biggest dance music labels. We talk about the difficulties of running a label, what to look out for in label contracts, and the benefits of having a coach or mentor. We also dive into his 4 step framework for writing and finishing songs.
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This episode is brought to you by EDM Foundations.
EDM Foundations is my course for new producers, those who’ve been producing for under 12 months, or even those who’ve just started. You can learn more about it here.
The whole idea of the EDM Foundations course is that you learn the fundamentals of music production by actually doing and not just learning concepts. The course consists of 12+ hours worth of streamable video where I walk you through the creation of 3 songs, and give you advice for creating your own original.
We’ve had over 500 people sign up for the course, many of them have had great results. Hope to see you in there.
Links from the episode:
Connect with Bass Kleph:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | Soundcloud
Things Mentioned:
- Chemical Brothers
- Prodigy
- Squarepusher
- Atari ST
- Fingerlicking
- Vacation Records
- Dave Winnel
- Wolfgang Gartner
- Tommy Trash
- Taisun
Show notes:
- Bass Kleph’s background (4:28)
- Getting a major label deal as a drummer (4:48)
- Breaking into dance music (8:02)
- Band breakups and starting his DJ career (9:14)
- Getting signed and mentored by a label (10:40)
- The difficulties of being in the public eye (11:48)
- Making it solo vs. in a group (13:57)
- How he learned music production (14:32)
- Getting the wrong end of a label deal (17:22)
- Exclusive contracts (19:50)
- Starting a record label (22:16)
- Changes in the industry (24:15)
- Using his label to launch his and his friend’s careers (25:18)
- Why the EDM popularity burst is good things (26:18)
- What his day to day looks like (28:05)
- Moving into private coaching (29:52)
- What is takes to be a good teacher (32:56)
- Common mistakes producers make (34:36)
- His 4-step production process (36:22)
- Coaching students through creative block (43:34)
- 3 general pieces of advice (47:38)
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