1. Favourite knob/fader/switch on a piece of gear and why?
The filter modulation (as opposed to filter cutoff) knob on my Oberheim OB-Xa. The slightest circular movement can change the character of the sound from fluid and subtle to a punchy and brassy.
2. Do you have an ‘almost’ perfect bit of kit? What would you change?
Impossible to answer with one!
1. Oberheim OB-Xa. I have had this synth for about 12 years, and I just love everything about it. I wish you could have more precise mix control over the two oscillators, and cross modulation like on the OBX, but otherwise what other piece of gear makes you sound like both Prince and Boards of Canada?
2. Vongon Ultrasheer [US]. An almost perfect reverb/vibrato pedal. Add a wet-dry mix and it would be even-more-almost-perfect.
3. Schippmann PHS-28 16 stage dual super phaser module, to give it its full name. It’s a beautiful phaser but also capable of utterly feral behavior with the right kind of modulation.
3. What setup do you bring on holiday/tour/commute etc.?
4. What software do you wish was hardware and vice versa?
I’d love AudioThing, Valhalla or SoundToys to make some hardware, though I think Valhalla reverbs are available on the TipTop DSP module. As I work almost 100% in hardware (computers are for my day job!), the second half of the question is too difficult to answer.
5. Is there anything you regret selling… or regret buying?
I bought a Roland Juno 6 for £50 in 2000. The seller even drove it round to my house. It was such a lovely, lovely synth. I sold it to a friend to help fund my Oberheim.
6. What gear has inspired you to produce the most music?
I adore looping pedals and modules. In the early 2000s I bought an Akai Headrush V1 and used to just create layers upon layers of guitars on top of one another. Here’s a couple of tracks I made under my old moniker Ecce that used this very specific technique, one of which is even called Headrush! One, Two, Three. Nowadays I use the excellent Chase Bliss Blooper in a similar way.
7. If you had to start over, what would you get first?
A guitar and a looping pedal!
8. What’s the most annoying piece of gear you have, that you just can’t live without?
I’m gonna say my electronic drum kit, in that I wish it was a real kit, but I am not sure my family would put up with the noise of an acoustic kit.
9. Most surprising tip/trick/technique that you’ve discovered about a bit of kit?
On the Juno-6 I sold – if you pressed both Chorus buttons at once gave a wild chorus effect.
Artist or Band name?
I relaunched myself as LesjaMusic last year, but I am yet to release anything under that moniker except short Instagram / Youtube clips
Genre?
Nautical fiction
Selfie?
As much as I hate to…
Where are you from?
Kent, UK
How did you get into music?
I played the saxophone when I was 9. Sax was cool in the 80s!
What still drives you to make music?
Fun! I have near-to-zero ambition for my music achieving any sort of popularity – I feel that ship has sailed – but it’s nice when a few folks listen to my stuff on social media.
How do you most often start a new track?
Either by playing the drums or by messing around with a looping pedal
How do you know when a track is finished?
It never is. Ship it.
Show us your current studio
Happily.
Best creative advice that you’ve ever heard?
Don’t be afraid to have a method – a repeatable creative process. I used to mix it up a lot, but came back to my favourite techniques, and these help form a signature sound.
Promote your latest thing… Go ahead, throw us a link.
Follow me on Instagram! http://instagram.com/lesjamusic
[Editor: There are affiliate links to the relevant gear throughout the articles. It helps to support this blog. In fact, should you be needing some patch cables or guitar strings. Then clicking on one of the above links and buying any product that you prefer, will help the blog… doesn’t even have to be the ones in the link. Thx]