Beware the Bearded Bastard
If there is anyone out there who personifies the name beats, breaks & big smiles to the fullest, it's Joel Siméus. Not only is he in love with wonderful and quirky beats, but he's also one of the nicest dudes around and he's spreading smiles whereever he goes. He was also one of the first people that I wanted to interview for the blog, but for some reason it never happened until now. So without further notice I give you: Joel Siméus.
You’ve been making music and records for quite a while now. Would you like to give us some background history and maybe some current information in general? When did you get into making music?
Well, born and raised and living in Sweden. Joel Siméus is my real name. I grew up in a very safe environment in Kalmar, a small town in the south east of Sweden. First album I bought with my own money that wasn’t techno was Fugees - The Score. Then the story gets pretty boring, you know listened to this and that. Discovered KRS, then Company flow etc etc. I bet I have that in common with a lot of your readers so I won’t bore anyone with that! You could check out my bio if you want to know more either on Milled Pavement or postrap.
I started making music in 06 and got into the whole MySpace thing, finding likeminded artists to work with online and sending files back and forth. It was all pretty much just a thing within itself without anything ever being released. You just made a track with someone and uploaded it and that was it. Sounds sad but I think of it as preschool or something. Having fun while learning :).
That’s how I got in contact with James P Honey, and we started making some songs, some of which got released for real on his debut solo album Hugely Overrated By A Tiny Few through Milled Pavement Records. That’s how I guess Moshe found out about me through James's release and asked me if I wanted to do a solo album which I did (Woody Oaks). MP is often ahead of the curve in that way with a lot of artists. Finding people nobody’s heard about and giving them a chance to release their music. I like that!
What do you want to accomplish with your music?
Well there really isn’t much of a plan to my music making. I hope to get better at it. Grow bigger and better you know? There are a few artists I would love to work with sometime in the future though, dug yuck/Filkoe176 for example. And also a project together with Reindeer would be awesome but yeah, I guess the line of producers is long and he does some good production himself but maybe he could be persuaded... This is my mating call James! Let’s get together, haha! Also to make some money would be nice but you know, when I look at more dedicated artists that I look up to trying make money and barely making enough to pay for gas for their touring vehicle I wonder if it is really possible to live good off of music without making something that appeals to a broader audience...Then again Björk did it. I might have to ask her for some pointers. How to make people call your music edgy instead of just weird. I guess it’s possible if you really want it. Me I like being the producer more than the starving artist. BUT I would love to have a live set of some kind. You know just do some shows here in Sthlm with a really nice setup. I'm not much of a couch surfer.
How would you describe your music and could you briefly tell us about the music-making process?
I would describe it as, maybe instant coffee music? I like to make music fast. I can’t sit for days and days and work on the same track. I also like to make music that sounds gritty and roughly done. Like those old 70s breakbeats but with a contemporary twist? I hate what I call preset music. That is, music that sounds like it’s a demo song in reason or Cubase. I can’t stand it when I can tell that a synthetic piano is just that, a synth. I mean come on, put an effect on it or sample a track with a real piano in it or record a real one somehow but don’t use those "concert piano" plugins without doing something to it! Ahh! Glad I got the chance to talk about that! I love synths when you know it’s a synth and it’s supposed to be a synth. But I don’t like when something sounds like it’s trying to be something it’s not. I think my music sounds authentic and worn and tried like an old pair of shoes. I make all my beats in Ableton Live. Using APC20, a Korg Micro X and a Focusrite soundcard. Sometimes I record vocals or xylophones or just noises or THMS comes by and records something for Bokklubben or one of his own projects. Then we drink coffee and listen to music. It’s nice!
Last year you released an album with THMS under the name of Bokklubben. There we get to hear you rap. Is that something that you like to get into more or is it strictly for that project?
Yes, I had a lot of fun trying to rap. Me and THMS wanted to do everything ourselves musically. No waiting for acapellas from guest vocalists from across the world to get recorded and sent. We're Swedish, we like to be efficient! So after I had sung the chorus for the song Dubbel Plus Bra, which was the first track we did for the album, it just sort of continued naturally that way. It adds something to the songs just to have two different voices and also to try out the other guy's costume for a while. THMS is one tough guy to keep up with though. He really is an amazingly talented vocalist. He can come visit me here after dropping of his son at the daycare ten o'clock in the morning, drink a cup of coffee and just murder a track like he’s standing in front of an audience. After I tried it myself it really made me see just how gifted he really is at it. I like to think of Bokklubben as a Swedish Public Enemy. He's Chuck D and I'm Flavor Flav. Just like Flav, I sometimes come in during the chorus and mess around and almost ruin the song then Chuck T comes in again and saves the day! I also have a funny solo track on our album much like Flav usually has. It just makes the album more fun I think, not better but more fun to listen to! That way it’s not just another beatmaker/rapper collaboration but more of a crazy experiment. I hope THMS makes a whole beat soon that I can rap to. Full circle, haha.
Talking about THMS, how did you two hook up initially?
We started talking on MySpace a while before I moved to Stockholm. I remember sending him some beats he didn’t like too much so at first I thought OK well that was that. But then we met in person through Plunge Attempt who had or was just about to release the Extendead Plunge Attempt album with DJ Extend. There we were. Three guys who all liked more or less the same kind of music. That’s how MDRSKP1 was created....At a pub in Sollentuna, a suburb in Sthlm. That album...man. Took a lot of effort from all involved..and energy. But we didn’t kill each other and we are still all friends so I suppose it all worked out ok. That’s how Bokklubben and Amputee was born. It’s easier to work two and two together than four (counting DJ Madwrist who came aboard later on). Then we found out that we both liked other stuff like reading books and watching sci-fi. So we started borrowing each others books and then telling each other what we thought about them and it became sort of like a two man book club and well you can guess the rest!
You've released records on, in my eyes, some of the most interesting labels out there today; Milled Pavement, Luana’s messed up records, decorative stamp and postrap. How did those releases come about, and what is your relationship to those labels today?
I think I have people skills but I also think one release leads to another. My work with James on his solo album led to my own solo release. My work on Rough Tongue Surfaces opened up the eyes of Luana's messed up records etc. Postrap I got thanks to Smokey131 being familiar with those dudes. It was a surprise because postrap is a lot like decorative stamp to me, a collective more than a label. A group of people who know each other, you know like a mafia family. Working only with people you know personally and all that. Actually that was almost the case with the Luana 7". Mich was hesitant to releasing my music because we haven’t met personally. And I respect that. I understand it. Luckily for me he made an exception! Couldn’t resist my charm I suppose! I'm proud of that being the first release on Luana. Truly an honour considering the names that are now releasing material on Luana.
Are there any other musical artists that inspire you in your own creative process?
Yes of course! The early anticon releases are what inspired me to start making music. Doing a lot with little means. I like that. Lately I listen a lot to Fela Kuti, a singer from Nigeria, very inspirational and the mixing/sound is right up my alley! Usually his songs start with a ten minute instrumental intro. I miss that. Songs that dont start with a chorus. The old epic approach. I also like anything psychedelic from the 60s and 70s although I don’t know much about that era when it comes to naming names and releases. But it always inspires me. I also listen to Peggy March and sometimes The Temptations or some other old soul music. Don’t tell anyone about Peggy though, that’s our little secret!
Do you have any upcoming projects that you'd like to share with us?
Right now I'm working on the next Bokklubben album with THMS. Other than that, I have finished the next Freeloader (Freeloader II - Reloaded) and waiting for cover art for that one. Other than that my schedule is open. So tell your rapping friends about me and let’s make some music!
What are you doing when you're not making music?
I eat...like a lot. Sometimes I drink beer with Plunge Attempt and DJ Madwrist and listen to music at Madwrist’s place. I love watching Sci-Fi and reading Sci-Fi novels. My favorite author has to be either Arthur C. Clarke or Philip K. Dick. I also play computer games. Love me some Fallout New Vegas. Life is pretty sweet thanks to computers....
Any, ever so popular, shout outs?
Ah yes shout outs are important! What up following people: THMS, Plunge Attempt, Madwrist, Moshe, the James's...Uh.. Any label who would concider releasing Bokklubben on vinyl...And to Luana and Planck Length for doing so already! Appreciate it!
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