SOUND IN. GROOVE OUT.
Hi Steve, Thanks for joining us, how are you today ?
Hi there , yes I am really good right now .
For those who may not know who you are could you tell us a little bit about who you are & what you have achieved so far in your career?
My name is Steve Mac , I started out in the music industry and very long time ago . I got into music very young and started my record collection from the tender age of 11 . I got into the whole dj world very young . I was a big hip hop and electro fan . I got into the whole DMC scratch mix competitions and entered a couple of times . The first time I was 14 years old . Then a year later I went into a studio for the first time and discovered sampling . The studio have an Akai s950 sampler which blew me away . I remember thinking at this time , wow its like having 10 pairs of arms as you could have so many different bits of records at once as that was my way of thinking then but basically this was the real beginning for me and I got obsessed with making records . Here I am at the age of 51 and still doing the same thing and still loving it . I started out in a duo in the early 90’s called the rhythm masters which became quite successful . I am now working on numerous projects and run a record label called Jack Said What with my good friends Carl Loben and Irvine Welsh .
Last time we spoke you was extremely busy in the studio with multiple projects..how do you find the time to be so productive ?
Yes the last few years have been a very busy time for me . Finding the time is simple really well you have to sacrifice most other things to be able to do this . I am constantly working . I think its much harder if you are a touring dj or band as its very hard to balance the 2 . I use to tour heavily as a DJ but then slowed right down in my mid 30’s as my music was really suffering as I was not finding the time for studio work. I still play out now but much more for fun and do some live stuff with a couple of bands I have with mates .
As an engineer, I almost find sometimes I have to have split personalities in the studio, how do you adjust to working with different people each day & Taylor to their sound?
The most important thing about being a producer and working with all kinds of different talent is making everyone feel comfortable , Say if you are working with someone you have never met before , I would take then for a coffee or a drink and chat , get to know them , have a laugh , joke , it gets people in the right spirits to get the most out of them performing . A good conversation always goes down well .
Lets get into the juicy Stuff.. What was your first ever piece of hardware ?
Ahh it was a Roland w30 work station sampler , well there was a Tascam portal studio which was a 4 track tape recorder but I used that more for my experimental dj mixes etc . The Roland was my gateway to putting out my first record (RM Project ‘Rock To The Beat’)
What is the longest piece of hardware you’ve owned that you still use today?
That would be my EmuSP1200 Drum Machine . I still have the one I got in 1996 . Candy J the American vocalist from Chicago bought this over for me when we were working today in her suitcase . These were the days before eBay and not something you could really find in the UK . I have owned a few of these since but I kept this one as it has so much history . I just had the whole machine fully serviced and brought back to life . It’s like brand new and I still use it to this day .
Could you name all your favourite bits of equipment, And tell us what genres they work best in for you and why?
I use a lot of analog hardware , Compressors , eq’s and effect boxes , the reason I use these is that you get a sound from them , I have bought and sold so much hi end gear over the years to try different things out , now I have ended us with the boxes I really love like for instance , the la2a works great with bass and vocals , the Neve channel strips I record everything through , the GML compressor does my drums and so on . These boxes do the same job for any genre of music . I know you can do a lot of this in the box now with software which is fantastic but I do find I get my sound using these boxes . I know producers that use nothing but stock plugs in logic , not even third party and get a bloody amazing sound , it’s all about how you use it and what works for you . The analog vs Digital argument is so boring . Use both . Have fun .
Some of the plugins that replicate hardware are incredible these days, If any, What are your go to plugins & why?
Most of the plugs I use don’t really replicate hardware , I use stuff that hardware cant do like oaksound sooth which takes out harsh frequencies , cable guys shaper box for side chaining and shortening kicks snares etc . I do like to use the massenberg eq which is kind of an emulation of the GML 8200 equaliser . I basically only use a hand full of plugs . I think you can get overwhelmed which the amount of software that is out there now . I probably use around 10 and thats it .
Hardware or software? And why?
Kind of explained this above but for a personal point of view its both for me .. I have some analog gear that cant be done in the computer but then I have some plug in’s that cant be done in analog . We are living in amazing times with so much technology at our fingertips . Embrace both I say .
Who inspired you from an early age and is there anyone who is inspiring you now?
From an early age my inspirations were Mantronix , Marly Marl , The Bomb Squad , MK ,Todd Terry , Murk and so many more . Today right at this present time I would say Quinn from paranoid London . He is producing so many different projects and they are all good records , funky and dirty , just the way I like em
All time top 5 records?
I really cant answer that . I have dedicated my life to music and there is just too much I love . A am a big fan of the 70’s sound maybe the golden era of recording , Disco , funk etc . One record that still blows my mind is Grandmaster Flash ’The Message’ That’s more 80’s but what a record .
Basement or festival?
Both . Love a sweaty small basement for the DJ side and Festival for live , as a punter I love going to both .
What’s been your favourite project you’ve worked on to date?
I have just started a new band project with a good friend of mine which is really exciting and different . Also I have been working on Transporting the Musical with the original writer of the book / film Irvine Welsh . Irvine is one of my closest friends . This will be released in the west end in the near future . We still have to record the album which is going to be a huge job . Recordings will be a lot of live musicians mixed with the electronic gear plus recording a full orchestra . Very exciting times .
Can you tell us some artists you’ve worked with over the years & any funny stories you could share ?
Jesus , I could write a book about this . I have been very lucky to work with some amazing people from all over the world . One of the last artists that has been in my studio lately was Danny Teneglia . That was pretty special as without a doubt , he is my favourite dj ever . Nobody comes close to his knowledge of house music and how it should sound in a club . It was a real schooling having him grace my room . Plus he is a super lovely man . I also ended up mastering his next release coming on nervous records later this year.
Tell us a fun fact about yourself that not many people know?
I love taking the piss and having good wind up’s I am terrible for this . To be fair they have got a bit less naughty over the years , just good clean honest fun now
Lastly, what do you think of the sample packs on Groove source?
Thank you for sending me the pack , the sounds are great on this . I will be using in the near future . This is something I want to get into . I build a huge personal library of rare synths that I have sampled . Around 250 gigs worth , I use the samples all the time . I borrowed synths from friends and used a lot of my own . It’s pretty incredible and I recorded / sampled them all through my gear which has made it sound amazing if I say so myself
Thanks for taking time to talk to us Steve, best of luck with everything going forward and hopefully we catch you soon!
