After a two year hiatus, Turner returns with Section EP – the solid third instalment of his genre-twisting label, Cella Records. We caught up with Turner ahead of its March 3rd release date to discuss the percussion, mood and progression of his sound. He had a lot to say regarding his creative process, inspirations and of course, the future of his music.
The mood of “Section” feels upbeat and positive, especially when compared with your earlier releases (and dubstep in general). What made you leave the darkness?
Well, I took a bit of a back seat in the scene the last two years and haven’t really pushed much material. I felt a little uninspired and had to explore some other avenues of music. When I felt ready to come back I wanted to strip it back to what I do best, which is basslines and percussion. I used to judge myself harshly on my tracks and I think that’s one of the reasons why I had put myself off.
What inspires your percussion in “Section”? There are lots of world instruments, especially with the lead melody in “Forever”.
I enjoy using raw drum samples in my tracks. In the past, I over processed every sample I used until they had no flavour left. Nowadays I much prefer the grittier, raw sound of my percussion. It’s also slightly influenced by some of the hip-hop I’ve been making on the side over the last couple of years. In “Forever” I was mucking around with the Korg M1 synth, testing out some new sounds, and I really liked the sound of that pluck. The melody fell into place after a couple of minutes and then I built up more sounds around it: The backbeat saxophone, which is layered with an electric guitar; and the eerie synth that comes in later – which is an ode to Cyrus’s older productions.
The Section EP is confidently stripped back. Whereas previous Cella records twist into unexpected realms, the core elements of your latest tracks feel very deliberately placed and roll through with head-rocking certainty. What influenced this shift?
I tried harder this time to make the release sound consistent all the way through. With 001 it was 3 tracks which were all very different that I wanted to put out, which is something that’s not often done, but luckily the response was great. 002 all came together neatly with the tracks Ill Chill and I did. This time I felt like putting together a solid dubstep record and cementing myself back in the scene. With the label I plan to continue the blend of dubstep and hip-hop. I have lots of exciting projects in the pipeline. I’ve been working hard uncovering some new amazing MC’s, one in particular is a lad from Leeds who is amazing! We’ve got a few tracks together now and I’m super excited to release that project.
I’ve noticed the dope hip-hop instrumentals on your Soundcloud and heard a strict house rhythm pop up there some time ago. What other genres do you enjoy producing?
Ah man I just play around with whatever comes into my head. I listen to a lot of hip-hop, as I had a hip-hop club residency which recently ended. This meant I also played house nights and commercial nights, depending on what they needed me for, and to be honest I enjoyed them all! Because of that I dabble in all genres and have been toying with the idea of going under a few aliases, but I’m not ashamed to be a multi-genre producer/DJ, so I think I’ll stick to Turner. It’s sick to see your dubstep track get a reaction at a dubstep night, but it’s just as dope to see people dancing to your house track when you get to play it to a packed out club. I guess I’m pretty lucky to be able to experience these different things!
What was the gig you most enjoyed playing last year?
Huge shout out to the Shitty boys on this one. I hadn’t played a gig for months and I was lucky enough to get a slot at their second event. It was a crazy night! And it’s so good to see people reacting to my music even though I hadn’t been active in a while.
What’s next and where can we see you this year?
I’m playing the Back2Bassics launch in Brighton on March 9th, which I’m really excited about. It’s one of my best mate’s events (Misfit – go check him out!) and we’re going B2B for the first time in years supporting Brighton legend Donga, Heny G, and a super sick Special Guest headliner. You will not want to miss this one! Keep an eye out for more releases dropping on Cella in the coming months, this is my year!
Section EP is released March 3rd and available from the Cella Records Store. Track previews via the EP mini-mix courtesy of Lock In.
