Interviews Orpheus

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Sup, congratulations on winning the Beat This! Competition. How does it feel?

It feels great, man. I've entered a few of these competitions and placed a couple times in the past, but it's nice to finally win one. I'm definitely in good company with the other Beat This! Champions too. I'm honored to join their league. Before we get started though, let me drop a line to Noah King and Renegade Soldiers. Check them out at www.renegadesoldiers.net and also check out www.TheBeatLocker.com. Noah's the main emcee I'm building with at the moment and we've got some serious music that people need to hear.

Whoa whoa! First answer and you're already doing plugs! LOL. How did you put your winning beat together?

I'm deep into samples. I do some of my own compositions when it's needed, but I really like to manipulate and recreate past recordings. So for this beat, the main guitar and vocal sounds were sampled from a record and chopped. The drums were sampled from different sources as well and replayed on the pads of my Roland. For any rookies out there, you gotta layer your drums! I think I had five kicks and a couple snares for each. The bassline, however, is definitely the icing on the cake. I'm fortunate enough to know and work with a talented bass player (whatup J.O.E!), so I had him bless me with the four strings. I like to to do five to ten takes of bass and then go back and choose the best parts, chop, and rearrange to make it fit.

What's your setup like?

Let's see. I got my MV-8000, a decent turntable, a pair of M-Audio Bx5a monitors, a 1202 Mackie mixer, an Mbox, a g5, a couple different vocal and instrument mics, and of course, my records. I like to mix live elements into my beats as much as possible too, so I'll do bass, guitar, vocals samples... whatever I can get my hands on.

Tell us about the Mbox.

The Mbox is great for getting started and learning ProTools. It has two mic/line/instrument inputs, TRS inputs and outputs and SPDIF plugs on the back. The pre-amps on the mic inputs are decent, but not great. Vocal recordings sound thin compared to how I'd like them to be, but I'm also pretty critical of my work. I rarely want to record more than two mics either, so I don't feel limited by only two inputs. The Mbox comes with ProTools LE, which means that there can only be 16 stereo or 32 mono tracks active at a time. This is a problem sometimes, like when I got 7 MC's on a track. I usually do a lot of takes also, so it does limit me to some extent. You just gotta be creative and work with what you got. But let me just say that for its problems, you probably won't find much better for the price, plus you can really learn how to mix.

What sound do you usually start with when you make a beat?

Honestly, it really depends. I'll load in a few samples first and build drums to those. But from there it can go anywhere. Sometimes I'll rework the drums to that sample for a while, or sometimes I'll scratch the sample, keep the drums and start layering other elements on top of that. If I'm working with The J.O.E. that day, I'll just start from scratch with a bassline and a drum loop. It's all about layering though. So whatever I start with, I'm constantly adding and removing elements until I'm satisfied with a sound.

So you use a lot of samples? What about composing with keys/synths?

I compose some as well but most the time I don't really like to do it because to me it always sounds like a keyboard synth. I like all my instruments to sound live, whether that means recording it or finding it on a record. I have Reason and some of the sounds in that aren't bad, but there's just a texture you get from records and instruments that you don't get in a software program.

Do you consider yourself a producer or beatmaker?

I would consider myself a producer. I started out just making beats, but now I record emcees and singers almost on a daily basis and have musicians come through pretty often. I've also gotten really into mixing and engineering (which I'm still learning), so in the end I have the final say on what take to use, what instruments to keep, and if something needs to be re-recorded.

What's the last piece of hardware or software that you added to your setup?

I think it would have to be a new mic, which a friend was actually kind enough to let me use for a while. But before that it was protools about five months ago. I'm pretty satisfied with my setup right now so I'm not in a mad rush to change anything drastically. Oh, but I do need a good sub for my mixes. That gets to me sometimes.

How important is mixing?

I would say that mixing is right up there with making the beat. People don't realize how creative it can be either, although a lot more tedious. It just depends on what stage you're at with your production and the time you're willing to put into a beat. Some of the greatest hip-hop in my opinion were the old Outkast albums. Not only were their beats ill, but the mixing made that shit explode out of your speakers. That's what it's all about - the sound exploding out of your speakers. It takes a great composition to the next level.

What's with your name? What's up with that?

Well Orpheus is actually outdated. In Greek mythology Orpheus was the greatest musician alive. He could calm wild beasts and all that shit. But these days you can call me Cook, The Captain, Goodwill... man I was thinking about just calling myself Identity Crisis. I always pick a production name and then get sick of it in a couple months. I guess I like keeping things fresh.

How did you originally find IllMuzik?

I don't even remember, to be honest. I know I was studying abroad in Prague. I couldn't make beats out there because I didn't bring any gear and I didn't even have a computer of my own. I must have found it on Google looking for production sites. That'd be my guess.

How has the site helped you?

It definitely helped me out back when I was just getting started. I think it's a great resource for rookies, especially getting feedback in the showcase from other producers. It's also dope to be able to discuss things in hip-hop or not in hip-hop with people around the world who are all interested in a similar art. People need to stop asking questions like "How do I make a beat" though. That may be extreme, but I've seen posts like that. Just listen to music, pick out an element you're curious about, and then ask about that specifically. Like on Madvillain, the song Figaro, how did Madlib get that rawness on his kicks? That's the kind of question that would be more helpful and I think could be answered by people on IllMuzik. That's why it's great... people just gotta ask the right questions.

Indeed. Getting good feedback is very important, what would be your advice to the new guys when getting feedback? (Besides not to cry!)

Just don't get discouraged. Take the feedback as somebody's opinion. You gotta remember that opinions aren't always right, but they can be very helpful. For me, I value opinions from people I respect. So when I post in the showcase or in a Beat This! competition, I try to only take in the advice of people that I respect musically. I mean if you like to produce downtempo, abstract hip-hop, don't let somebody who makes crunk music tell you that your shit is wack. But if you respect their talent, then you should think about listening to their advice. It can only make you better.

So where are you from? Tell us a bit about yourself.

Originally I'm from NYC, born and raised. I grew up in The Village, Tribeca, and Park Slope for a minute. I've always been into music but didn't really get into production until college. I came out to Cali for school in 2001. Graduated from Pomona College in 2005. So that would put me in my first year out of school. It's pretty crazy being on my own and trying to make it as a producer in LA. There are quite a few unanswered questions about my future that I'm constantly trying to figure out. But I try to just take what comes to me. I gotta admit though, it does get stressful when things get stagnant. I have to remind myself things will work out as they're supposed to. I just gotta keep my head up and my eyes open for any opportunities out there.

What do you think of the quality of beats that big name artists are using?

I'm assuming you're talking about the "mainstream" or what you hear on the radio. I think that shit is garbage. That's a case where mixing overshadows production, because they may sound crisp on the radio, but they lack creativity. But there are some albums coming out like the new Ghostface (if it hasn't already dropped) that kill the production. Those beats are hard, man. And that GZA vs. Muggs had dope production, but I don't know if you would call that mainstream. I would call Muggs a "big name producer", but most people probably still don't know who he is. But it seems like for most artists, they've got the same disease that the movie industry has - they know the formula for mediocrity and instead of taking risks on something new, they choose beats that guarantee them a certain return. That's the kind of music that will never break through, but they won't lose money off of it either. So basically the mainstream is stagnant right now, but everybody already knows that. What we need now are creative producers to step up and fill the void that Dilla just left us. Bring the creativity, bring a new sound, don't get your techniques from today's mainstream, and only cater to other people as long as you don't compromise your own style. Those are Cook's infinite words of wisdom.

What are your plans with producing?

I'm trying to take baby steps here - build my foundation before I get to the spire. So right now my immediate plans are to make good music and find a way to support myself off of it so I don't have to worry about paying rent or eating a decent meal. Ideally though, if I could give everything to music I ever wanted, I would want to be a part of another Gangstarr, Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth, Eric B & Rakim, Reflection Eternal. To me these groups are the epitome of hip-hop and made great music because of how flawlessly the MC and producer fit together. That shit is beautiful right there. Plus being a producer I want to have the chance to work with different MC's and test my musical boundaries, and that's exactly what people like Premo have done.

Have you ever competed in live beat battles? Would you like to?

I would love to get in some live beat battles. I'm not even exactly sure what that entails... but it sounds dope. Let me know how to sign up.

What's your favorite album, production-wise?

That's a really hard question and I don't think I can give one single answer. It would definitely come down to Reflection Eternal, ATLiens, Illmatic, Quasimoto's The Unseen (forget the weak lyrics), Beats, Rhymes, & Life, The Main Ingredient. I told you this was a tough question for me... one great album just gets me thinking of the next. Besides The Unseen though, my favorite produced albums are definitely from the 90's.

Who/What are your influences?

In terms of hip-hop, I'm influenced by people like JDilla, Pete Rock, Organized Noise, Tribe, Premo, Madlib, and Kno. I like the mix of the raw and rugged with the smooth, which is what these producers are when you blend them all together. Outside of hip-hop though, I love old jazz, funk, soul, rock. I find myself sampling a lot of jazz and rock these days. Lou Donaldson, Bobbi Humphrey, The Heath Brothers, Jeff Beck, Grover Washington JR. They're all pretty well known musicians, but they made some amazing music. That's the kind of music I'll listen to before making a beat - it has a lot of inspiration hidden within it.

How would you describe your style of beats?

My beats are generally laid back with a good melody and dope drums. Some shit that you really just want to listen to with a blunt in circulation and then vibe out to. For me it's music that I don't want to talk through - just listen - or at least that's what I want it to be. That's how I feel about albums like Reflection Eternal or the song SpottieOttieDopalicious. If somebody's talking to me I can't even hear what they're saying when that's playing, I can't help but pay attention to it. I'm not saying that I'm on the level of Organized Noise or past Hi-Tek, because I definitely have a long way to go, but that's the style I look up to.

Thanks for doing this interview. Any shoutouts you'd like to give?

It's my pleasure. Hopefully I'll be back soon. Let me quickly shout out some great music - Renegade Soldiers, Noah King, The J.O.E., A-Dub, (check out Noah at www.renegadesoldiers.net), Inverse (check them out on MySpace - dope MC's!), and www.TheBeatLocker.com.