New York-based Soul Gem has released his latest single, ‘Miles Away’ in collaboration with Norweigan duo Kasket Club. ‘Miles Away’ was released with a B-side, ‘Self Control’ via Uppwind Records on 24 January. While ‘Miles Away’ has already received significant recognition with its upbeat and modern take on indie disco meets French house, it was ‘Self Control’ that stood out for us, with its soothing and organic sounds.
Working as part of a collaboration is something that Soul Gem has great experience with, having paired up with Norwegian rapper and producer Pasha. The two toured the world together, collecting millions of plays and exploring their own musical horizons. Pasha and Kasket Club fall into vastly different genres, the one embracing hip hop and the other chillwave.
Naturally, we were keen to discover more about Soul Gem and his ability to produce catchy songs in so many genres.
What are some of your earliest memories of music?
Playing the drums to troopers by Iron Maiden
Take us through your songwriting process. Are there any particular steps you take when putting music together?
I usually start with playing piano/synth and try to come up with a cool chord progression. After that, I normally go straight to the microphone and jam out different vocal ideas. From there, I just keep building the track with more sounds.
‘Self Control’ reveals a more organic sound than ‘Miles Away’ with its electronic embellishments. Which direction would you personally like to move towards, as a producer?
I think ‘Miles Away’ is a more interesting path, most of the time. The type of energy that ‘Self Control’ represents is something that doesn’t happen that often when creating in the studio. I have to feel a certain way, and normally I prefer more positive tones 🙂
Studio work and music creation or performing and interacting with a live audience, which do you prefer?
Creating music.
What is the most memorable response you have had to your music?
I can’t remember a specific response, but in general that I made someone’s day 🙂
If you could put together a radio show, what kind of music would you play?
House, Indie, funk
Name five artists and their albums who would appear on your radio show
- Earth, Wind and Fire
- Washed Out
- Toro Y Moi
- Parcels
- Jungle
You previously worked alongside Norweigan rapper Pasha before collaborating with Kasket Club on ‘Miles Away’ and ‘Self Control’. What are some of the most striking differences when working with these musicians?
Just the different energy they bring to the room. Also, with Kasket Club it’s more about producing and creating the whole song, while with Pasha it’s usually more about the vocals and getting ideas around that.
What would you like to achieve with your music? What does success look like to you?
Success to me is just having fun with it. My long term goal is to create more music for commercials/movies. Would also love to collaborate with different artists from around the world.
One last thought to leave your fans with?
Thank you 💛
Follow Kasket Club:
Facebook – Twitter – Soundcloud – Youtube – Spotify
Follow Soul Gem:
Facebook – Soundcloud – Instagram – Youtube – Spotify
