Fol Chen member Julian Wass has gone it alone for his new, analogue love-in EP, Crystals. It’s a set of tracks that are up there with some of the best electronic music we’ve heard this year. Dreams of tangerine, a nod to Daniel Lopatin, a love-letter to 8-bit electronics and an effortless flow of retro synths and drum machines. After several hundred listens we knew it was time to talk to the man behind the beeps, arpeggios and old-school keyboards.
Bowlegs: So have you left Fol Chen to write and put down the solo record?
Julian: Not at all! I’m still very much a part of Fol Chen. The thing is, Crystals was a very personal record for me to make, so I felt a powerful urge to be the only person involved.
The record contains absolutely no samples. I played every synthesizer, drum and piano part and created the cover art myself. This was something that needed to either sink or soar by my hand and my hand only.
Bowlegs: What’s behind the different colour track names on the record?
Julian: I left it purposefully vague so that listeners could decide for themselves, but, for me, each track represents one of the four elemental crystals: red, blue, yellow and green. I could go deeper with that, but I think I’ll leave it alone for now. If I get started I’ll be talking about elemental crystals for the whole week.
Bowlegs: When you write purely instrumental music do you still draw on inspiration/experiences?
Julian: Absolutely. In my other life I score films, so I’m very accustomed to and intrigued by creating narrative instrumental music. There are a good deal of emotions and moments in my life that I’m not able to describe in words. In fact, I have a box of note-cards with those moments written on them for when I need inspiration.
Bowlegs: The PR sheet says the record honours a lifelong fascination with analogue synthesisers – why do you think analogue synths remain such an attraction to electronic artists?
Julian: First off, they really do sound fantastic … the sound of a voltage controlled oscillator pumping out a saw wave is like riding a lightning bolt. There is, of course, a nostalgia factor involved, and obviously it’s great to have an object to put your hands on. But beyond that, analogue synthesizers feel very much alive to me.
Plus, each company has their own particular circuits, their own filters. It must have taken so many people so much time to put those together. So aside from the electricity running through its circuits, you also have the energy of the inventors embedded within the box. It’s quite exciting.
Bowlegs: Do you have a room full of analogue equipment – and, if so, what’s your favourite piece?
Julian: My favourite piece is still my first keyboard: a blue Roland SH-101. It’s a fairly common synthesizer, but it has a ton of personality and is incredibly versatile. I have used it on every project I’ve worked on during the last decade, and I still feel like I’m discovering new ways to use it. I also love my Roland JX8P. It’s like the weird digital-hybrid nephew of the ever-popular Juno.
Bowlegs: What’s your favourite track on Crystals?
Julian: Probably Crystals Pt. II. One of my most formative musical obsessions was (and still is) 1960s UK psych, so I have a thing for reprises and bookends. I find them deeply satisfying and even somewhat manipulative (in a good way, of course).
Bowlegs: We read that you also have a fascination for 8-bit graphics – would you ever consider writing the music for a video game?
Julian: What can I say? It would be a dream come true and a huge honour to write music for a video game. I’ve had some incredible experiences at the intersection of epic gaming and epic music, so to possibly be a part of that for someone would be huge. I love 16-bit graphics too, but I’m not quite skilled enough to make those myself. My pixel art skills are at about 1989 right now, but advancing every day.
Bowlegs: So do you keep it real and play on an old school, 8-bit Nintendo gaming console?
Julian: I actually use my NES more for music than playing. When I want to play a NES game, I use a Sega Dreamcast with this disc I made that has all the NES games. My favourite system of all time has to be the SNES. It’s a perfect marriage of the simplicity and elegance of early gaming with the depth and complexity of today’s games. Since then, I feel like games have veered too far into the complex.
Bowlegs: Our favourite track is ◊ (Blue) – it has an undertone that feels cinematic – would you agree?
Julian: First off, I’m so glad you guys like that one, because of all the ◊s, I struggled the most with that one. But yes, for sure, that track is way cinematic. That’s probably the only track on Crystals where I envisioned a (very loose) narrative. It doesn’t really matter what the ‘story’ is, but I feel like the song is somehow charged with that energy, the energy of a distinct story.
Bowlegs: Where next for the solo career – will it remain instrumental?
Julian: I have many inspirations that would work better as instrumental albums, but I promise to you and to myself that some vocal music will in fact be recorded and released. There is a ton of cool stuff that I want to write music about, and I have a lot to say about it, both with lyrics and without lyrics.
Bowlegs: What has been your favourite record of 2011?
Julian: I’m kind of obsessed with Daniel Lopatin right now. I’ve kept coming back to Channel Pressure since I first heard it earlier this year, but Replica is climbing fast. I think that’s an unbelievable record. The other album that really affected me was the Bon Iver record. I’m just blown away by how elegantly earnest it is, and I love stuff that is elegantly earnest. It’s rare.
Head here to bag the EP – we highly recommend it.
