Genre Agnostic

I’ve always been kind of genre agnostic when it comes to music. Not genre phobic though, I actually love dipping into different worlds, trying on different hats, so to speak. But honestly, I’m happiest when I don’t fit neatly into a box.

Is that great for promotion or super helpful for journalists? Probably not. Does it make life easier for record shops or people scrolling through a trillion tracks on streaming platforms? Yeah… also no. But it does mean the creative doors are wide open, and that’s exactly how I like it.

Up until now, it’s felt a bit like a square peg, round hole situation. Sometimes I wonder if I’ve been shooting myself in the foot, at least from a promo perspective. But looking ahead, I can’t help feeling optimistic. Maybe this is one of those “genres” that can’t be pinned down or replicated by that shiny new Artificial Intelligence thing everyone’s talking about. Who knows, maybe this is actually the perfect moment to thrive.

Rescores

In between client projects, I enjoy exploring areas I haven’t yet worked in. Recently, I’ve been experimenting with scenes from vintage sci-fi and nature documentaries. In a departure from my usual work, I also rescored an entire horror short film.

I’m always on the lookout for interesting scoring opportunities, so please get in touch if you have something in mind.

Projects

Audio Logos

Sonic logos, brand mnemonics, whatever you like to call them, are such an interesting space I’ve spent a lot of time working in over the years. The challenge? Capturing an entire brand in just three seconds of sound. Not easy, right? I’ve had brand identity decks land on my desk that run over 100 pages long, but at the end of the day, my job usually boils down to creating something short, memorable, and emotionally resonant, something that connects people to the brand while hitting the right tone, concept, and supporting the visual identity…and if you bring in the wider world of sound design, you can go way beyond a simple three-note piano melody!

These tiny sonic gems often end up shaping the broader sound world of a brand, influencing everything from the music in ads to full-blown albums.

Projects


Citrix
Motorverse
EA Games

Get in touch for full reel.

Goodbye MTV

After hearing about the impending shutdown of MTV’s music channels, I took a nostalgic dive through my hard drive to dig up all the idents I composed music for. I found 20, though there might be a few I’ve forgotten! I absolutely loved working on these, pushing myself to tackle unfamiliar genres alongside a few that sit more comfortably in my comfort zone (weirdo electronic stuff, perhaps?). I was also surprised by how much singing I did on them, especially since I’d never dream of submitting the public to that in person! Other memorable experiments included recording the sound of vibrating high heels on a bass bin…

Most of the idents were commissioned by Universal Everything with a few mixed in from Umeric and Proud Creative.

 

Some Thoughts on Tools

During one of my usual obsessive moments, I felt the urge to step away from doom scrolling and try making a photo album of all the gear I’ve owned over the years. What could be a more fun activity for an inward-looking nerd, right? Starting from my very first sampling device for the ZX Spectrum (or maybe the Casio SK-5, honestly, not 100% sure) all the way through to my current, amazing but not quite as sexy MacBook Pro, I think I remembered it all… give or take a few things.

The process brought up a few thoughts. One was: thank god I don’t still own all this stuff, or I’d need a warehouse just for my studio. And another was how I loved a lot of it, but I don’t actually miss any of it. Around seven years ago, when I moved from Brighton to the countryside, I did a major gear downsize to fit into the small but lovely studio we built in the garden. When the choice is between a bright, vibey studio with daylight and a bit of free desk space versus a dark, windowless room full of blinking lights, I’ll take the sunshine every time. I get the appeal, it’s just not where I want to spend every day.

I like to think of my gear as transient, here for a while, inspiring sounds, then moving on to the next nerd. I do have my core instruments that I’ll never part with, mostly unique pieces I can’t replicate in software. And speaking of software, I know it’s all the rage to be hardcore about hardware these days, but I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to live in a time where almost my entire historical collection is just a search bar away. Convenience aside, the quicker the process between idea and creation, the lower the barrier to actually creating.

Anyway, I’m off to browse more plugins now….

Improv - Soothing Drones for Apocalypse

Live improvised studio session, originally streamed on 6 November 2023.
An improvised performance using iPad, Folktek Luminist Garden, 2600, and MIDI controllers.

 

Freeform Early Influences Mix

A nostalgic mix of early Freeform influences from the late 90s originally shared on the bleep digital store.