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Modulate

Lee: I think firstly trying to figure out what Modulate was. I was writing tracks and needed a name for them, so Modulate kind of stuck, but the tracks were pretty rough and lacked any real cohesion. I could have played you three different tracks and you might have thought they were three different bands. They did get some UK club play, but personally I didn't think they were as finished, polished, or professional as I would like, so I never really tried to get them released commercially. I have a lot of music that I absolutely love that pulls on me as influences, so it took a while to figure out how to blend those together, and to be honest it is still a battle, because I want to go into more directions than I probably should in one project, so I'm still figuring out what Modulate is all about and trying to put all these elements that I love into one thing that will have a character of its own. There was also the issue of equipment and ability. My studio now is mostly computer-based; my studio five to six years ago was mostly hardware, so I think the evolution in computing power and the software available has meant that I can do now things that I couldn't get close to five years ago without going into a proper studio.

Playing live was something I wanted to do, though it wasn't really a natural evolution; as with any primarily studio-based project, playing live is always a question of compromises and adaptations. A rock band naturally exists in a live environment, whereas electronic musicians cannot physically do what they do in a studio, because the music isn't created in real time. Modulate as a live band is still very much in its infancy. We had only played three gigs before going on tour with VNV Nation, so it was almost a case of growing up in public. It was great to have people like Krischan (of Rotersand) on the sound desk and the VNV and Imperative Reaction guys around able to give us feedback and suggestions, because they have so much experience between them.

Your debut EP, Skullfuck, is out now. Tell us a little about that.

Lee: I think from the moment I started talking to the labels, Sistinas and Infacted, the plan I had was to release Skullfuck as an EP. John at Das Bunker heard our demo and included the track on their 10th anniversary compilation last year, so that gave us a break into the underground clubs mostly in the USA. We thought we'd put it together as a release in its own right with some other new tracks and a few remixes. I think we all knew it had the potential to be a big club hit, so to have that on your hands with your first release was pretty special.

Do you have a favorite remix on the album?

Lee: That's tough. I like them all in their own way. The four on the EP were chosen because I wanted to mark out the influences on Modulate, so the Neikka RPM mix is quite techno-sounding, ESA takes things into a harder and noisier direction, Phantom West is more a breaksy electronica mix, and Combichrist is an absolute club stomper. I wanted them to be different enough to make the EP listenable as a whole. But if you push me, I think my favourite is the Phantom West mix because I think Skullfuck works so well as a breaks track! It reminds me of so many things, from Front Line Assembly to Adam Freeland, and I loved that little squiggly sound Tim put over the top of the main riff. I had a 'Why didn't I think of that?!' moment when I heard it.

The title track, 'Skullfuck,' is built around a fairly well-known sample from Full Metal Jacket. How did you pick that particular sample, and do you feel that the fact that it's a recognizable quotation has helped your visibility in the scene?

Lee: I actually wrote the track to fit in between Combichrist's 'This Is My Rifle' and Grendel's 'Soilbleed' in my DJ sets because I was bored of playing those two and wanted something new, so it was always targeted as an out and out club track from the start. There were certain elements I knew my crowd in Mutate/The Wendy House loved: big booming kick drums a la 'Disco Buddah' or 'Kalte Unschuld,' samples they could shout along with, big riffs, big breakdowns and big build-ups, almost taking a Fatboy Slim approach to an industrial track—check out his mix of Wildchild's 'Renegade Master,' and you'll get the idea. So yes, an obvious source for the sample, but not one I'd heard used before, and if it turns people on to one of the finest films ever made, that's a bonus. You could analyse it deeper and talk about skulls and mortality and war and a whole host of things that probably influenced it subconsciously that tie it in with the other themes kicking around under the surface of what Modulate is, but that is a far longer story.

How has the response in the clubs been so far?

Lee: Mad, in a word! I sent the demo to a few DJs I knew who had picked up on us a long while ago on MySpace: Tom Gold at The Castle, John at Das Bunker, DJ Spider, etc., and they got back to me with various degrees of 'Whoah!' I knew from my club what it could do to the right crowd. After giving it a couple of spins in my sets I knew it was something a bit special, because the crowd went absolutely fucking mental. Then it sort of bubbled around the underground for a few months before now getting a full release. I was talking to Andy (of Combichrist) a couple of weeks ago, and he said, 'Do you realise how big your track is in the USA?' Actually, no! I obviously see it cropping up in play-lists and things, but I don't really know whether that is a play-list for 10 people in a bar or 1,000 people in a club, so it's going to be really exciting coming out to America. In Germany, the scene seems very geared towards more old school EBM/electro—Nitzer Ebb and Depeche Mode are absolutely idolized—so I was pretty excited hearing it played in a club out there. Then Mark from VNV turned to me and said, 'Yeah, they've played it twice already tonight!' The EP has climbed to number 12 in the German Electronic Charts and number 11 in the Deutsche Alternative Charts this week, so for an unknown band with their first release I'm really pleased. There are some very big names at the moment with releases in the chart, so to even chart at the moment is something of an achievement. Hopefully we can give it another push when we get out and tour there again in May.

The reviews have been 'interesting!' One particular review was great, really positive, 'It's a surefire club hit,' and then only gave it six out of 10 because it was a club record, as if somehow that was a bad thing! Other reviews have been fantastic. One guy said he had been playing it on a loop ever since he got it and woke his neighbours up with it at 4:00 am! I thought that was great. It was a German metal magazine, too. It has been interesting to see it cross over and see it crop up in metal/rock club play-lists alongside people like The Prodigy and NIN. I think different magazines have different agendas and reader bases, so you have to take the reviews with a pinch of salt, really. You'll drive yourself mad if you take them all too seriously. I make music that I like; not everyone else is going to love it, but fortunately, some people do, so that's as good as you hope for.

You're a DJ as well as a producer; how has your career as a DJ influenced the music you're creating with the Modulate project?

Lee: 'Modulate' may well have been 'DJ Echo' if there hadn't already been an artist using that name already. A lot, but not all, of the Modulate tracks are written for the dance floor, and of course I can go and test them out on my crowd. If they love it first play without knowing who or what it is, then I know I'm onto a winner. I can watch their reaction, see if certain parts are too long, if certain parts don't work, and use that as feedback.

What's your opinion of the current hard electronic scene, both as an artist and a DJ? Do you have any current favorite acts? What about least favorites?

Lee: I think it is an interesting time. People are looking outside the scene for influences and pulling a lot of new sounds in. Things got a bit stale, so it's great to see a new crop of artists making some really great music. Just looking at the releases already in early 2007, it is shaping up to be a classic year. Current favourites? I like the new SAM and Noisuf-X, Northborne, Kloq, and C/A/T—I think Ben takes the same dance floor sensibility as I do to his tracks. Krischan played me the new Rotersand album the other day, so I can't wait to get my hands on that; it's stunning. I'm a big Soman fan, so I'm really looking forward to his new CD. The new Grendel is sounding great, Marc—both Modulate and Grendel's live drummer—has been playing me bits of it since it was a work in progress, and they have some killer tracks on there. I think 'Hate This' will be this year's Soilbleed. I've seen the Combichrist live show a couple of times recently, and it's devastating. It's just brutal. VNV, of course; Ronan's an absolute master of his craft. I'm gutted that I'll miss Caustic playing at Infest, a big UK industrial festival near where I live; I haven't a clue what he'll get up to live, but on past evidence it'll be like gawping at a car crash. I heard the new Keef Baker album the other day as well, and that blew my head off, more IDM than industrial, but it sounded absolutely fantastic. Then on the tour we had all sorts of things: Trentemoller, T. Raumschmiere, and lots of Underworld. Least favourite? I haven't actually heard anything recently that left me recoiling in horror, apart from something involving bagpipes, lutes and a cover of 'One World, One Sky,' and I think I'll leave it at that.

What artists or bands have had the biggest influences on your music?

Lee: Soman; his kick drums and programming are from another planet. Combichrist, because his music is brutally simple yet powerful because of it; it just connects with people on a really primal level. Feindflug; I love the roughness of their sound, it mixes dirty electronics with some beautiful glacial melodies. Cubanate; their sound is so big, their beats are huge, they hit you right in the gut. Grendel; big riffs, great use of samples. Moonitor; Seb's production is always fantastic. Monolith, simply for that kick drum in 'Disco Buddha.' Suicide Commando; they pioneered that sound and always seem to have an absolute killer riff tucked away somewhere. Terrorfakt; absolutely punishing. Chemical Brothers; they pull influences from so many places and always turn it into something exciting and fresh. Modcom; I'm on a big techno kick at the moment, and this just hit the spot. Oakenfold/Osborne; their remixes around '97 were gob-smacking. Front 242; Front by Front was one of the first CDs I ever bought, so it was a killer introduction to industrial music. I think it's hard to pin one genre on us. There are bits of industrial in there, bits of techno, trance, EBM, noise, hard dance, whatever.

You held your live debut at a private party held at a train station in York. How did you come up with this idea, and how difficult was it to pull the event off?

Lee: It wasn't my idea. It was actually a friend's 40th birthday. She has been involved in putting nights on for a long time so she asked would a few friends in bands play at her party, to be hosted in the Grand Hall of the National Railway Museum! So logistically it was a case of hiring the room—they allow it to be hired for private functions—and putting a big PA in there. It was amazing to play against a backdrop of steam engines and great hulking diesels. Someone described it as the ultimate steampunk venue. I also play keyboards in Monosect—Martin, my regular keyboard player's band—so I ended up playing in two bands that night. Then we jumped in the car and headed down to London the next day to open up for Suicide Commando. Pretty hectic, but a fantastic experience.

What's next on the horizon for Modulate? Will we be seeing a full-length album soon, and will it include any of the tracks from the Skullfuck EP?

Lee: I think it will probably have a version of 'Skullfuck' because we couldn't really release a 'single' from the album as such, so it became an EP, but I don't think anything else from the EP will be on it. I have about 10 tracks at 'polished demo' stage already, so provided we can work it logistically, we'd like to mix and finish things off over in Ronan's studio in Hamburg. We've got a lot of live dates lined up between now and the end of the year with the VNV tour, the Combichrist tour, etc., so tentatively we are looking at an autumn release for the album. Current plans? Working on new tracks at the moment, then we are playing at the Dark City festival in Edinburgh with Grendel, XP8, Solitary Experiments, Sonar etc., then joining VNV and Imperative Reaction again for leg two of the European tour, then a couple of months off to finish the album, then over to the USA for the Combichrist tour. Then release album. Then more touring. So that is 2007 taken care of!