Pig & Dan

High quality production combined with twisted and experimental breakdowns made Pig & Dan’s second album, Then & Now, one of the hottest albums to land last year. Although known for their releases on Cocoon and Yoshitoshi, the duo are quite the unsung heroes, but still, their crossover, pulsating electronic sounds have found it into the sets of everyone from James Zabiela to Wally Lopez and Monika Kruse to Riva Staar.

We spoke to Dan to find out how they make music with such mass appeal…

1. Digital or Analogue? Which do you favour in your studio set up?

We are 98% digital these days, however, we love to drop in the odd Moog here and there. We both come from the Analog era hence the name of our new label ONOLOG. At one point or another we’ve both owned just about every old school synth out there - Moogs, Junos, 303s, Arps etc. They are hard to beat, but as far as the flow of creation goes, it’s about a flow in the studio and digital allows us to move more in one direction quickly. It’s not what you have; it’s what you do with it.

2. What gets your creative juices going when you start a track?

Hard to say; it could be a kick drum or a melody we create. It’s really about roaming freely through experimentation. It’s like a blank sonic canvas waiting to be colored with soundscapes.

3. What is your favourite piece of kit or plug in?

If we had to choose one, it would be Reaktor 5.5. A big virtual magical madness machine. Also, we love the Waves Maserati ACG plug in to add that little dirty click on rhythmic sounds.

4. What is your monitor preference? Passive or Active? Low level or loud & proud?

We have both options. At Pigs studio we own a pair of 1.60M JBL monitors that thump big time, however I’m (Dan) more a detail kinda guy and I love the Genelec 8050s at low volume. It’s all there and if its not, I plop the subwoofer on and shake my balls around the room large!

5. How do you feel about sampling and how it is used in much of today’s music?

Don't really have anything against it but we don't really do it these days. I used to back in my Drum & Bass days. But now we might nick a little raga voice off Youtube but nothing really major. I think there are some outstanding sample collections out there and when adding rhythm, I tend to have a little look if there’s something a bit different to add to the tops or something. If we use something, we like to change it so it’s not like the original, just to remain original if you catch my drift.

6. What is your secret weapon or a piece of kit or plug in that you just can’t live without in the studio?

Our ears, that’s about it, oh and hands I guess. However gear is always changing. You get sick of things or over use them so move on and come back to them, but I cant do it without my ears.

7. How long does it generally take you to produce a track and what is your procedure?

We usually produce a track in two days. Sometimes four hours, sometimes three days, it’s just how the juices flow. We have no real way of creating and I am proud that we don't stick to patterns or think about we are doing. In fact, we haven't really got a clue what the fark we are doing most of the time. We start everything a bit different each time we write.

8. How did you get involved in music production and what skills or information did you find useful on your journey to where you are today?

I studied music since I was four years young. I knew my path and it was clear from a very early age. I left school and had a crash course in sound engineering and applied at all the big studios in London. I was of course laughed at when they found I was a 16 year old asking to work with the big boys. One studio manger asked me to come to the studio and show me what I knew. Much to my shock, it was my confidence that won me the job to make tea. I worked my way up and learned and listened like I knew I had to.

9. What tip would you give to new producers trying to break into the industry in today’s unsteady climate?

Make sure you’re covered; I starved for this position and went through a lot of doubting moments. Don't change your line, do what you want and not what others think you should do or sound like. You will win with a lot of hard work in my opinion.

Also, a song is never finished so know when to stop and move on. We make tracks and a week later will return to it to see if it’s getting us in the balls or not. If it’s not, then we put in the drawer and move forward. Learn when your music is at a good enough point for you to say, ok that’s cool, lets do something new now. Getting stuck is so easy so progression is a must.

10. And finally what’s your all time favourite record?

Hardest question on earth! Too many to mention, but if its got soul to it, is something that gets under our skin and doesn't just brush over us, then I’m into it.