Gardnsound
by Mister Mime
17th July 2021
Multi-genre music producer and bonafide all-rounder Gardnsound continues his ambient journey with ‘Atmospheres’, a radiant and breezy 6-track long waft. The album was created completely with hardware instruments, and fully hands-on without automation of any parameters to get a humanized feel.
The artist, who is also known for his association with glitch-wizard and Ableton guru Mr. Bill, runs a multifaceted company ‘Easy Peasy Pro’ which provides personalized and customized technical & repair solutions and happens to be a prolific proponent of the DIY philosophy which he intrinsically wove into the creation of this record.
MM: What got you into AMBIENT music? How did this record, which happens to be your second ambient one, come about?
Gardnsound: I discovered ambient music when I was searching for eurorack case tutorials. I'm a DIY guy; and I like to build my own stuff when I can - so I was perusing YouTube and came across r beny and some other ambient eurorack guys. I listened to the entire playlist straight through, and decided that I needed to try making something similar. That's where the first album got its exigence. The second album was a continuation deeper into the hardware rabbit hole. In the first album, I generated all of the notes with hardware, and recorded it into my computer; and mastered "in the box". I enjoyed the experience of using my hands to make sounds so much that I decided to take the mastering stage out of the box, as well.
MM: Are there any STORIES you would like to share behind any of the names of the tracks, or the making of the tracks or album?
Gardnsound: The tracks "Euclidean" and "Radiance" are close to my heart. Euclidean is based around a euclidean sequencer; so based on a clock-face and not dependent on a musical grid or barlines. Radiance is a Christian Hymn, slowed down, played across 4 separate synth voices, and synced together, ran through a giant reverb and distortion algorithm. It more or less is what I imagine God's radiance sounds like.
MM: Can you tell us about your musical BACKGROUND and how music and art first came into your life?
Gardnsound: I am a classical composer at heart. I started writing chamber music when I was 15; mostly string quartets and piano pieces. I began playing music when I was very young, and my primary instrument is the Upright Bass. I didn't learn about electronic music production until I was 17 or 18, and I've been singularly fascinated with it since.
MM: For this album, you 'refined your WORKFLOW to incorporate an all-hardware signal path’. Could you elaborate on this a bit and tell us about your new hardware setup, your refined workflow, and how they elevated your music-making process and experience?
Gardnsound: My hardware setup is a custom Euro/19'' rack that I welded, milled, and assembled in my workshop. As far as I've been able to research it's the only rack that incorporates both standards and has the flexibility to patch between both, seamlessly. My modular gear roster contains a TON of DIY modules - including a dreadbox Antiphon, and a bubblesound ULFO; both of which are used in almost every song. I also search for off-brand components when possible. Most of my mutable instruments clones are from various manufacturers like Antumbra, Blue Lantern, and After Later Audio. The synthesizer that sees the most use in my rack is definitely my Behringer Model D.
Gardnsound: My workflow for this album was to write a song in the box; send all of the info out to a MIDI / CV converter (Polyend Poly 2), patch that through to a modular mixer, patch that into a compressor, then a preamp (using the mid-side algorithm to make it sound huge), then into a Virus Ti, then an EQ (GOLY PQ2), and a bus compressor to squish it all together. After that, it's recorded and digitized. The audio signal is 100% hardware, not 100% analog.
MM: Regarding the music not being DIGITIZED until the point of being uploaded online, how did you feel this affected or changed your creative experience and the output?
Gardnsound: It's much more "hands-on" and therefore sounds more humanized, imo. I spend more time on an idea instead of just bouncing it down and resampling. I have to make sure it sounds good before I record it, otherwise, I've wasted tape and time.
MM: What are some of the METHODS, tools, techniques, plugins, instruments, etc. that you used to get your sound? Anything that you would care to share that you believe is unique to your production PROCESS.
Gardnsound: The most unique method is that I try not to automate any parameters like filter sweeps or pitch bends. I actually perform these using my hands while the Poly 2 sends pulses out to the different modules. This means that I have to practice my songs a bunch before I record them. I have to memorize every knob setting, turn, final setting, etc. This gives the songs a very "live" feeling.
MM: You are known to be a real all-rounder and a total D.I.Y guy. How did this happen? Have you always been this way?
Gardnsound: Ha! No, I used to be terrified of messing things up - and didn't get much experience into DIY until I was too poor to afford anything otherwise. I've found that getting my hands dirty has imbued me with a ton of confidence and a sense of mortality that I describe as knowing that "everything breaks and most things can be fixed". It's also lead me to start my own handyman/contractor service - and that's my primary source of income. I love to build things. When you think about it, building things and writing music are very similar. It's like Legos for adults.
MM: Can you tell us a bit about your company, ‘EASY PEASY PRO’?
Gardnsound: Sure! I started this company as a side gig while I was working on movie props for Marvel. The hours weren't steady, so I needed something else to fill the gaps. Building things / fixing things has been a part of my life since I decided to leave corporate America; as I suddenly couldn't afford to hire anyone to fix the things I needed fixed. So, I started small and got larger. Now I'm confident in my abilities to fix and build pretty much anything. My skills include carpentry, welding, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, low voltage, networking, and furniture.
MM: Who/what were your biggest musical INFLUENCES for this album and otherwise?
Gardnsound: r beny, lightbath, Hans Zimmer, Deadmau5, Solar Fields, Philip Glass, John Adams (composer, not president lol), Bluetech, Tipper, Mr. Bill
MM: Who are some artists, people, things from other disciplines and walks of life that INSPIRE you?
Gardnsound: Visual Art: Matt Mills, Android Jones, Lucas Sams
Furniture: Charles Eames
Architecture: Frank Lloyd Wright, John Portman, Louis Kahn
MM: Can you tell us a little about the album ARTWORK?
Gardnsound: The artwork is a line drawing that my artist: "Citizen" drew for my social media avatar. I decided to use a bunch of different colors because I view music in color and textures. Since it's a continuation of Ambiences, it uses a similar art style. I designed the cover of both Ambiences and Atmospheres, myself (with some guidance from other designers and artists that I respect).
MM: What do you ENJOY doing apart from making music?
Gardnsound: VIDEOGAMES. I am a very avid gamer; my current addiction is "Satisfactory" - which is a first person clone of Factorio. However, that's a gross oversimplification of the depth of the game. I have probably sunk at least 1000 hours into this game, I'm embarrassed to admit. I also enjoy swimming, spending time with my daughter, and staying up late watching YouTube with my wife.
You Can Follow Gardnsound on:
https://gardnsound.com/album/atmospheres
All Images courtesy of Gardnsound
