After being locked up in the lab for a while, it’s finally there! The long awaited ‘Childish Adult’ EP by Amsterdam based producer PlutoDash. With full-on focus and dedication PlutoDash has worked hard for his first release since he became an electronic music producer. I have to say the result has been worth the wait. The EP has five delicious tracks which are, track by track, spot-on productions by Plutodash. As icing on the cake the Childish Adult EP has been decorated by DHM / Hugo Mulder, crating a beautiful front-and back fitting PlutoDash’ sound. It hardly ever happens that I like five subsequent tracks from the same producer, let alone five tracks from one producer on his first EP! I bet you’re curious now, so go grab yourself a copy at the PlutoDash website, press the play button, put the volume up and return to this interview to read all about how this fantastic EP came together.
” I needed a kick underneath my butt and it took a while to find out that I needed to give that kick to myself because no one else would! “
Congratulations with your completion of the Childish Adult EP! Are you relieved it’s finished and out there?
Thank you very much. Yes, I’m really happy it’s finished. It took me a long time to find a sound I was comfortable with. I wanted to create something different, something that makes people say “Hey, this HAS to be PlutoDash” when they listen to my tracks. This EP is the first release I’ve done since I started creating electronic music. I needed a kick underneath my butt and it took a while to find out that I needed to give that kick to myself because no one else would! I’m a perfectionist and it was hard to finally release my “child” for mastering. Luckily I’m really proud of the end result and the reactions I already receive daily.
I can imagine you’ve been ‘locked up in the lab’ for a while to focus on this EP. How did you experience that time?
Busy as hell! Combining a new full-time job and a music career isn’t easy. But I have a lot of really close friends that show me how it IS possible with lots of dedication. Once I found the sound I was after it went by itself. It was a time with lots of emotions and self-discovery. What things can I do and what things do I need to learn? Am I actually good enough? All those questions made me realise a lot. Sitting in the lab making music is like meditating, I release all my emotions through my music. All in all it was a great experience that really opened up my eyes to what is possible and it gave me a big boost to work even harder and produce more music!
Could you tell us a bit about the name ‘Childish Adult’ and where that comes from?
Well, there are actually two stories behind this question. The first one is because I look like 23 but I am 29. People always confuse me for a teenager, which is pretty frustrating when you get cigarettes for example hahaha. I admit I’m also not the most adult person around all the time. I’m still a kid in my mind sometimes and I feel that’s what gives me and my music its personality. I will never get rid of it although some things need a bit more “adultness”! hahaha
The second reason is because of my experimentation. The small cell phone like false bleep sound in “Momentary Stalking” for example is literally an old broken Nokia phone that accidentally went off while I was recording some vocals. Kids play around and have fun with almost everything they do. That’s the way I feel with this EP. It was all about having fun and breaking rules.
Do you have a favourite track on the EP? (or pieces, drops, breaks that you’re exceptionally happy with?)
Like I said I’m proud of the EP in general. But if I really have to choose a track, I would say “U Could B”. I never made a 2step/garage sounding tune. This was my first try and I think it turned out really well. The way I chopped up and played with the vocals, the drum placement and most of all the arrangement. Yeah, that’s it mostly, I’m really proud of the arrangement.
For the audio-geeks amongst us, could you tell us what you used to produce this album?
To create the music I used Ableton Live, my Microkorg XL, APC40, MPD32, CME49 Keys, BCF and BCR controllers and shitload of plugins. I used plugins by Fabfilter, Tone2, Waves and some freeware stuff. And for monitoring I used KRK6’s, Sennheiser Amperior & Beyer Dynamics 990 headphones. I used the Sennheiser headphones to mix like 70% of my EP. The sound is so neutral they really helped me balance the tracks. I know I will have some audio-geeks shaking their heads now. But listen to the EP and judge for yourself if you can or can’t mix on headphones!
The artwork accompanying this EP has been done by DHM. Why his work?
I met DHM thru street artist Ives.One, a close friend of me. I like his work a lot because of the abstract style he uses. I can’t really say why exactly. Let’s just say art is art and it either catches your eye and fascinates you, or it doesn’t. DHM is one of those artists that make you stare at his work trying to find more, it keeps your attention. I can’t thank him enough for the cover. It looks amazing and I’m proud I can use it for my first EP.
What do you hope this EP will do with your listeners? (i.e. nod their head, move their feet, cover their ears, etc).
First off I would like it if the listeners feel the music. Feel the emotions I put into it. Feel the story i try to tell. Feel it’s my heart and soul you are listening to and not just a track. It will take you places and if you don’t take the time to really feel it, you will not understand the meaning behind my music. Second I would love to see people dance in clubs, drink in bars, chill at home or BBQ in the park with this EP. But most of all I want listeners to just enjoy it and an occasional goose-bump or two would make my day.
What do you hope this EP will do for you? (Open doors, new collaborations, etc).
I definitely hope it will open some doors. I would love to play more gigs and hope to be able to do a tour or something. My dream is to travel the world, play music and work with many other artists. That’s something which will take time though but it’s a dream and dreams are there to become reality right?! I don’t know if this Ep will open those doors but it will make me step up a few steps on the big stairs. That’s something I’m convinced in. I believe without belief in yourself dreams will stay dreams. Other than that I want to meet other producers, dj’s, singers etc. I’m not looking for fame or popularity; I just want as much people listening to my music as possible.
As what kind of artist/producer would you classify yourself?
Ow man… I hate this kind of question. I don’t think in terms of boxes. That’s exactly what’s ruining the industry nowadays. It constrains people from being really creative. But if you really want to classify me, call me an EDM (electronic dance music) producer. Because my music is a combination of many different electronic styles… BUT I know! Let’s call it Dub-bass-step-age-glitch-noise-with-melody-and-some-Dash-goodies. There you have it, a new genre 😉
What can we expect from you in the future?
You can expect a lot of new tracks, Dashbashes (remixes) and mixes in the near future. I’m already working on two new exciting projects but I can’t say more about that at the moment. I want to keep re-inventing my music and push my limits. My sound has to evolve till the very last time I touch a pad or key.
Any last words?
Yes, many thanks to CFYE for this interview and to the readers for taking the time to read this. It was a pleasure!