UK house producer T. Williams has seen his stock rise in recent years as the explosion of bass driven house music continues its way overseas, but amidst all the hype has stayed true to his roots. His latest single "Is It" drops this Monday on his own label Today, Tomorrow Records and we've got the exclusive premiere for you today on EARMILK. Classic drum machine style percussion provides a foundation while a massive bass note that would shake even the biggest of festival speakers catches your attention. With his upcoming performance at Hard Summer you can be sure he'll be a fan favourite with tracks like this, and we wanted to find out a bit more about the veteran producer before he takes off on a mini US tour.
- July 30th – Q Nightclub, Seattle, WA
- July 31st- Branx, Portland, OR
- August 1st- Vinyl, Denver, CO
- August 2nd- Hard Summer Music Festival, Pomona, CA
EM: How was the transition from making grime and bass to house music? What led to that change?
TW: The transition wasn't to hard as I grew up listening to house and garage. People like MK and Masters at Work influenced me in the start. It was just a matter of finding my roots again.
EM: What was it like as a 17 year old in the scene after you were signed?
TW: I was very shy didn't talk to many people just let the music do the talking and kept my head down. At the time, Jon E Cash was managing me so most things went through him before getting to me.
EM: What’s your view been like on the rise in popularity in the UK house sound?
TW: I think it's been great. I have seen a lot of friends forge good careers of the back of it and also have managed to be a part of the rise. So it's been a nice period.
EM: Do you produce mainly in the box on a computer or are you incorporating analog gear into your studio setup? What are some of your favourite plugins that might surprise someone, or what are your go-to synths, drum machines or effects hardware?
TW: My setup is very basic and mostly in the box. Even when I have had analog gear I haven't really used it. The only thing I can't live without is a sampler and there are loads of good free ones. Haven't got any plugin surprises but I do use a program called Acid on my old PC to chop up grooves from time to time.
EM: How much time goes into creating an album as opposed to various EPs and singles? Do you approach it any differently?
TW: I've been working on this project for the last year or so. Creating with various artists who I like and respect. The whole process for me has taken a while because I'm working on a whole new concept for myself. So yes my approach is completely different.
EM: What other releases can we look forward to coming up? Any exciting gigs on the horizon?
TW: I have a few more club focused tracks to drop this year and I'm super excited to say I'll be dropping a grime EP at some point later this year. Also really excited to head to LA to play Hard Summer with Anna Lunoe, Destructo and Motez plus looking forward to playing Sankeys in Ibiza again next month.
EM: What sort of music do you listen to outside of electronic/club music? Name a few of your favourite songs at the moment
TW: If I'm really honest I don't tend to listen to many artist outside of electronic music. But I did recently buy on iTunes Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes 'best of' album.
