As if being 50% of the wondrous Simian Mobile Disco (along with Jas Shaw) wasn’t enough to have on your CV, James Ellis Ford has applied his considerable production and mixing talents to myriad artists such as Arctic Monkeys, Depeche Mode and Gorillaz to name but three. Perpetually in demand, Ford decided to carve out some ‘me’ time and the result is wonderful debut solo offering, The Hum.
The Hum is an immersive, laid-back, radiophonic joy of an album. Pieced together in his home attic studio using what can only be described as some seriously cool outboard and equally cool studio know-how, The Hum sees Ford let his own imagination run free and what a glorious thing that turns out to be. Tape-loops, drones, drums and vintage synths are employed (and all played) by Ford, as well as debuting his lyrical and singing prowess, too.
FM joined Ford in his bespoke attic of many delights to find out what motivated him to fly solo on The Hum, talk us through his Aladdin’s cave of amazing vintage gear and get some insight into the techniques that have seen him evolve into one of the most in-demand producers in the UK. Obviously, if he ever needs somewhere to safely store that beautiful Maxi-Korg then FM would be more than happy to oblige, too…
The phrase ‘hidden in plain sight’ is used to describe you in the press release, does it feel strange to be going centre stage with this solo album?
“Yeah, I think it does feel strange [laughs], and I’m still kind of questioning why I’m doing it! The thing is that the bit I love is always the studio bit and making the music. Often, people come through to work with me and I almost pity them when they have to go off and promote their stuff with all the
