8 Tracks: Of Interesting Collaborations with Zeb Wayne

Alva Noto and Ryuichi Sakamoto have created such a beautiful body of work together. Every sound has a place and significance in their productions – which for me is a big part of how they create such feeling and emotion. Whether experiencing their music as it sets the tone for a blockbuster movie like The Revenant, or listening to one of their earlier collaborations, there is always the sense of a story being told.

Matt (Radio Slave) and I had both spoken about how we were admirers of their work, but it came as a complete surprise to me when he told me Alva Noto was going to do a remix for ‘Wulfman’ – needless to say I was very happy.

‘I’m New Here’ was an album we referenced at the very beginning of this project. It has some brilliant arrangements, and I love the combination of spoken word & song – it sounds very raw yet very considered at the same time, which is a hard feat to achieve. Chris Cunningham’s audio-visual remix of New York Is Killing Me adds another mesmerizing layer.

I’ve been hooked on this show recently – I think it’s great how Baz Luhrmann, who you wouldn’t typically associate with The Bronx in the 70s, collaborated with hip-hop royalty like Grandmaster Flash & Nas, and has managed to tell the story of the genre’s beginnings in what feels like a very authentic way. I love how the show shines a light on the many different art forms that hip-hop embodies, and also how the music shapes part of the narrative in a really original way.

I’ve been fortunate enough to work with the legendary Herbie Flowers – he’s as nice a man as they come, and once you know what a Herbie bass sounds like, it becomes very easy to recognise. Perhaps his most famous bass-line is the one he played on ‘Walk On The Wild Side’ by Lou Reed. It’s been sampled a ton, which is testament to the character it has all on it’s own – the track would not have been the same without that bass. I love this YouTube clip, where Herbie talks about how it all came about (in 20 minutes!)

This is undeniably a classic hip-hop track – to add to the list both of these artists have. Prodigy’s recent passing made me revisit some of his work, and I discovered this amazing YouTube clip. It shows Prodigy and Alchemist collaborating in the studio, creating what went on to become an iconic record.

The Twin Peaks soundtrack is a special one. I first heard this clip of Angelo Badalementi discussing its creation on a Nicolas Jaar mix – I found it so interesting that I had to dig it out and listen again. He seems to re-live the magic as he talks about how he composed it, and I love at the end how he recounts David telling him not to change a single note. One of those clips you can watch over & over.

Two of my all-time favourite artists working together… You can hear the influence from both of them on the track, and there’s some pretty interesting stories floating around as to how the record came about – including the version before Prince became involved.

Out of all the music I’ve worked on, this track has taken more twists and turns than any. It’s had different vocal lines, different featured artists, different arrangements, it was first released without a final mix or master & without me knowing – it has taken a colourful journey. It all came together though when I passed the instrumental to Ziwi, and she wrote her unmistakable vocal. I’m proud to see it finally have an official release, and it spawned an entire body of work from Ziwi and I.