Paul Sleaze – Interview & Exclusive Mix

Posted on 15. May, 2009 by baggy in Interviews, Mixes we didn't make

A few weeks back we featured a stunning mix from no other than Ronny & Renzo and there was one track inparticularly that stood out for us. After begging the guys to let the cat out of the bag we found out that the track in question was by Jeff Danger & Paul Sleaze, entitled ‘Rowdy Roddy Peeper’ (Played at 33rpm+8), a cheeky little 7″ single on Giovanni Chrome Recordings, originally released back in 2004.

We decided to contact Paul and fire a few questions across in addition to receiving an exclusive selection from the man himself. Here’s what we found out:

Cosmic Disco: For those of us out there who may be unfamiliar with Paul Sleaze, can you give us some background info, his roots and how he was conceived?

I was born in the gutter, and still quite like it there. Originally, Jeff (Danger, landlord of the Shakespeare in Sheffield) decided that we all needed danger names – so he became Jeff Danger and I Paul Sleaze. It’s since become more of a conglomerate persona, with contributions from Marconius Baddy, who I also do the Roland Ritter project with; Clarence Bollinger, an idiot savant vocalist; Ed Carter, who does Winter North Atlantic and was foolish enough to put our records on his label; and Jeff.
After a few 7″ singles with Jeff, there were two albums (Masturbot and The Embalmer), also featuring other guest vocalists, none of whom are regular. I’m still always looking for vocalists to work with.

Cosmic Disco: So, you’re a northern lad like us then… Can you tell us was it like growing up in Sheffield and what was your experience of the local music scene as a youngster and any early musical influences?

I actually grew up in Derby, but have lived in Sheffield for around 15 years now. The local music scene, like many things in Derby, was pitiful. In terms of early musical influences, the first records I bought were Smash It Up by The Damned; Thriller by Michael Jackson (shortly followed by Off The Wall); and Prince Charming by Adam & The Ants – I think I was about 9 or 10. I also saved up a lot of crisp packets for such gems as the theme from Monkey and Weird Al Yankovic’s Eat It. I didn’t really listen to much electronic music until my late teens, although I’ve always been a big fan of Japan and The Human League, so appreciated great synth noises.

Cosmic Disco: So, when was it you started to play around with music production/instruments?

I played guitar while I was at at school, but around 19 started working in a shop selling musical intruments & processors. Over the time I worked there I bought a 4-track, an Atari ST with cubase, a collection of drum machines & synths, some monitors speakers that I still use now, a couple of effects processors, etc. I suppose it all evolved from there.
The obsession with sampling came later, first with a minidisc player and more recently with a hand-held recorder that writes straight to an SD card; I guess I just couldn’t afford anything that would do that to start with. It’s much cheaper and easier now with computers, which is a really great thing, especially with people writing freeware applications & plug-ins – I like freeware because the people who programme it often don’t dedicate a lot of time to finishing it and making it perfect, which can lead to more interesting glitchy effects.

Cosmic Disco: Ah, the trusty Atari ST.. (I had one for Kick Off II, not music, mind…). So, what does your current studio setup consist of?

A lot of children’s toys (I didn’t actually steal them off children), some of them ‘modified’ – glockenspiel; melodica; lots of percussive stuff; stylophones; circuit-bent things in varied states of disrepair. As for nerdy equipment, PMC monitors; Beyer Headphones; Rhode microphone; Zoom field recorder; Focusrite soundcard; Rodriguez, Fender, & Schecter guitars; Kawai keyboard.
For sequencing / editing I mostly use Cubase, Reason, and SoundForge. I do a lot of stuff at Brad’s (Marconius Baddy) studio too – a lot of the Paul Sleaze stuff was produced there, and all of the Roland Ritter stuff is. He uses M-Audio monitors; Allen & Heath desk; MOTU soundcard; Novation keyboard… the list goes on.

Cosmic Disco: Great stuff! So let’s move onto the music itself… How have your production and development methods changed from when you first started to create music to what you are currently producing today? How do you go about laying down the tracks? Drums first, work on a melody etc. Do you have a particular formula?

Fairly dramatically! Originally, most of the electronic tracks were very much pattern-based, only using samples or noises from MIDI instruments. Over time I’ve started recording much more live. A lot of the Roland Ritter music is done that way, with sections being recorded, then fed back through lots of effects for texture. Playing instruments is generally more exciting than programming them, and seems to create more energy in the finished product.
Having said that, the Foundwaves project that I’m also ear-deep in is mostly programmed (although not much of it is done, and I may take a different approach on different tracks). It involves recording everything on a field recorder, and using only those sounds, with each track having a particular theme. The first one I’ve finished is all about food, so everything I recorded was edible (chickens, eggs, spaghetti, salt). I then edit the waveforms to get drum sounds, loops, and tiny repeated sections to generate new tones – so I don’t have to use synth noises for oscillators, I just use my own tones in samplers. I was really interested in knowing where each individual sound had come from, and how far I could push that envelope. The album is called ‘Paranomaniac’ – it’s all about plays on words, usually very bad puns.
I like recording familiar noises (like those of cooking) or things that happen to me – for example, I had a wisdom tooth removed while recording The Embalmer, and a lot of the noises from that ended up on the album.
I suppose overall I’ve become more interested in either setting strict rules for a project, or imposing restrictions – I think it’s a good way to focus creativity; while that makes the music more difficult, it’s often more interesting as a result.
I don’t have a particular template, like always doing drums first – I think that would be inhibitive for me in a negative way, and might make a lot of the music too similar. I like making the rules abstract, rather than about the process itself.

Cosmic Disco: So you’re the new Matthew Herbert then (Is he an influence btw?) When can we expect ‘Paranomaniac’ to drop?

I do like his stuff, particularly Radioboy & the Big Band. He seems more socio-politically motivated though.
I’m not sure when I’ll finish – it’s been fairly time consuming and I don’t have a deal for it yet, so no deadline. Left to my own devices, I expect early next year.

Cosmic Disco: Well, that’s understandable as it sounds as though your busy with other projects as well. Speaking of which can you give us any more detail on your work under the ‘Romcom’ and ‘Roland Ritter’ monikers?

Roland Ritter is a kind of conglomerate personality that me & Brad create. It’s all done at his studio, and involves certain themes and instruments – I bought a chime square last year (tubular bells) and that’s on it a lot, along with the melodica and glockenspiel. We had a mid-album crisis when his DSP card died at the end of last year, close to finishing the album, so we’re now left picking up the pieces! It’s starting to come together again now though, a couple of the tracks are nearly finished. Again, no deal or deadline, so we’re just plodding through it. I think the album will be finished this year though.
Romcom is a project me & Ed (GC Recordings / Winter North Atlantic) have just started. It’s based on our misconceptions of the difference between Roman and Common law – he gave me some rules on what I could do, and I gave him some rules on what he couldn’t. That’s all in the very early stages though, as is a collaboration between me & Tomski (Comfortable Records). I think it’s always good to try and work differently. Other people’s approaches are always inspiring.

Cosmic Disco: How did you originally get yourself hooked up with GC Recordings?

I don’t exactly remember how I met Ed, but suspect that like our relationship since it had something to do with beer. He was actually on the same university course as Abbi (my soon-to-be wife), although I think I know him through Juliun (Bitslap / c90 / We Wear The Gold). He’d already done a few 7″s with the Arts and Leisure Foundation, and me & Jeff followed that up with some 7s of our stuff. Then we kind of challenged each other to actually finish a whole album, so he did Load Line and I did Masturbot. There’s a collaborative track that’s on both albums – Headstone; he’s also on a couple of tracks on The Embalmer.

Cosmic Disco: What does Paul Sleaze like to do outside of music?

Errrrrmmm…. eatingsleepingwalkingtalkingdrinkingtaijicooking… stuff. Stuff and things.

Cosmic Disco: What does perfect happiness mean to you?

I’m not sure that perfect and happiness go together! I like things that are a bit wrong. That’s what makes me happy.

Cosmic Disco would like to thank Paul for his time answering our questions. You can listen and purchase his releases from Giovanni Chrome Recordings. Go check them out and pick up some stunning electronic music now!. In the meantime, click the buttons below for Paul’s brilliantly eclectic and exclusive ‘Cosmic Disco’ mix: