Originally born in Chandigarh, India, now based in Mumbai, after forfeiting the life of a successful logistics businessman, this then prompted DJ and producer 32Stitches to delve deeper into the endless possibilities of the electronic music production realm. With two qualifications in Audio Engineering already under his belt, including a degree at ILM Academy in 2011, followed by a 2013 overseas adventure at the Point Blank Music School in London, it’s no wonder that 32Stitches has proven his skills to be more than flawless.
Influenced by a wide variety of similarly like-minded artists such as K?d, Illenium and Kaskade, the young, ambitious producer shows no sign of restriction when it comes to producing and creating, 32Stitches has evidently risen to the top from the depths of such realms and emerged accomplished. Whether he’s dabbling in future bass, dance music, progressive or electro, 32Stitches is definitely not one to confine to one single set of rules within a plethora of untapped exploration.
We caught up with 32Stitches on reading an audience and expressing emotions:
(Be sure to stream 32Stitches’ latest single titled ‘Remember This’ below!)
Set the tone for us. Why the arts?
It’s always been my passion. Electronic music specifically. Only later on did I realize I wanted to shape a career out of my passion. I still remember in late 90’s I was listening to a lot of EuroTrance on audio cassettes. It was always the instrumentals that gave me goosebumps. Any phase in my life, music has always been an essential part. It just felt right when I took the call. I’ve never looked back at the decision, since it gives me so much happiness I went ahead and did it.
Which comes first when you’re producing – the sound or the idea?
The idea. Usually the chords first with a basic piano sound. Then the right atmosphere is set with the basic melody to evolve into the sound that expresses the emotion of the track perfectly.
Does your material feature any collaborations?
Lately, since my work has usually been supported by vocals. Yeah, it is collaborative work that I like looking into since this brings two minds together and usually is a little more productive. Even with other producers, there are so many talented producers I’ve been lucky to work with. It always brings out a different point of view to an idea.
What’s on your current playlist?
Gareth Emery & Standerwick – Saving Light (INTERCOM Remix)
Zeds Dead x Illenium – Where The Wild Things Are
Felix Pallas – Similarities (Klahr Edit)
Tell us about the chemistry you have with your fans on stage.
Energetic, I must say. Since most of the tracks that I play are really fresh or unreleased, I pick them carefully by reading the crowd if thats what would drive the energies up.
What techniques do you experiment with to get your original sound?
Well I usually like to start off on my Moog synthesizer if it’s the bass that I’m working on. Then it heads to the system with processing and layering down to fill up particular dynamics, if I have something specific in mind. Then maybe it comes down to foley with percussion if I have a sound that I like. I get to sampling, then process it down with waves on the system to add a unique touch to it and maybe play around with dynamics and tune.
Take us through a day in the recording studio.
Days in studio are never specifically heading in a particular direction. At times I have managed to finish a track in a couple of days including the whole mixing/mastering process along with the vocal writing and everything. But at times it has taken weeks or even months. It depends upon the strength of inspiration behind an idea.
Was there a specific moment in your life where you thought, “this is what I want to do”?
In 2011 I started running a successful logistics business for the next two years. But one day I just woke up and realized that if I didn’t learn how to produce electronic music, I would probably regret that later on in life. So I then joined a school music evening class and also learned more tips and tricks on YouTube while still taking care of the business during the day. Eventually things changed when I dedicated all of my time to music when I moved to London in 2013 to study at Point Blank Music School. That was the day when I took the leap of faith 🙂
What do you keep close by while you’re playing a set?
Backup pen-drives and my drink.
Any emerging artists on your radar?
ARMNHMR , K?d, Luude
What gets your creative juices flowing?
Well produced tracks sometimes inspire me to express the same emotion in my own tone, so a lot of work from so many creative people around the world usually helps me figure something out, or it could be an extreme emotion that I’m feeling which is expressed through my music. Usually there is always an inspiration behind every piece that I make.
Take us through your collection of gear, tech or software that accompanies your creative expression.
I use Ableton with a couple of VST’s like Reaktor, Kontakt, Omnisphere 2, Serum, Nexus. But that is just one channel they create. Then it usually comes to layering and defining the dynamic range through a couple of plugins. Specifically a couple of compressors from the waves bundle are my favourite to work with. For monitors, I switch between Adam A8x and Yamaha HS80M. I use an Audient ID22 for the sound. Ableton Push for rhythms at times. Moog Sub37 for the analog touch. Sub Pac M2 for the Bass treatment. Genuinely much more handy and precise than using a sub. Roland VT-3 for some vocal processing. For my DJ setup, I have a pair of CDJ 900 Nexus along with DJM 900 Nexus to practice new DJing techniques.
Any side projects you’re working on?
I recently moved to Mumbai to work on some background scores for a couple of upcoming films. I was always very curious about this line of work in the music industry and got a decent offer recently, so I had to take it. (More info on this soon though. Probably first half of 2018!)
How have you refined your craft since you entered the industry?
By working on more and more projects every single day. I have about 45+ dropped out ideas since they were just ideas that I was working on. With every track I was getting better. Even a discarded idea contributed to something – like improving on the processing for example, or a better way to draw melodies, or even just “lessons”. Since I never learned to play an instrument during my childhood, it was a bit difficult getting around that. So I focused on my theories and made them unbreakable. Whatever I can imagine in my head – I can draw it out on a DAW. I’m also slowly getting my flow with the keys and live drumming. But right now, my primary focus is to create and get better everyday.
Breakdown the news for us: what can we expect from you this year?
2018 is going to be really eventful since I have about a dozen tracks planned for the year. All productions either already finished or on the verge. I want to release as many tracks as possible!
Latest single ‘Remember This’ by 32Stitches released on February 9th. Pre-order via iTunes
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