Prodigy multi-instrumentalist and electronic music producer Daktyl and acclaimed poet and songwriter Benni Ola have released their long-awaited ‘Chaos Theory (Part 1)’ EP via TOKiMONSTA’s Young Art Records.
Photo Credit: Daktyl & Benni Ola – Official
When Daktyl and Benni Ola come together, a special synergy is unlocked. The duo creates music for creation’s sake – fostering an authentic relationship that results in honest art. It’s not every day these radically different worlds of electronic music and spoken word poetry collide – the end product is something special, music that exceeds the sum of each individual artist’s contributions.
‘Chaos Theory (Part 1)’ features four tracks that showcase the duo’s unique sound, which blends Daktyl’s production prowess with Benni Ola’s powerful vocals and poetic lyricism. The EP includes singles ‘Matrix’ and ‘Say No More’, alongside two previously unheard cuts, ‘Bricks’ and ‘Nirvana’.
To celebrate the release of ‘Chaos Theory (Part 1)’, Daktyl & Benni Ola invite EG into the studio for 5 basic production tips:
1. Limitations are essential
Over the years I’ve accumulated quite a lot of analog gear. I’m really happy with it, but some days I feel a bit overwhelmed – even just within a DAW there are so many options and it can definitely be paralyzing. One way of overcoming this that’s helped me is to spend an entire session using only one synth / VST / instrument. I find limiting your workflow this way really helps with creativity.
For example, if I need drum sounds during a session but I’m only using a guitar or a synth, I’m forced to try and create those sounds with an instrument that doesn’t traditionally make them. Not only does this help with exploring sound design, but it can also lead to happy accidents, where the end result turns into something way more interesting than the initial idea. – Daktyl
2. Abuse your gear
… one of my favorite techniques is to overdrive my outboard mixer. It’s an old Tascam 2-16 from the 1970s. I love inputting different things into it (particularly drum sounds) and then cranking the channels way past what would be considered normal. It gives this really natural yet aggressive overdriven character to the sound. It’s not a traditional way to use the gear but it leads to some really interesting results. I do long sound design sessions where I record everything into Ableton and then resample it later. A lot of my drum sounds have come from doing this. – Daktyl
3. Pour out the whole idea
Sometimes, when I’m in the studio and I’m faced with writer’s block, or even if I want to build a really good extended metaphor but I can’t quite put my hands on what I need to say, I find the best thing to do is pour out the whole idea. What I mean by this is to just start writing. Start writing everything about the idea; the random thoughts, the things you’re scared to say, the things you think won’t make sense…it doesn’t matter, just write them all down. After I’ve gotten everything out, I review what I’ve written and start puzzling together what really sticks out.
I use this same strategy when writing with other artists and writers as well. Imagine you’re building a Lego structure or a puzzle of some sort and you’ve been pulling out pieces one at a time but then you run into an impasse, that’s the moment you just pour out the whole bucket full of pieces and spread it out so you can see everything for what it is. This has often helped me lock in an idea and actually push it further than where I thought it should be. – Benni Ola
4. Always export your sessions
I recently got into the habit of exporting all my projects (once they’re over 50% complete). I never used to do this and wasted hours trying to find old projects – I make a lot of music so being able to find and quickly listen to old ideas is really useful. This kind of ties in with a broader idea of being organized. It’s really essential to have some sort of system to categorize and locate ideas or songs quickly. I have a lot of different folders and sub-folders that really help keep everything in a place that makes sense and can be easily recalled. – Daktyl
5. Take a walk
Some of our best ideas have come from just taking a step back from the studio and walking around. Sometimes the solution to a problem comes to us when we’re not thinking about it.. whether it’s a lyric, a chord progression, or a melody.. either way, stepping back and letting the inspiration come can be really useful. – Daktyl + Benni Ola
Daktyl & Benni Ola’s ‘Chaos Theory (Part 1)’ EP is out now. Purchase your copy here.
Follow Benni Ola: Spotify | Instagram
Follow Daktyl: Spotify | Instagram | SoundCloud | Facebook
