INTERVIEWS

Max Cooper: “I generally build visual ideas and stories first, and then figure out the music from there”

In ancient times, humans had the theory that heavenly matter was different from earthly one and thus it was explained that celestial objects like the moon would stay up in the sky. Later on, more than two thousand years ago, the Atomic Theory led us, humans, to consider that the world is made up of atoms that move in a vacuum!

More recently, new forms of human intuition developed the Theory of Relativity and Quantum. All these theories are ways of observing and interpreting reality and thanks to them we get closer to the mystery of creation and of life. But sometimes there is more to it than science and scientific theories. Other paths allow us to think out of the box. The answers can also come to us through works of art. This is the case of tracks such as ‘Reflect’ or ‘Swarm’, the latest singles from Max Coopers’ ‘Earth’ EP.

A1 ‘Swarm (extended version)’, A2 ‘Reflect’, B1 ‘Spike’, and B2′ Surge’, all included on the EP, are a new paradigm as they represent the Renaissance for avant-garde music.

Recently we had a conversation with Max Cooper about his latest musical adventures.

Electronic Groove: Hi Max, first of all, we want to express our gratitude that you have granted us this interview and thus have the opportunity to ask you about your recent AV/Live in Carlisle Church. It has been an epic concert where the profane and the mystical met, how did you come up with it?

Max Cooper: Thanks for the invite. The guys at AVA Festival in Belfast had their eyes on that venue for a while and were looking for something to do with it, and luckily for me, they asked if I could be interested. When the venue is that beautiful half of my job is already done. I just tried to use the space in concert with my projections and music, to have them all singing from the same hymn sheet.

EG: The ‘Earth’ EP, which contains these four powerful tracks: ‘Swarm’, ‘Reflect’, ‘Spike’, and ‘Surge’, seems posthuman to us! How has your symbiosis with the machines been?

Max Cooper: It’s interesting to call it a symbiotic process, I do rely heavily on machine aided processes, with lots of things wandering around partly of their own accord, partly under my control, it’s a collaboration between me and the machines. I feel like I’m bearing scratching the surface of what is possible, particularly with machine learning techniques, the whole electronic music field will go through an overhaul soon I think, there’s so much more that can be done.

EG: Reflect, like the ice dentries is a structure where there are branches and repetitions and it grows like the ice crystals that Jip Mus has so majestically portrayed for the occasion, we are referring to the ‘Reflect’ video created by Jip Mus. After this, what do you want to explore?

Max Cooper: Yes, Jip created something really special for that piece of music, nature once again proving itself the best artist. I’ll continue with natural themes given that inherent richness, although I’m particularly interested in really fundamental problems of epistemology/knowledge, computation, and thought at the moment. There’s a lot of strangeness lurking down there in the building blocks of what we take for granted, and strangeness and fun like that is the perfect fuel for inspiration and visual content. I generally build visual ideas and stories first, and then figure out the music from there.

“Music is one way of expressing something I can’t do otherwise”

EG: When listening to your music our minds expand, it is as if the walls of the room disappear. During your creative process, in your studio, what would be your favorite studio toy?

Max Cooper: Very kind! I spend a lot of time working on spatial aspects of my music, creating impossible structures that wrap around us as a means to try and wrap the listener up inside the music like a warm bath – reverbs, panning, binaural recordings, binaural panning, widening tools, all can help to create the space, and can be modulated for rhythmical changes. My favorite studio toy at the moment is probably the new Arturia Polybrute, it has loads of potential for adventurous modulations and morphing timbres, which is something I’ve been aiming towards musically for a long time. I have a Jackson Pollock print on my wall and I’ve been trying to recreate it musically for years, but I haven’t managed yet.

EG: In what way do you think the seed of your creativity was planted during your childhood? What and who influenced you and would you thank them today?

Max Cooper: There have always been internal turmoil, and I’m not a great speaker, but music is one way of expressing something I can’t do otherwise. It’s that inherent connection to music which is by far the main driver. If you feel strongly when you hear certain things and are willing to spend the time figuring out how to make those feelings for yourself it can be done.