Nathan Fake has carved a singular path through electronic music over the past two decades. Emerging from Norfolk’s rural landscape, he first gained international attention with early releases such as ‘Outhouse’ and ‘The Sky Was Pink’, before his 2006 debut album ‘Drowning in a Sea of Love’ positioned him as a defining voice in melodic, emotionally rich electronica.
Photo credit: Marco Dos Santos
Since then, his discography has moved between atmospheric techno, hardware-driven club cuts, and more experimental territory, including 2017’s ‘Providence’, 2020’s ‘Blizzards’, and 2023’s ‘Crystal Vision’.
Known for his instinctive workflow and preference for hardware-based production, often recording tracks in single takes, Fake has consistently balanced immediacy with detail. Now, with the arrival of his latest studio LP ‘Evaporator’, he leans further into texture and restraint, delivering one of his most introspective records to date.
In this conversation, Nathan Fake opens up about the making of ‘Evaporator’, his resistance to “look-at-me” culture, and what two decades of artistic growth have taught him.
EG: Hi, Nathan! Welcome to EG. It’s a pleasure to have you here with us. How have you been doing? How did you kickstart this new year?
Nathan Fake: I’ve been good, thanks! The start of the year was quite quiet, but I played some fun events in Paris and London.
EG: First of all, congratulations on the release of your new studio album, ‘Evaporator’! You must be psyched to have this one out. What are some of your initial thoughts? What has the reception been like?
Nathan Fake: The reception to the singles so far has been amazing, to be honest. A really nice surprise, seeing as the tracks are quite mellow, haha. Really excited to see what people think of the rest of the album.
EG: ‘Evaporator’ clearly signals a departure from your more club-oriented sound. What motivated you to explore this more “luminous” vein? What were these recording sessions like?
Nathan Fake: I mean, I’ve always made a lot of stuff that isn’t kind of club-oriented music, but this album just kind of turned out to be a much softer record. I’ve always loved playing around with ambient textures, and also using more unusual drum sounds was fun on this record. The drums also took more of a back seat on this one than on previous albums.
EG: There’s also a sense of introspectiveness throughout ‘Evaporator’ that feels like a sharp contrast against the brash “look-at-me” culture surrounding most electronic dance music at the moment. How do you feel about the current state of things?
Nathan Fake: I’ve never been into the “look at me” culture, and I never will be (laughter). It really turns me off. I kind of can’t wait for the whole social media thing to implode and give way to something else, but actually, that probably won’t even happen in my lifetime. It’ll probably just get even worse than it is now.
“I think just as always, stick to your own thing. Don’t follow trends. Don’t watch YouTube tutorials on how to make music properly. Do what makes you feel good musically”
EG: Speaking of introspection, this is also the first time that your face graces one of your releases. How did you settle on that? What does this mean to you?
Nathan Fake: I’m actually really happy with that. To be fair, my face is pretty garbled in the image, but I do really like it. I’ve kind of wanted to do it for a while, but it just somehow didn’t happen until now.
EG: ‘Evaporator’ comes almost three years after the release of 2023’s ‘Crystal Vision’. In which ways have you changed as an artist and as a person since then?
Nathan Fake: I think my music sounds a lot more refined now than it did then, and three years is nothing when you’re my age. So it’s funny how kind of quickly things can evolve. And I’m already quite excited about how the next stuff will sound.
EG: Since we’re reflecting, this year also signals the 20th anniversary of ‘Drowning in a Sea of Love’. How do you feel about this landmark? What does this record mean to you now, 20 years later? What are your thoughts on its legacy?
Nathan Fake: Yes, that’s insane. I’m still very, very fond of that album, although I also never ever listen to it (laughter). The memory of it is a nice one. A very exciting time of my life, very happy and idyllic, mostly because I was young and naive (laughter). But yes, I think it was a good start in hindsight. I definitely wouldn’t make music like that now. It feels almost twee, but for who I was at the time, it makes perfect sense.
EG: Now, given your experience in our scene, what are some of the biggest challenges artists will face in the near future? Is there any piece of advice you have for your colleagues in that sense?
Nathan Fake: I feel like it’ll probably get a lot harder to get noticed in the future, as the sheer number of people making music and putting it online is overwhelming now, and obviously that’ll only increase. I think, just as always, stick to your own thing. Don’t follow trends. Don’t watch YouTube tutorials on how to make music properly. Do what makes you feel good musically.
“I kind of can’t wait for the whole social media thing to implode and give way to something else”
EG: What’s next for Nathan Fake? Where can your fans catch you next?
Nathan Fake: At the time of writing, my next show is in London on February 28th at Club Cheek.
EG: Thank you so much for your time, Nathan! We wish you all the best in the future. Take care!
Nathan Fake: Thanks for having me!
Nathan Fake’s ‘Evaporator’ is out now on InFine. Stream and download here.
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