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the elder jepson

the elder jepson Radio

General Info

  • Genre: Drum & Bass / Electronica / IDM

    Location New York, New York, Un

    Profile Views: 10972

    Last Login: 9/19/2011

    Member Since 2/14/2005

    Website www.facebook.com/theelderjepson

    Record Label T.U. Productions

    Type of Label Unsigned

  • Bio

    At its core, Elder Jepson is the epitome of what a 21st century musical project should be – universal and open to the possibilities of an ever-changing musical and technological landscape. EJ’s self-titled debut album reflects this theme of universality, from the beautifully rendered cosmic imagery that graces the cover, to the song titles themselves. “The record was designed to reflect a lifecycle expressed through sound as opposed to lyrics, which there are none of,” reflects Mike as he leans back in his easy chair. “Beginning with the first track ‘Born’ and concluding with ‘Thank You’, there’s a story of realization and self-discovery buried in-between those extremes. The only clues as to what that story means are the song titles. The rest is for the listener to fill in the gaps.” The collaboration of Michael Conrad and John Alicastro dates back to 2001 when the two met during a musical performance at their high school in Plainview, New York. “We kept egging each other on about how we could write better songs than the band we were watching, so we started hanging out under that premise,” chuckles John as he reminisces over a cup of hot tea in his bathrobe. The next three years saw the two furiously writing and recording demo tapes, with Mike covering vocals and guitar and John playing drums and bass. The two incorporated a number of other musicians into the process along the way with the hope of forming a band, but a lack of potential candidates resulted in them focusing more on recording as opposed to performance. The result was a group of songs heavily influenced by the likes of 311, Incubus, and Deftones. Making the upgrade from a dusty, old 4-track tape recorder to Pro Tools elevated the production value of the tracks and brought more diversity to the arrangements. “Working in Pro Tools for the first time was a very awakening experience for us both and I think it planted the seed for how big of a role software would eventually play in our music,” says Mike. In 2004, John and Mike parted ways in order to pursue college – John moved to Boston to study Music Production and Engineering at Berklee College of Music and Mike attended Stony Brook University in New York to study business. Although the two never lost touch and continued to exchange demos over the Internet, the collaboration was temporality put on hold. While John was kept busy honing his production skills at school, working with local Boston-area acts, and lending his talents to the Long Island hip-hop outfit Truly Underground, Mike was beginning to experiment with sequencing software, synthesizers, and drum machines back in NY. “Looking back, it was a good thing we stopped working together at that time because we were able to take our own respective paths and work out most of the kinks,” remembers Mike. “My taste in music drastically changed from strictly rock music to more experimental stuff, especially electronic. John gravitated more towards hip-hop and hardcore.” In 2005, Mike began writing the material that would come to be the foundation for the first Elder Jepson record in his makeshift studio. The ambient quality of the songs paid homage to the early works of Richard D. James and Radiohead’s ‘Kid A’, while hypnotic drum & bass hooks hinted at an influence from Squarepusher and Luke Vibert. Over the next two years, mostly during breaks from school, Mike and John regrouped and began molding these rough demos into more finalized arrangements. By 2008, John had graduated and returned home to NY to intern at Wind-up Records, the largest independent record company in the world. His skill set was elevated to a new level by being exposed to the talented team at Wind-up and he brought that know-how back to the EJ record when final mixing commenced. By 2009, work on the album was completed and was released as a free download for a short time soon after. It wasn’t long before John was promoted to full-time, in-house engineer for Wind-up and he has since worked with artists like Five for Fighting, Ed Kowalczyk of Live, Seether, Finger Eleven, Creed, Bayside, Civil Twilight, Thriving Ivory, O.A.R., Lee Dewyze, and Train. In September 2010, Elder Jepson took the stage for the first time, opening for Jimmy Edgar (Warp, K!7) and Machinedrum at Le Poisson Rouge in NYC. The set list was comprised of a few select tracks from the first record and mash-ups of new EJ material mixed with classic 70’s and 80’s culture such as “Pure Imagination” from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and “The Legend of Zelda” theme song [see John’s tattoos]. The set also featured John hopping on drums for an extended version of ‘Global Distribution for a Uniform Earth’. “Playing out for the first time as EJ definitely inspired us to want to push ourselves harder and branch out more. Whereas the first record is relatively subdued and down-tempo, our newer material is pushing more towards dance-able and hard-hitting,” adds John. Soon after the performance, EJ released their remix of ‘Let’s Go’ by Cartel on YouTube and began entertaining remix offers from a variety of different artists while working on new original material. On February 22, 2011, Elder Jepson made its major label debut through Wind-up Records with a remix of Emily Osment’s ‘Lovesick’. The remix is featured as a track on the Lovesick EP [released internationally] and as a standalone single in the US. March 14, 2011 marks the proper independent release date of the debut full-length Elder Jepson record across all digital distribution channels. The duo plan on releasing a new EP in mid-2011, with more performances to follow across Long Island and NYC.

  • Members

    Michael Conrad & John Alicastro

  • Influences

    Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Luke Vibert, Boards of Canada, Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Muse, Tool, The Mars Volta, Nine Inch Nails, Imogen Heap

  • Sounds Like

    Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Luke Vibert, Boards of Canada, Sigur Ros

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