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Control K Q & A

Q: Where does the name come from?

Ctrl + K is the Windows keyboard shortcut for 'Insert Hyperlink', which is where the name originally comes from. The Internet connects so much together and I wanted to represent this in my artist name. Control K > Insert Hyperlink > Connect to the rest of the world.

Q: How would you describe your music?

With difficulty! My own tastes are so diverse, and I genre hop so consistently nowadays that I don't really have one style. I hope that this is reflected in what I create. It's all produced electronically, so it'll probably fall somewhere within the electronica camp but I'll leave it up to someone else to put a label on it.

Q: What are your musical influences?

Pretty much most of what I hear around me, and a whole lot more besides. I think that music can come from the least likely of sources and that there's not such a gap between sound and music.

Of course, I'm also very much influenced by more conventional music too. I was obsessive about The Beatles as a teenager and am sure that they remain the root of most modern popular music. I dug their pioneering spirit and sought it out in others - Miles in jazz, Scratch in dub, Dylan in words, for example.

Q: Is there a Control K philosophy?

Musically, I suppose the principle of 'anything goes', really. I aim to make music that reflects my broad tastes. Also, I support the spirit of experimentalism trying new sounds, putting things together that don't typically go with each other, that kind of thing.

Beyond that, Control K is internationalist, humanist and pacifist at heart.

Q: How long have you been making music?

I've been involved with bands and making music on and off since about 16, so almost 20 years now. Still, paying your dues means producing a lot of crap too!

I began making electronic music around 2001.

Q: Do you play live?

As Control K, no. Not yet anyway. Having spent many years singing in bands - something I still occasionally do - I've had a fair bit of live experience, but it's quite different with electronic music. One man and his laptop doesn't make for much of a spectacle and I prefer to give an audience something to watch.

Control K live is certainly something I'd like to do in the future, but it'll take a while, as it did with rock n roll. Perhaps the odd DJ set would be a good toe in the water.

Q: If you could collaborate with anybody, whom would you choose?

I'd be keen to work with anybody whose music I like that wants to work with me, really. There are plenty of artists that I've discovered through Myspace that I'd love to do something with - collaborations, remixes, samples, etc.

A fantasy wish-list would probably have people like Tom Waits, Herbie Hancock or Alex Paterson on it. Perhaps remix a Bowie track or maybe something with Michael Franti.

Q: What does the Internet mean for music to you?

It's been such a revolution, much more than pirate radio, the cassette tape or punks D.I.Y. ethic, because it has enabled musicians to reach a literally global audience instantly. The thing is though, with so much content available over the Internet, even just with the case of music, how does a new or upcoming artist tap into that vast audience or even make themselves known to even small parts of it? Record companies still play a crucial role, but nowadays more for marketing, raising awareness or the means to exploit intellectual property.

Q: What are the best and worst aspects of living in Tokyo?

Tokyo is both a playground and a machine, each of which can be good and bad.

It is one of the most achingly fashionable spots in the Asian wing of the Global North, constantly reinventing itself, hyper modern and full of lights, buttons and gadgets that actually work. On top of all this, and remarkably so for a place of such immense size, it still feels incredibly safe.

On the other hand, the constant struggle to keep up with such a vast clockwork organism can be utterly exhausting. This is the rat race in extremis. But being an outsider in what is essentially still a pretty closed culture sometimes saves me from the wheel.

Q: Where do you see Control K in five years time and what are your plans for the future?

Right now, I'm just trying to put the name out, get people to hear the music and hopefully shift a few CDs off the back of it. There's a long backlog of ideas waiting their turn to come out, which is exciting and frustrating at the same time.

I'd like to try my hand at some new methods and tools, give working with other people a shot, and perhaps figure out how to take Control K into the live space. Movie soundtracks are an interesting idea too, maybe on the smaller independent flick side of things.

A record deal to do my marketing and distribution for me within the next five years or less would be very helpful.

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This is an edited extract. The full interview will appear on the Control K website when that is revamped during the summer.

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Control K's first album, 'The Front Line (Redux)', is available now from www.cafepress.com/controlk for $12.99