As I dug deeper and deeper into the Los Angeles beat scene, I began finding more artists beyond those who tear the house down at the Low End Theory or are associated with Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder imprint. In particular, I found the work of a young man who goes by the name of Shlohmo, a fitting title for a producer whose music sounds like it’s building on a slow-motion shattering of glass and drum sounds. And his latest EP, Camping, which was released on June 15 on Friends Of Friends, shows a steady progression of this San Francisco-by-way-of-L.A. producer’s sound. With a steady groove of low-end bass and nearly ambient drums, Shlohmo blends in glitched, droning 8-bit blips for a new spin on the ever-expanding subgenre of experimental hip-hop.
Hit the skip to read our interview with Shlohmo.
PIMB: You’re only 20 years old right now, so when the hell did you start making music and when did you decide this is what you wanted to do?
Shlohmo: I started producing when I was about 14, but I didn’t really get serious about it ’til about two years ago. I honestly still haven’t decided if this is what I “want to do,” but I know I’m gonna be making music forever, whether or not it becomes a job for me.
PIMB: What were you listening to when you began crafting your brand of lo-fi instrumentals? In other words, who are your biggest influences?
Shlohmo: All types of stuff. From lo-fi punk to a lot of super hi-fi electronic. My influences come from everywhere. But I guess my biggest influences in terms of what I’m creating now are the really cinematic electronic dudes like DJ Shadow, Amon Tobin, M83, Boards of Canada, and stuff like that. Those guys really opened me up to the technical side of things, as well as song structure and melody and all that shit. Later on I started getting into cats like Madlib and Dilla, and I think that opened my head to the rawness in beats. That dirty sample shit and, of course, that swing. But really, everything inspires me. I feel like I’ve taken just as much inspiration from sounds coming from out my window.
PIMB: Will we ever hear vocalists over your beats? If so, rappers or singers or both?
Shlohmo: Ya, hopefully both. I have a few really talented friends I’ve been working with and am definitely trying to do something serious with them in the future. I’m also really open to hooking up with some new cats, but I don’t want to do it just to do it. I always want collaborations to be with the folks who I click well with creatively.
PIMB: I know you just did those two remixes of Montell Jordan and Khia. What made you want to do those and do you intend on doing any more?
Shlohmo: I just had those a cappellas lying around and thought I could do something raw with them. I don’t know, it was just some fucking around.
PIMB: You have released a steady stream of killer EPs. When are we going to hear a proper full-length?
Shlohmo: Aah, thank you. I’m actually working on the proper LP right now. That’s my main focus for the next few months. I think we’ve been talking about a winter release for this one.
PIMB: What can you tell me about your latest release, Camping, and the creative process that went into making it?
Shlohmo: It’s just a partial showcase of what I’ve been up to in the months since Shlomoshun, as well as remixes from some cool fucking cats. All of my tracks on there are somewhat cohesive it seems like, but then the track “Birthday Beat” was actually made all with this one toy Casio that my friend lent me. Terrible drum sounds and everything. So I guess the creative process was a little all over the place for this one.
PIMB: What’s next for you musically?
Shlohmo: Trying to step in a slightly different direction. I actually don’t even know if it’s a different direction necessarily or just further along in the same direction. I’ve been doing a lot of experimenting, going deeper into the lo-fi I guess. Experimenting with the notion of capturing my surroundings at the time, instead of trying to make it sound like I’m somewhere else. Nothing pristine. Just rawness, being present. I don’t know, it’s all just ideas that have been moving around my head. Hopefully it’ll all get documented into the tracks that will end up on the LP.
PIMB: What goes into playing your music live? I know a lot of instrumentalists like to stick to samplers, laptops, and the like, but do you plan on expanding that setup?
Shlohmo: Right now I’m using a laptop. I have Ableton and an APC40 for a controller. It’s working really well for me now, but I still feel the restrictions of the computer. I’m still looking at a screen and it still locks that tempo and all that shit. I eventually want to be able to improvise more, learn more instruments so I’d be able to get a little more free on stage. I don’t know if I’ll find that in analog gear or what, but I’m still looking for the right thing.
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