Lurka

Lauded for his production skills by contemporaries like Hodge and Batu, Bristol’s Lurka is the archetypal ‘producer’s producer’. Si Truss sits down with him to talk mixing tips and sound design

- Si Truss

Bristol-based producer Lurka has released a string of killer EPs on labels including Timedance, Black Acre and Wisdom Teeth, as well as lending his mixing skills to a number of his contemporaries. And it seems like everyone who’s worked with him wants to rave abut his production skills. Eagle-eyed readers will have spotted Hodge lauding his mixing techniques within these pages two issues ago, and Timedance-boss and regular collaborator Batu is another artist who swears by his production guidance.

You don’t have to take their word for it though; listening to Lurka’s recent Rhythm Hi-Tek EP leaves no doubt that he’s a producer at the top of his game. Rhythmically complex and boasting some imperceptible sound design, the tracks are mixed with a level of clarity and weight that’s often missing in underground dance music.

We caught up with Lurka to quiz him on his mixing techniques, production tips and more.

What are your main tools are when it comes to mixing a track?

“For mixing, the most important thing is saturation and distortion but a lot of the mixdown tends to be done in choosing the elements. When I’m choosing a sound I’m mixing as I’m going. You’ve got it in your head what you want as you’re going along, so a lot of the mix is wrapped up in this sort of sample or synthesis choice and then everything kind of sits in its place. And you just sweeten a little at the end if needed.”

So you err on the side of doing as little processing as possible at the last stage…