Overdue Charges: Friendly Fires’ Ed MacFarlane On Library Music

Frontman enthuses about the proto-electronics that fuelled Warp's first wave...

On a crisp, bright afternoon at a private members club in central London we find ourselves sat at an inordinately ornate coffee table opposite Friendly Fires frontman Ed Macfarlane who, in spite of our formal – and rather swanky –surroundings radiates a casual air of normality. We’ve met up to discuss his new compilation of forgotten gems from within the realms of library music but it almost feels as if I’ve come to meet up with a friend of a friend to talk through a mutual interest.

“The cocktails are really good here,” begins an earnest Ed. “Is it too early for cocktails? No, it isn’t ever really too early for a cocktail is it? I’m going to go for something sweet.” Clash wholeheartedly agrees and order an explosive concoction known as a Flintlock. After a small act of theatre and with the smell of gunpowder now wafting through the air we get talking about just how he came to curate Glistens, an 18 track compilation featuring a number of rare and unreleased 80’s synth soundtracks from the dawn of digital.

“I discovered library music through casual record shopping,” explains Ed. “I wasn’t aware of the whole 90’s revivalist scene. I don’t even really consider myself a record collector. I don’t especially seek out rare records that are seen as particularly desirable. I was just popping into record shops and always seemed to gravitate towards the Chapel releases, which were always about two or three quid. It was only when I was listening to the Chapel AV series whilst doing some washing up that the significance of what I was listening to dawned on me. ‘Evil At Play’ started up and I just freaked out at realising that this was a piece of music sampled by Aphex Twin on ‘Xtal’. It was like finding another piece of a puzzle I didn’t know I was looking to solve; the sensation was so amazing that I knew I needed to go further down the rabbit hole.”

“I started thinking of library music as a different way of listening to music and the more I listened to the more I noticed these reference points to electronic music, the stuff I grew up listening to. It reminded me as to why I fell in love with electronic music in the first place and it was also pretty satisfying to realise that all these people that I held up as geniuses were also ripping stuff off!”

– – –

– – –

Having inspired so many of electronic music’s most influential artists – think of a of who’s who from Warp’s salad days – Clash asks Ed why he thinks much of the music he’s now championing hasn’t come to the fore earlier. There are a number of reasons he puts forward. “Some people look for a price tag for validation which I find sad,” he laments. “I don’t understand why people want to buy really expensive records that people already know. I mean where’s the fun in that? I’d also say there’s an old guard of record collectors that have placed a real stigma on certain records implying that they’re shit when they’re not. It’s just not that collector’s vibe.”

“I was born in the 80s and thus have an attachment to the music of that era and what it inspired afterward. I do find it frustrating when some of these snobs write off library music post 1982. When digital synthesis came in it got a really bad rep but I really like it. I enjoy listening to that thinner sound. You can still hear its influence in modern pop music. I’d also point out that it’s not easy to program a digital synth. It wasn’t like using Logic or Ableton. It required a lot of in-depth skill to get inside them as machines and create something interesting with many of the most maligned pieces of kit being the ones I find most interesting. I don’t own a Juno synth as I don’t want to produce sounds I’ve heard on a record a million times before. I’d rather have a quirky little one trick pony that gives me something a little different.”

– – –

Some people look for a price tag for validation which I find sad…

– – –

So does Glistens reflect his somewhat unconventional attitude to the music of the era? “It had to reflect my personality, musically at least,” says Ed. “If it didn’t then what would be the point of my curating this album? I like releases to be personal and be an expression of what you’re about. A lot of these tracks aren’t online for people to listen to so I hope it to be a good introduction for those who may be interested in library music. If it’s a starting point for someone to go on a journey discovering new music in the same vein that I did then great.”

“Some people are put off by the hip-hop-y/breaks side of library music and I wanted to show another side to the scene. There are some great examples of more synth driven pieces and I wanted to shine a spotlight on a number of tracks that not only inspire me but inspired others to create other works that have inspired me too. I think people will be surprised by just how fresh and relevant some of the tracks sound despite their age.”

Having made it clear that he didn’t approach curating the collection with a DJing mindset, talks turns to how best to enjoy the work. “Well ideally I’d like people to listen to it in a cold warehouse, sat within a sea of dry ice, with lasers on full and a pair of diffraction glasses wrapped firmly around their head,” he playfully suggests. “I realise that’s probably out of the reach of most people so will let people decide for themselves how to best enjoy it. There are lots of venues popping up with a focus on providing a listening experience as opposed the dance floor orientated spaces of years gone by. There are lots of good environments for those looking to immerse themselves in sound and I think in that regard it’s an exciting time for library music so perhaps find a space and take a copy down with you.”

– – –

I’d rather wait until it feels like the right time for us to come back…

– – –

Several elaborately fashioned drinks later Clash asks if and when we can expect Friendly Fires to make their triumphant return after going on hiatus a few years back. “I now feel comfortable thinking about creating Friendly Fires material again,” Ed smiles. “For a while I couldn’t see where we’d fit in the musical landscape; the scene took on a really dark, overly macho bro vibe and it just wasn’t something I wanted to be part of. There are also too many bands who put out music just for the sake if it. I’d rather wait until it feels like the right time for us to come back.”

“I don’t care if people have forgotten who we are, if the album is good then people will pay attention to it. We were always a really energetic, lively band and there’s a real lack of that at the moment. It’d be good to bring the rawness of live instrumentation back and provide people with an extended body of work back as opposed to faceless producers cranking out single tracks with what are essentially session singers who aren’t getting the opportunity to build their own careers and define themselves as artists.”

– – –

– – –

Glistens: A Library Compilation by Ed Macfarlane is out now both digitally and on vinyl. Purchase your copy HERE.

Words: Reiss Bruin

Buy Clash Magazine

-
Join the Clash mailing list for up to the minute music, fashion and film news.