Interview with Mode
Words: Colour
Recently, I’ve been inspired in the studio, and I’ve been making a lot of melodic minimal 170bpm music, influenced by producers like Bop, D Bridge, Asa and Blu Mar Ten. I’m really loving the melodic overtones, the rich warm pads, the glitchy minimal beats and the floor-shaking subs.
One producer who’s caught my ears is Mode, aka Jonathan Mitchell. Hailing from Manchester, but currently living in Birmingham, Jonathan has been producing for around three years, and in this short time he’s caught the attention of some of the biggest names on the scene. With releases already out on D-Bridge’s Exit records, Ingredients and lots more to come, Mode and his alter ego Until Silence look on track to make a real mark on the electronic music scene this year. 
After listening to Mode’s latest dub-laden mix on Soundcloud.com for a week straight, it seemed like there was only one thing to do – secure an interview and try to gain his musical secrets!
Toxin: Safe, Mode. As a way of an introduction, can you please summarise your musical sound in one sentence?
Mode: I think of my music as electronica but with an organic edge. I like to think of it as 'naturalistic'.
Firstly, and some may say most importantly, what does your studio set up consist of?
A Macbook Pro, Mackie 824's and a couple of hardware synths.
Nice. What got you into music production?
I've always been fairly creative and tried to write music, I think it’s the 'production' side that sometimes puts me off. To be an electronic musician these days you have to be very good at a whole host of different disciplines and they sometimes come into conflict. For instance, the spirit that drives me to write a melody or a chord progression isn't the same one that forces me back to the same mix-down ten times over!
I agree, so what drives or inspires you to create a track?
I think it can differ quite a lot, really. Sometimes I have an idea or a mood I want to capture, and that kind of guides me. Although that’s not to say the finished music necessarily ends up accurately representing that original idea. On the other hand, when I’m in a less thoughtful state I might just play around with some synths or a beat, and see where I end up. Personally, I always try and do something a little bit new when I start a project, whether that be exploring a certain drum pattern or trying to develop a unique vibe. I worry about repeating myself, and feel that exploring new territory and different ways of writing music is a good resistance to the temptation every musician must have to repeat something because people liked it, or because it ‘worked’. That’s not to say it isn't completely legitimate or necessary to explore a certain sound over a sustained period of time, after all that’s what makes a good album or artist, but finding that balance between development and change whilst retaining some kind of sonic or thematic continuity is the real challenge.
If you had to give one piece of advice to any new producers what would that be?
Probably to resist the temptation to send out music when it’s either not your best, or not finished. This is something that’s horribly hard to judge though, as more often than not, the tracks that you thought were average seem to strike a chord with people, whereas the ones that you toiled over for days and weeks seem to go unnoticed! Maybe just take your time, there is no rush and good musical ideas take time to develop.
Some excellent advice. Who’s your favourite producer at the moment?
Is it a bit silly to say I don't really have one? It seems
What’s exciting you about the rest of the year?
For me, it’s an interesting time for dnb. Autonomic blew up and really changed things for people writing music at 170bpm, but there seems to have been a reaction against it. Rather than embracing the kind of experimentation and musicality that seemed to be in the ascendency, a lot of producers have returned to dancefloor patterns and modulated mid bass! I think the whole 'minimal' tag was a bit silly and was almost used by a lot of people to justify some kind of return to the music being dominated by '2-step heavy hitters'. For me, it could go either way at the moment. Either labels and producers will keep on pushing the boundaries of this bpm, or it will sink back into itself, loved by those who are heavily involved in it but largely ignored by just about everyone else.
When’s your next release out, and what can we expect from you in the future?
In terms of my work as 'Mode' there is quite a lot coming out. The next release will be my EP on Loxy's Cylon imprint, four tracks which I hope really show the diversity of my work at 170. Then there is a Nu directions 12', a 12' with a group of promoters and a special label (info surfacing shortly on that one), a Warm Comms' 12' in the making and a couple of other bits n bobs. I’m just trying to forge links with the labels that are supporting this brand of 170 and are willing to put out this music without the old prejudices of what a 'dnb 12' should be.
On the other side, I've secured my first 12' and EP for my 'Until Silence' project. It’s a new alias without any boundaries of style or bpm. If I want to write an acid track, I will, and if I want to write an IDM 100bpm synth work out, I will! I felt as if I needed an outlet for this side of what I’m doing as a producer, whilst having my 'Mode' stuff continuing at 170. The first 'Until Silence' 12 will be coming at the end of summer/start of autumn. At the moment, I’m really happy to be doing both 'Mode' and 'Until Silence' but I’m not sure which will outlast the other! So basically, just expect more and more music!
We suggest that you immediately check out Mode’s music on these links:
Mode: http://soundcloud.com/modecloud
Until Silence: http://soundcloud.com/untilsilence
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