Prolific, eccentric and idiosyncratic, Lee Norris AKA Metamatics is one of those unique artists who can truly lay claim to a sound and persona all of his own. Born and raised in Manchester and now based in ‘creamy’ Devon his sense of humor, quirky sonic palette and extensive back catalog have given him cult status. A slew of releases on labels like Hydrogen Dukebox, Clear, Skam and District Six, alongside a plethora of albums, established his ability to create odd yet danceable compositions and gave the world some insight into his witty, and often surreal, imagination. Albums like ‘Neo Ouija’ and ‘Midnight Sun Pig’ are among his most revered works, two LPs that have cemented his place among the UK’s greats. Not that he’s concerned with fame and adulation. A humble, down-to-earth character who operates on the fringes of the electronic music ‘scene’, Lee loves a bit of the old fishing, his beloved Manchester City, curry, Guinness, and of course, staring at computer screens.
It’s been a while since his last release, ‘Bodypop’, which dropped in 2016. But 2020 will see some new material from Lee including the ‘Instamatic’ EP on Shipwrec and a re-release of his cult LP ‘Midnight Sun Pig’, with Hydrogen Dukebox pressing up a double-vinyl version of the album for the very first time.
Over two decades since he first started to release music Lee Norris remains one of the UK’s most humble and respected electronic music treasures. An artist whose happy place is at the pub having a pint of Guinness, his unique, timeless take on music is the foundation of a legacy that will live on for decades and centuries to come.
Today Metamatics shares 5 studio tips. Grab your ‘Midnight Sun Pig’ vinyl copy here.
1. Cast my mind back 20 years
It could be fun to talk about my five tips from when I sat down and made ‘Sun Pig’... It was a fair while ago. I remember the studio was hot in the summer and when the lights were out it was like being in a city, lights, and whirring noises that came with the kit… Internal fans and dancing lights.
2. Focus
Back then it was kind of easier to focus, the studio was like a haven, once in I never came out until something was happening… I miss rotating on my stool sometimes to tweak outboard controls. It all helped to aid the feeling of submerging in the music. This is true today… Focus and knowing what you want is important to me.
3. Buying a new kit?
I always found that the fact that I could not splash money out on a new kit all the time meant I had to push what I had hard, and experiment. Added to the tension and need… Sometime you could find yourself reaching for the latest mag and the phone to order something new, but resisting that and staying in a reality zone added more than subtracted. Don’t spend for the sake of it.
4. Inner feelings
At the end of the day, music was everything to me and still is, so I had to sit tight and wait for things to affect me like it would a listener, if the hairs don’t stand up or your legs don’t want to move. something is not right. So staying fresh, taking the occasional walk in the sun or the rain was needed to ensure you were not chasing the technical side but chasing the expression.
5. Don’t give up.
Back then I released records through Hydrogen Dukebox and others label so I was always wanting to finish stuff and get the music out there, this is still the case as it is all I do. I used to wonder sometimes about everything, but a radio play or a good review really helped pre the net, that is the weirdest thing talking about ‘Midnight Sun Pig’ and production tips of then is that the internet was not commonplace, dial-up connections (google that, people) and the speed things happened meant you couldn’t just look something up. ‘Don’t Give Up’ applied to lots of things then as the technology was often a controller of the mind in a constructive way. So, when things are not going well, I can easily recall the days when there was no advice or help available but it applies today, be patient, make the music your head can hear, and don’t ever give up.
Grab your ‘Midnight Sun Pig’ vinyl copy here.
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