Get to Know: Asanyeh
Asanyeh was there at the start of our Listening Sessions journey, where we began at Club PST almost 10 years ago, homegrown 0121 music was drifting out of the Digbeth rooftop venue across the city! Producer, DJ and founding member of the Rawganics label and podcast which laid a foundation for many of us in the Birmingham community, he has some incredible new music to share with us again – it’s time to get to know Asanyeh!
Introduce yourself – who are you and how would you describe your music?
Greetings, My name is Asanyeh, The music I make spans across multi-genre’s, focusing on the deeper side of bass music. It could be anything from Ambient to Jungle DnB. My sound is heavily influenced by Dub Reggae music, 90’s Jungle, Down Tempo.
How did you get started with music production?
I started producing music in 1999 when I was 16 years old, using a copied version of Cubase from an old school friend. In 2006 I decided to go back into education to study music production.
What would you say are your main influences – musically or otherwise?
My Musical influences come from Dub Reggae sound system culture, listening to sound systems like Jah Shaka (R.I.P) Channel One, Aba Shanti I , Massai Warrior, Hytal Bosra, Young Warrior. I Grew up in the Rastafari Community In Birmingham UK, so a lot of my musical influence is drawn from the teachings I had as a child. My travels across the globe, travelling to places like Ethiopia, Jamaica, Amsterdam, Slovakia in relation to the sounds I hear.
Tell us a little about your production workflow – any software or hardware you use, any special techniques or sources that are indispensable to your sound.
I use Logic Pro to produce my music. I always start with a blank page. 9 times out of 10 I have an idea of what kind of sound I want to make in relation to BPM and drum patterns. I’m very fond of the Jungle D&B Sound both old and new so I tend to start there. My favourite BPM is 170, all my Drum & Bass is made at this speed, that’s just my preference.
I like to use Hardware synthesisers in my creations when I have the time. I currently have a Roland Gaia, Dave Smith Mopho and a Roland Korg. I like to load them up and dig deep into the different parameters on the synths. Delays, Reverbs & Filters are quite indispensable in my sound.
I always get all my sounds together before I arrange into a full piece
What do you do when you’ve lost your musical mojo?
When I’ve lost my musical mojo I do other things like going to the gym when I feel to. Or just chill and watch tv, Netflix etc….
What are your favourite and least favourite BPMs to work at?
My Favourite BPM is 170. I don’t have a least favourite BPM
When you make music, where do you start?
I always start with a drum pattern.
If you could go back to when you first started out and offer your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?
I would say, don’t believe all the hype, take your time to learn, grow and nurture your sound and save your change, music production ain’t cheap!!
Can you tell us one thing you really appreciate about the Birmingham music scene and one thing you think could be improved?
I appreciate Listening Sessions. Only thing to be improved is more Listening Session events on a bigger scale as to what the I dem have done already. Festival settings is all I’m gonna say!
When you’re not making music, what other interests and hobbies do you have?
Gym, cooking, reading when I can,
Do you feel Listening Sessions has helped you progress as an individual artist?
Yes I do. This platform gave me the confidence to showcase my music productions in a club setting. A platform where I got instant feedback from fellow local producers and DJ’s. Listening Session gave me the opportunity to network and meet new like minded people. They inspired me to think outside of the box.
Which other Listening Sessions producers are you feeling at the minute?
Rawtracks, Slaine, Headgear, Rondema and Rootikal are some of my all time favourites
Where can we hear more of your music?
You can hear my music at:
https://soundcloud.com/asanyeh
https://www.tiktok.com/@
https://www.instagram.com/
https://www.facebook.com/
Do you have any upcoming releases, events or other stuff you’d like to promote?
I have a 4 Track EP out now and another release to follow up straight after. They are both self releases via my Bandcamp page. You can hear the clips on my Tick Tok.