Got the time?
The UKF timepiece is stuck on Xilent o’clock and we’re not getting it fixed any time soon.
Two weeks ago we grabbed Xilent’s dynamite debut UKF podcast. Last week we premiered his first new material in what feels like an eternity, Free Me. This week we’re finding out how he has plenty more electronic tricks up his sleeve!
All shimmering pianos, emotive vocals and a riff so sharp it could shave the thickest of beards, Free Me is yet another twist in Xilent’s never-ending tale of genre-munching game-changers.
I’m on a constant quest for perfection. I’m never really satisfied with anything because I’m always thinking I want to do it better.
“My mindset has changed over the years,” he explains. “My BPM has changed down a little to 128 and I’ve been doing a lot of electrohouse recently. I’m trying to get people used to my style. People always expect me to play dubstep and D&B but I’m always trying to push myself creatively.”
And right now – as he personally confirmed in the comments on Free Me – he’s pushing himself creatively with a debut album!
“Yes, it will be out either late this year or early next year,” he confirms. “It’s been well over a year’s work in progress as I’ve been working on a lot of remixes and touring extensively. I moved to Spain during that time as well. Now I’m fully focussed on it and hope to finish it when I’m back from my next tour. I’ve been listening to the 13 tracks so many times now that I just want to get them out there. You have to remind yourself that it will sound new to people when they hear it. It sounds so old to me but it will sound fresh to you.
“I’m also on a constant quest for perfection so I’m never really satisfied with anything because I’m always thinking I want to do it better. The album isn’t just a whole bunch of tracks, it’s got a sense of consistency. So if I’m not happy about one track then I can’t just take it out. I want people to experience this album as a journey through a whole spectrum of genres and atmospheres accompanied by a completely new style, which I’m establishing for myself right now.”
Other relatively recent news in Xilent land is a big win for his still-ace Boss Wave video. As voted by low-end connoisseurs at the 2013 Bass Music Awards, its next level video game skills certainly deserve the props it achieved. Although Xilent is still a tiny bit gutted he didn’t get the lead role.
The first thing I said to him was ‘hey dude, you played me, you’re awesome!
“I was supposed to play that role but there was a really strict filming schedule,” he sighs. “The guys – who did an absolutely amazing job – were based in Sweden had to cast someone who looks like me. They got the right glasses and everything. I didn’t even know the guy… But I’ve talked to him online since. He’s cool. It’s quite strange speaking to someone who resembles me so much friends have to ask how I made the video! The first thing I said to him was ‘hey dude, you played me, you’re awesome!’”
So is Xilent. We can’t wait for the album.
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