Rosie Lowe is about to show us that she’s more than just one of the most talked-about darlings of the blogosphere with the release of her eagerly anticipated debut full-length album, Control.

Having unveiled a series of critically hailed singles, the Devon-born musician is an emerging feminist icon and her debut sees her baring her soul as she explores a raft of personal issues with devastating honesty.

Control clearly demonstrates why pioneering artists including Little Simz, The Invisible, Kwabs, Ady Suleiman, Ghostpoet, and respected tastemaker Gilles Peterson have all recognised and supported Rosie.

Ahead of the Australian release of the album on 19th February via Dew Process / UMA, we caught up with Rosie to talk about the technical side of the album, her live show, and the gear she couldn’t live without.

Back To Basics

If I could only bring the bare essentials with me on tour, I’d bring my Kaoss pad (and my mic, but that doesn’t count, right?!) because I love nothing more than messing with my vocals and sampling them live – pure joy.

I’d also bring my pianist’s Prophet 12, because we use this live and it’s beautiful, and also my MPC 1000, because then the possibilities are endless.

Evolution

When I first started this project, the live set up consisted of me on my MPC 1000 and my drummer on her SPDS drum pads. It was really simple, but it worked. There have been a lot of changes through the last few years with the set up.

But right now, my personal set up consists of a Kaoss pad (for live vocal processing), my TC Helicon Voicelive Touch (which I use mainly for pitching my vocals up/down an octave), and my MPD 18 for triggering samples.

My keyboard player uses a Nord and a Prophet 12, my drummer uses a kit and drum triggers and an SPD-SX, and my bass player uses a bass synth along with his bass and a good few pedals.

Hitting The Studio

The studio process is a very particular one and one that’s quite different from the live set up. I write the majority of my music back at my dad’s house in the countryside.

I pack up the very basics of my studio in LDN and drive the six hours to his house to spend some quality time writing for a week or two at a time and I’m very limited to a simple set up when I’m there, which is what I like.

I think too many sounds and too much equipment can be distracting for me when I’m trying to hone in on writing and how I’m feeling. When I’m writing a song I try and capture my vision of the song using just my voice to sing all the parts from the harmony to the drums and bass.

After I feel the root of the song is there, that’s when I start bringing in other equipment to see the vision through. I have been lucky enough to work with my incredible producer and good friend Dave Okumu on my record.

So once I feel like I can take the song no further I take the song to him and the vision then becomes a shared one. Dave uses vintage drum machines, piano, and bass synths (the OB-8 is all over my album) and we process my vocals through a lot of pedals too.

Back In The Day

My first instruments were violin and piano, which I took up simultaneously at five years old. I didn’t have much understanding of gear past a tape and CD Walkman at that point. I listened to lots of hip-hop and r’n’b from a young age, so the use of electronics and sampling was natural to my ears.

My dad bought me an 8-track recorder when I was a young teen to record songs and I’ve always had a dictaphone in my bag and recorded people and sounds I like. It was when I was 19 that I bought a Mac and Logic and started learning production.

It changed my life in a big way because it allowed me to see my vision through without relying on someone else. I’m really interested in the space between totally organic sounds and electronics.

I love to start with natural vibrations of the voice or piano and send it through pedals or distort it. Through processing, it takes on another layer, another vibration and that’s what really gets me excited.

Gear Vs Song

I think any changes in environment can change the song never mind the gear and sounds you’re using. Getting Logic has enabled me to write in a completely different way. I try not to go to the piano or guitar to write but just use my voice to put down what I’m hearing in my head.

I felt like going to these instruments was actually really limiting as I wasnt able to see through what my ears were hearing – they were more advanced than my technical abilities on these instruments.

If I record in this way or if I sit down at a piano and write, the end product is going to be completely different. If I have a drum machine and a bass synth in front of me, that is probably going to sound completely different, again.

I think the song subject would be the same though, and therefore the feeling. That’s what’s always at the root of my songwriting – what I’m going through at the time.

Getting Weird

My Omnichord is the weirdest piece of gear I own. I got it shipped from America and after paying a ridiculous amount of postage and tax on it. It ended up costing me a bomb. It’s worth it though, it’s brilliant for taking on tour.

The oldest piece of gear I own? Probably me, my Omnichord, or my up-right piano.

Rosie Lowe’s debut album, Control, is out 19th February via Dew Process / UMA. Pre-orders are now available for Control from iTunes. Hear Rosie’s latest single, ‘Woman’, below.

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