Andy Graham is a Glasgow, Scotland-born electronic music producer who is known for his innovative approach to ambient soundscapes and cinematic atmospheres. Before studying audio technology in college and university, he was always interested in playing turntables; a couple of Gemini belt drives eventually turned into three Technics 1200s, which I guess then sparked everything electronic for him. During university, in the early 2000s, he began releasing music on various independent labels, and afterward he began touring and he’s been doing that ever since. (You might also know him as Sei A, through which he pushes his swinging, bass-heavy style out across more than 20 releases on labels like Will Saul’s AUS Music, and Inner-Sound, a collaboration with Liam Robertson.) In August, he released his third EP on his own label, AG-Sounds, featuring a collection of soundtrack-inspired tracks that push the boundaries of ambient classical music. The release is complemented by artwork from fellow Glasgow artist Calum Matheson, who created an oil painting for the project, and the release includes a remix by Sei A, adding a dynamic club-ready edge to the ambient sound. In celebration of it, Graham has recorded an XLR8R podcast under his name. Dial in for just shy of an hour of ethereal ambience from one of the best in the business.

01. What have you been up to recently?
I’ve being doing a load of production work and also finishing off other EPs with my other artist works as Sei A and also Inner-Sound. I’m also starting to work on a new AG release but moving the sound slightly away from the ambient sound that I’ve previously released on my AG-Sounds label.

02. What have you been listening to?
I’ve been sinking into the sounds of Sonder and Brent Faiyaz over the last few days. And also listening to really early Plastikman stuff, forgetting how good it all was in the early days!

03. Where and when did you record this mix?
I recorded this at home but I’ve been putting tunes aside for it for quite some time, then eventually I tried to piece it all together!

04. Where do you imagine it being listened to?
It’s a very mellow mix. I’ve got a small two-year-old and when putting him to bed I sometimes play parts of it back to help him sleep. It works as well. I feel like this is the start of a series of mellow mixes. One for the tired parents or anyone out there that’s needing to sit and zone out for a bit.

05. How does it compare to what we might hear you play out live?
I’ve started to make plans to bring the Andy Graham stuff to a live performance along with live strings but that’s all part of a bigger plan at the moment. Otherwise if you heard me out playing I’d either be playing house or techno as Sei A or Inner-Sound so it’s very different.

06. What’s next on your horizon?
I’m currently finishing off the next Inner-Sound EP and potentially working with a really cool vocalist. And there’s also a techno Sei A EP which is sounding not too bad.

XLR8R Subscribers can download the podcast below. If you’re not an XLR8R subscriber, you can read more about it and subscribe here.

Tracklisting

01. Andy Graham “Golden Note intro” (Self Released)
02. Paul Buchanan “After Dark” (Newsroom Records)
03. Andy Graham “Golden One” (AG-Sounds)
ann annie – “Wandering” (Self release)
04. Anthéne “Balance” feat. fields we found (Quiet Details)
05. Naemi “Blueberry Ice” feat. PVAS & Shy (3XL)
06. JJ+JS “Syntropy” feat. J (Daisart)
07. Windy & Carl “The Llama’s Dream” (Kranky)
08. Kahimi Karie “Yobitsugi” (Victor)
09. Kahimi Karie “Love is the fruit” (Victor)
10. Sei A “Beautiful Chaos” (Aus Music)
11. Rainy Miller & Space Afrika “The Graves at Charleroi” feat. Coby Sey (Fixed Abode)
12. Low “Hey” (Sub Pop)
13. Mount Kimbie “Boxing” feat. King Krule (Warp)
14. mu tate “∞∞” feat. Space Afrika (Utter)
15. Ennio Morricone “Ostia” (CAM)
16. ann annie “By Morning” (Self Released)
17. Andy Graham “Words by Z outro” (Self Released)