Selected by Pixey

‘Death of a Party’ by Blur

I adore this song. Although I end up going for a cleaner drum sound in my music, this is still my favourite Blur song and always takes me to a creative place when I listen to it.

‘Time to Pretend’ by MGMT

Before it got Saltburned, I was listening to a lot of Oracular Spectacular when working on my current set of releases. I had just got an OB-6, and it inspired me to get creative with synthesizers.

‘Lovers Rock’ by TV Girl

TV Girl’s use of sampling is probably what inspired me most when I was writing over the last year, and ‘Lovers Rock’ is hands down one of my favourite examples of sampling on a record, ever.

‘Final Song’ by MØ

This one might seem left field, but the song is intrinsic to how I approach pop writing. The pre-chorus is just as impactful as the chorus, which is exactly what I was going for with ‘The Thrill of It’, using huge vocals that sound completely euphoric.

‘Bang Bang Bang’ by Mark Ronson, The Business Intl, MNDR

Mark Ronson’s drum recordings are always a source of inspiration for me. He brings those old school beats into a completely fresh light. I’m such a huge fan of his production, and this really influenced some of the drum sounds I have created in my music.

‘Ladyflash’ by The Go! Team

I’m sure it’s no surprise that this track is on here. I feel like The Go Team are in the same lane as TV Girl, this song makes me feel similarly to Lovers Rock. I adore it for its use of samples. It feels thrown together, like a happy accident but in the best way.

‘Boom Clap’ by Charli XCX

The album Sucker has been a big inspiration over the last few years. It’s so interesting because it’s like a mixture of Brit-pop and the ‘80s. Charli’s voice in this song gave me the idea to alter my own vocal production in my bigger pop tracks.

‘Loaded’ by Primal Scream

I have forever been trying to create a horns sample like the one from ‘Loaded’. I feel like I finally have with something exciting I have forthcoming; it’s no secret I’ve been heavily inspired by Primal Scream since day one.

‘What Once Was’ by Her’s

This track has, and always will be, one of my favourite tracks of all time. I remember when it first came out, I’m pretty sure I listened to it on repeat for about a month. The guitar and bass tones in this track inspired some of what I’ve got forthcoming.

‘E-Pro’ by Beck

'E-Pro' heavily inspired a track I have in the works. There’s something about the heavily distorted bass line that marries perfectly with the tone of the drums that made this track an important point of inspiration for me.

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