Borderland State Interview - Elating Electronica
We caught up with Borderland State, one of Australia’s promising stars in the electronic scene. With an impressive catalogue of successes and a phenomenal discography to match, Borderland State is headed along to QMusic’s Amplify songwriting camp. We spoke to Luke Middleton, the legend behind the project about the opportunity, his writing process and the future of Borderland State.
Futuremag Music: Hey Borderland State, congratulations on being selected for QMusic's Amplify songwriting retreat! How does it feel to be selected for the opportunity?
Borderland State: Thank you! I'm super excited to be invited to join such an amazingly talented bunch of people. It's both humbling and reassuring knowing that what I'm creating is connecting with people and allowing me to be involved in these opportunities. I'm incredibly thankful to QMusic for letting me tag along. I'm looking forward to meeting the other artists and hopefully creating something really special. I'm really most excited to see what we can all come up with together. All the other artists are so talented so I know it will be a really productive exciting few days.
Futuremag Music: What goes into writing a release compared to remixing a track?
Borderland State: Both writing an original and remixing a track have their own elements that really excite and inspire me. I love the freedom of writing an original. There is literally nothing preventing whatever is floating around my head to be translated into music. I'm writing the rules and I can do literally whatever feels right. Sometimes this can lead to me spending a full day tweaking a vocal sample or synth sound which isn't overly productive, but hey, I'm writing the rules and it's all part of the process. Remixing on the other hand is great because you already have that initial idea to get the creative juices flowing. It can also force me to try things that I might not have tried if I was writing something original. It allows the original artists style to bleed into my own and visa versa which can get some really cool results.
Futuremag Music: What is your favourite aspect of the writing and production process?
Borderland State: There are two stages to the writing and production process that are my favourite, or give me "that feeling." It's a bit like a drug I guess, or at least an addiction to having "the feeling." The first is when I stumble upon a really cool initial idea/sound. All of my music stems from me sitting at my laptop fiddling with an instrument, or sample etc. Every now and then I'll stumble on a great sound which sparks the idea for the track. Having that initial spark of an idea is really exciting. The second is when all of the elements have finally come together and I can see/hear how the final track is going to sound. It is absolutely the best feeling hearing something that was floating around in your head come through your speakers in living, breathing form. That's really special. It's what keeps me going back to writing every single day.
Futuremag Music: What does the future hold for the Borderland State project?
Borderland State: More music and more shows! I have new music ready to be released at any moment, and more shows in the pipeline. So hopefully the future will see Borderland State finding more people to connect with.
