John Graham may not be a name you know – but you would definitely know the music he has made under the names Quivver, Tilt, Stonerproof, Skanna, Space Manoeuvres, and Globe. Now based in Los Angeles, John has recently released "Dirty Nails and Vapour Trails," the debut artist album from Quivver – over 14 years after the release of the "Saxy Lady." Not only the producer, John also sings all the tracks on the CD. You might also know his voice from the critically acclaimed Hybrid CD 'I Choose Noise." Keep reading and you will definitely know who John Graham is.
DJ Ron Slomowicz: How long are you in Los Angeles for?
John Graham (Quivver): I moved here August last year, so I'm actually
living here at the moment.
RS: Why are all you UK guys moving to the States?
John Graham (Quivver): Because there's more sunshine, at least on the
West Coast anyway. I got sick of the rain and cold.
RS: Quivver, as a name and a project has been making music for
years, why now the first artist album?
John Graham (Quivver): Just because I kept putting it off and putting
it off and thinking it was going to just be. I was trying to squeeze
it in years ago but I was doing too many remixes and other projects
and working with other people. I did a Planet Funk collaboration
which took up pretty much a whole year. Then I did the Hybrid
collaboration that took six months, and then we went on tour. So I've
just been trying to get it started and finally when I moved to LA last
year I went in the studio for three or four months straight and just
bashed out the whole thing.
RS: What was in your mind when you were making this album?
John Graham (Quivver): Well the best thing about making this album,
for me, was being able to experiment and go in different directions.
Usually when I'm making one single after the next, I'm always
concerned with what DJs are going to play and what people are going to
dance to. When you've not got to really worry about actually every
track being a single, it gives you that little bit of freedom to
experiment.
RS: And you sing just about every song on the album too, correct?
John Graham (Quivver): Yes, I did all the vocals on that, yes.
RS: Is it harder to work with your own vocals than to work with
someone else's vocals?
John Graham (Quivver): No, it's way easier because you haven't got to
try and interpret your ideas for someone else to sing. You know how
you want it to sound and you've just got to get it right. A lot of
times with other vocalists, trying to translate your ideas can take a
long time, so for me it's an easier way of doing it.
RS: Do you start with a track and then put vocals on top of a
track, or do you start with the vocals first? How do you write your
songs?
John Graham (Quivver): Usually, the music first. Occasionally I'll
get an idea for the whole thing, a melody, a track and everything
would just be sort of going round and round and I'll be able to start
it from scratch. There were a couple of tracks that went that way but
then most of the time, I'll be messing around with sounds and come up
with a groove and then write the vocal on top of that.
RS: One thing I like about the artist album is there's a real
variety of sounds on there.
There isn't like a sounds that says – this is a Quivver record.
John Graham (Quivver): Yes, I mean that's what I was talking about
when, you know, making the album just gave me that freedom really to
experiment a little bit more.
