If you haven’t yet heard of E-603, you probably will soon. Anyone who’s into mashups or sample-based music should know that E-603′s one of the best artists out there now, and it won’t be long before this guy is put on the same level as Girl Talk. We got a chance to have an exclusive one-on-one chat with him about his music, touring, his current listening, and more. Easily one of the chillest dude’s you could ever meet, he was also hilarious. Did you know that the name E-603 comes from his actual name which is Ethan Ward and his area code is 603? Now you do. Be sure to download Torn Up, E-603′s latest album here.
(Download the nasty album here)
Dirtbag Baby
1. So give us a little background on yourself and how you got started in music.
I started making music when I was young cause there were always a bunch of instruments lying around the house, and I taught myself to play a bunch of different ones. Then, when I was about 12 years old I started making actual recorded music, but it was all super experimental and bizarre stuff that was pretty odd. In high school I started making electronic music, and that was also when I started sampling other artists to put new lyrics on some of my instrumentals. Then, about 2 years ago a friend of mine suggested that I make a completely sample-based album, and I thought it sounded like kind of a cool idea. So I started working on it and spent, like, 15 hours a day working on this album, and that became Something For Everyone.
2. So you made this album while you were in college. Were you studying music at the time?
No, I was actually a film major in college. I had studied music in high school some, but I decided that I wanted to study film in college.
3. What sort of equipment and software do you use to make your mashups? Have you always used the same equipment?
When I first started making music, I was using tape recorders and stuff, but when I started doing sample-based stuff I got Cubase. Now I use the best version of Cubase and also Pro Tools a little bit. I’ve actually dug up some of my old stuff that I did before I had this good software, and it’s not too good.
4. Are you a Mac or a PC guy?
You know, I’m really sort of split down the middle? I do all of my producing on a PC, but that’s not cause I don’t like Macs or anything. I own a few macs and I like them a lot, but I started out producing on a PC and sort of just continued using them because it had all my music and stuff on it. I don’t know, though, I might use a Mac for my producing in the future.
5. How many songs do you have in your iTunes library?
Well I have a couple different computers, and they all have iTunes libraries, but I think that on my primary computer I have like 12,000 songs.
6. Does that include all the acapellas and instrumentals you have for your mashup work?
No, those are kept in a separate library.
7. Your mashups seem to have a lot of hip-hop influence. Is that the type of music you listen to most?
No, I actually listen to a lot of punk rock music, but it’s hard to sample that stuff because it’s so noisy. So I listen to a lot of good stuff that you won’t hear in my mashups because it’s really hard to sample.
8. Is music a full time job for you or do you have any other line of work?
No, I don’t have any other job. Right now I’m spending about 9 hours a day doing music. I’m finishing up a remix for a band called Southern Belle, who I met at a bar a while ago. I also did a remix of “Hot and Cold” by Katy Perry with some samples and rap lyrics that I threw in there.
9. As a mashup artist you probably don’t get as much recognition as other artists. Do a lot of people know you as E-603 in everyday life?
Yeah, I mean I definitely don’t get as much recognition as a lot of the other guys, but people will recognize me in the weirdest places. Or some people will just see my face on a show poster or something and they’ll know me from that.
10. Are most of the shows you play college shows?
Yeah, the majority are definitely college shows. I think I appeal to that demographic a lot. It’s a good crowd because it’s got a lot of people my age.
11. More than anyone else, we’ve heard you being compared to Girl Talk a lot. What do you think of those comparisons?
I like Girl Talk a lot, and it’s a pretty obvious comparison because we’re both sample-based artists and our music’s similar. I honestly never thought I would be compared to Girl Talk, so it’s pretty cool that people are putting me in that light. I would say that my music is more similar to his first album in which it’s really choppy and electronic. With Feed the Animals, he started dragging out samples more, but Torn Up is more like his earlier stuff.
12. Have you ever met Girl Talk?
Yeah, several times. We hung out a while back. We like to kick it if we’re in the same area.
13. What exactly is your area? Are you a Boston guy?
Yeah, I sort of live there. I don’t have a house there, but I’m there a lot of the time and I have a bunch of lifelong friends who live there.
14. Are you doing a lot of touring now?
Yeah, I’m touring all over the place. I’m sort of taking it day by day, but I’m doing like 1-2 shows per weekend. Nothing too extensive. I’ve been focusing a lot on producing lately.
15. What music are you listening to a lot lately?
I’ve had Julian Casablancas’ album on repeat lately. I also played a show with Passion Pit and their keyboardist turned me on to The Joy Formidable. And I listen to Paul Simon a lot.
16. Have you had any contact and/or feedback from the artists that you’ve sampled?
Yeah, and all the feedback has been 100% positive. I sampled Passion Pit and they invited me to do a show with them.
17. Are there any copyright complications with using only other artists’ material?
You know, I try not to worry about that. I haven’t had any problems so far and most of the artists appreciate the fact that I’m creating a new piece of art.
18. If you had to choose your favorite song that you’ve ever done, what would it be?
Hm…that’s a tough question. I would probably have to say “Lights Out” from Torn Up. It’s partially because I really like the way it sounds and partially because I really worked hard to get that song to sound the way it does.
19. Okay, so we’ve got one last question for you. If you could play a show with any other artist, who would you play with?
Wow, that’s a super tough question. I don’t know if I can even do it. I guess if I had to say I would probably want to play with The Misfits. And then probably She and Him with Zooey Deschanel. I’d love to shake her hand, maybe kiss her on the cheek.
Smash That
To get E-603′s music, hit up his website for free downloads (or pay what you want) of both of his albums.
Or, check him out on Myspace.
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