hEADaCHE is the uniquely, remix-only project started by Rob Schubert – also the founder of the project, Secant Prime. He’s released a series of remix EPs the latest being Vol VI on the Produkt 42 label. We’re happy he gave us some time today to answer some questions.
Thanks for chatting with us today. We’re grateful for your time.
Thanks for having me!
Was there any particular reason for the project name and the spelling of it?
So I suppose the name came because I felt like I was making headache inducing music in a way The spelling, or capitalization, was a way to differentiate me from others. The specific capitalization is in the fashion of “hEADdIRT” Godflesh’s own label, which of course I am a fan of Godflesh. It really would have been ideal if Spotify and other online distributors made this differentiation (for instance a h is a different character than H of course, even in ascii) but they seem to not have coded that in.
hEADaCHE is a remix-only project. Do you have any project where you write originals?
So I originally was part of the band CEOXiME, where I did all the music. Once that ended, I started a project called Secant Prime, which started more dark ambient, then had a release covering DnB, Minimal techno and illbient, then moved to more experimental work. Lately, I have been doing all live material with the intention of doing some local shows soon.
Referring to the last question, if you do have projects where you compose originals, how do you think that the perspective differs between the artist and the remixer – at least in terms of how successful remix is done?
I usually approach a remix to highlight parts I find important, or sometimes shape the track in a completely different way. As an artist, it’s a blank slate, which can be daunting or freeing depending on the day. Lots of my Secant Prime work is experimental (at least for me) to go into areas that would not work for remixing. Remixing I try to stay in a particular genre, often dance genres, so that is pretty constricting in and of itself.
How has your studio tools that you use for remixing changed over the years and what’s been your most challenging learning curve?
Ah good question – I used Acid in the past, and for a long time I did not update that computer. Finally that computer died and I had to recreate everything I was used to “one clicking” in place. Some I still haven’t recreated, some plugins don’t exist, and some I just had to find a new suitable one. I had a favorite reverb, and I’m still trying to hone in on one
Do you have a favorite remix that you’ve done and is there anyone you would still like to remix?
Boy there are so many. The really old one I still really like is LiveSexAct – New Version of You (hEADaCHE remix). I also did a 7/4 time Terrorfakt remix – Alf (hEADaCHE remix). And the 3 latest EPs of remixes all were outstanding in my mind, each in a different way. The latest release, mostly previously released work, has an unreleased remix for Still Patient?, so definitely check that one out.
You know, for remixing, its hard to pick artists I want to remix – for instance, my favorite artists I wouldn’t necessarily want to remix, of course, if they asked me, I’d say yes, but since I am such a huge fan of their work it would be difficult to remix – maybe remixing my least favorite track from them would be the best I could do.
When you look for the “stems” of a track, what in particular are you looking for – for those who are not familiar with the remixing process?
I usually listen to the full mix of the track multiple times, to see what parts I want to keep and what I could add or change. Of course finding the parts sometimes can be difficult, especially if they are grouped with other parts. So full separation is good to have, and with stems, starting from zero is good, then you can, for instance, pick out a part at 1:30 and that would be findable with that info.
It’s been argued that it’s better to choose someone to remix a song that has a higher following on their socials or Spotify. Do you feel that this is more important than perhaps working with an artist you simply “like”?
There are artists that I like and are leaders in their genre that I have found to be less than good at remixing. I suppose I think that, with an unlimited budget, you could do both. I really don’t know how much a remixer’s following and socials really affects your results, I’ve seen JK Broderick (Godflesh) remixes that have less than 1000 plays on Spotify, so I’m not positive that you can guarantee that a remix will elevate your position.
Do you feel that there is more “value” when someone invests in a remix commissioned?
Not necessarily, I mean I suppose that artist might want to promote it since they put money into it, but as a consumer you really have no idea which are commissioned and which are “free”. I’ve found many artists doing free work to be at a much better quality than some paid ones.
How can an artist identify when a remix is done without much thought being put into it?
I think I can. I’ve heard a few that just seem like they started it and didn’t finish it. There are others that sound like they had a track and just added the vocals from the original track. But then there are ones I put so much effort into it, yet I just don’t feel like they really did the track justice. Sometimes they just don’t hit for me. But maybe they’re outstanding remixes and I just have the closeness bias on.
Thanks for your time. Any last words are yours. You can also leave links to your socials if you like.
I do post occasionally on facebook, and probably will promote my upcoming live Secant Prime there. I have 2 :
https://www.facebook.com/hEADaCHE.remixer
And my micro label page:
https://www.facebook.com/UncoiledLoops/
But most recently I have been working with Produkt42 (label)
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566167640773
Secant Prime has insta:
https://www.instagram.com/secantprime/
But mostly look at bandcamp:
http://Secantprime.bandcamp.com
Thanks so much for this interview!
