Taking inspiration from films, personal experiences, and nature Penryn’s Angel Wing EP comprises of 5 tracks that range from textural garage rhythms with atmospheric melodies to sweeping ambient soundscapes.
With influences from across the spectrum of electronic music such as Burial, Tom VR, William Basinski, Ross From Friends and Eluvium, Angel Wing takes an introspective approach for a more meditative and headphone-oriented experience.
Established in 2019, Duckland is a Bristol-based record label and club night series dedicated to promoting forward-thinking electronic music. Their events showcase a diverse range of genres, including UK Garage, Jungle, Breaks, Hardcore, and Drum & Bass, featuring both emerging and established artists from Bristol and beyond.
With the EP out now, we caught up with Penryn to discuss his influences, working with Duckland and how the natural world contributed to the organic sound of Angel Wing.
Your music draws from personal experiences and nature. Can you share a moment or scene that directly influenced the vibe of Angel Wing?
For the most part, Angel Wing was written in my final year of film school when I was making short films about spirituality and nature, as well as writing a dissertation about the aesthetics of spiritual art, which is often very strange and textural. My world at that time revolved around this crossover between art and religion, and I aimed to channel that academic obsession and reconcile it with my love for electronic music to hopefully create something unique.
Burial and William Basinski are often mentioned as influences. What is it about their work that resonates with you most?
For me, Burial and William Basinski both embody that intersection between the spiritual world and the art world. All of Burial’s music is about the divinity in everyday life; I’ve even heard him talk about seeing people on the tube and seeing them as angels. William Basinski himself was raised Catholic, although I’m not sure he still is, and performs live in church spaces. Their music almost feels more like sculpture or fine art than it does music. There is a huge emphasis on texture and repetitiveness over time in their music that is prioritized over conventional song structure or a catchy tune, and I’ve always been more interested in textures than I have notes.
You’ve released Angel Wing through Duckland, a label with a strong focus on Bristol’s electronic scene. How did that connection come about, and what’s the collaboration been like?
After my first proper release, A Flower Out to Sea, Duckland hit me up about releasing a single with them through their free download series, which was fun because it gave me a chance to put out something different. So I made them a weird minimal dubstep tune called Ajar. A couple of months later, they asked if I wanted to do a full release with them, and I was well up for it. I had been watching them for a while and loving their releases. I don’t think I could ask for a smoother collaboration, really. They’re really good at letting artists do their thing. I mean, they let me put a full-blown ambient track with no drums or melodies on what is essentially a garage EP. They just get it. It helps that Dom and Rob (who run the label) are both artists in their own right; they’re both very driven and creative individuals.
Bristol has such a distinct musical identity. How has being part of that environment shaped your creative process?
To be honest, I can’t speak much to that as I’ve only lived in Bristol for a couple of months. All of my tunes that I’ve released so far were made in Cornwall, where electronic music has no real scene other than the usual student-ridden DnB nights or the slim chance of spotting Aphex Twin somewhere. So much music comes from Bristol that inspires me though, Overmono and Culprate to name a couple. This is also the first time I’ve ever lived in a city, so I’m sure these new landscapes will seep into my music somehow.
Your music has been described as introspective and suited for headphone listening. Is there a particular mood or feeling you hope listeners take away from this EP?
My main hope is that people can find a use for my music, whatever that may be. As far as emotional responses go, it differs from song to song. With my beat-oriented tunes, I mainly try to evoke what Kode9 calls ‘downcast euphoria.’ With my ambient stuff, I hope people can feel a steadiness and calm, which links back to finding a use for my music. If one of my ambient pieces aided someone in sleep or meditation, I’d consider that a success.
Blending elements of garage and ambient is a pretty unique approach. What led you to experiment with these contrasting styles?
It’s like they always say, “make what you want to hear.” I’m not at all interested in what’s new or even what the tradition is. I suppose my dirty little secret is that I love electronic music, but I’m really not a raver. I’ve always connected with music in a much more solitary way and have always preferred the more melancholic side of electronic music. Personally, I listen to ambient music constantly, nearly all day sometimes, but I also love garage rhythms. Percussion in garage music is fascinating; it has such a recognizable style, yet the possibilities seem endless with what sounds you can choose and how you can arrange each element. I’m not the first to do it by any stretch of the imagination. Burial, Four Tet, and Aphex Twin have made careers out of making complex and textured drums surrounded by avant-garde composition. But when it comes to the specific combination of garage and ambient, Burial is obviously the ultimate pioneer.
Since you started releasing music in 2019, how do you feel your production style has changed or matured?
I’m still very much finding my voice, so I’m constantly trying to improve my ability to trust my deepest instincts when I’m making music. I feel that my favorite of my own tunes are the ones that come from me feeling a surge of emotion and just sitting at my computer and letting that emotion guide me. When that happens, the tune usually needs the least amount of production. The last track on this EP, Dream by River, is my best example of that to date. There are so few elements in that track, yet I’m able to listen to it on loop for hours. I hope others find that too. Another big lesson I’ve learned is that art is important, but MY art is not. Art will live on with or without any individual artist, even the greats, so there is no use in bringing any kind of ego to the craft.
You’ve mentioned being inspired by nature—are there any specific natural landscapes or moments that helped shape this release?
Definitely! First and foremost is the sea. When I was making this EP, I was living in Falmouth and always a stone’s throw from the sea. I would often take walks along the seafront, mostly at night, and either listen to bounces of my tunes or whatever tunes I was studying for inspiration while looking out onto the horizon. Staring out to sea at night is a visual equivalent to the feeling I try to capture in some of my music. I was also spending a lot of time going around Cornwall looking at rivers to use in the film I was making at the time. Rivers have a totally different feel to the sea; they are more poetic, whereas the sea is much more existential.
Duckland’s ethos focuses on inclusivity and fostering community. How do those values resonate with you as an artist?
Duckland has seen a lot of success in the last 12 months, and I think that is in large part due to that ethos. They are creating a scene that just makes you want to be a part of it, no matter who you are. To me, that’s what electronic music is all about. There is an inherent anonymity to electronic music; it really lends itself to the idea of embracing underrepresented voices because, for the most part, the music comes first.
Angel Wing is out now on Duckland
The post “I’ve always been more interested in textures than I have notes” Penryn interview appeared first on Magnetic Magazine.