The Belfast electronic duo speak about their genre-blending sound on Ninja Tune, their evolving analog studio, the ‘CHROMA’ series and building creative confidence through SoundCloud.
Welcome to Sound Advice, the series spotlighting artists’ creative process and their SoundCloud journey. We’ll get the inside knowledge straight from the source on how musicians, producers and creatives are leaning into everything SoundCloud offers to elevate their sound, get heard and catapult their careers. Sound Advice is now available in audio format on the SoundCloud Stories profile.
One of the most beloved electronic acts of the last decade is undoubtedly Belfast-raised, London-based duo Bicep. Made up of longtime DJ friends Matt McBriar and Andy Ferguson, Bicep are known for their thrilling live sets; a mix of euphoric and melancholy techno, house and breaks designed for pure ecstasy. Bicep are no overnight success story. The duo has been steadily at it since 2009. They started out building an audience with their ‘Feel My Bicep’ music blog and mix series, then released music on labels like Throne of Blood and Aus Music before signing with Ninja Tune in 2017. That year, they released their self-titled debut album, which landed at Number 20 on the UK Album Charts and racked up numerous accolades.
After the release of their 2021 full length ‘Isles,’ Bicep wanted to do some more club-driven, immediate music, and created the absolutely banging ‘CHROMA’ single series. But now, they’re back in the studio working on their third album, as we learned when we called up Matt and Andy in London. We talk about their palette of influences, the evolution of their sound over time, and the challenges and creative processes involved in their music-making, including their transition from digital to analog production. We also chat about how they use SoundCloud and the milestones that have shaped the Bicep universe.
LISTEN TO THE AUDIO EPISODE OF SOUND ADVICE FEATURING BICEP
LISTEN TO BICEP’S COLLABORATION WITH ELIZA, “TANGS,” THE LATEST RELEASE FROM THE DUO’S ‘CHROMA’ SERIES
THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE OF SOUND ADVICE
- The duo begin by telling the story of their ongoing ‘CHROMA’ series. A way for them to get back to their club music roots after years of album writing and touring cycles, ‘CHROMA’ is proving to be as challenging as it is fruitful for Bicep; re-focusing their production mindsets, skills and attention spans towards a more reactive style of dancefloor music-making, and to play with genres and tempos that push them creatively.
- Matt and Andy reflect on how they started making music together as Bicep, and how they’ve balanced living across time zones and maintaining a healthy collaborative production schedule. Contemporary to the late 2000s, they used messenger and video software to keep that human connection alive, and file-sharing for a punchy workflow pace. The lessons they learned have carried through to the present, showing them how valuable evolving technologies are to them as producers.
- We hear how Bicep’s balancing of digital and analog production techniques have grown over the years, and how their gradual move towards an analog-heavy set-up has allowed them to create the Bicep signature sound. They talk through core synthesisers and drum machines that have made an impact on them, the techniques they’ve come back to time and again, and how, through trial and error, they’ve re-wired their thinking about electronic music production.
- Expanding on their Irish roots, Matt and Andy tell us how growing up in Belfast has had a lasting impact on the styles of music they gravitated to, and how those are woven into Bicep. As the duo explain, it’s all about blending trance, a formative genre for Irish ravers of their generation, and breaks, which they consider the defining sound of London, their long-time home. Taking risks and sticking to their guns, Bicep saw this blending as core to them — even if it didn’t immediately click for listeners.
- We hear how Bicep began as an online blog and mixtape series, titled ‘Feel My Bicep,’ which showcases the breadth of their tastes and where they draw inspiration from as DJs. As they tell it, certain DJs were enormously influential for them, including Andy Weatherall.
- Bicep explain their anti-purist attitude to using software and hardware in the studio; how they can be both compatible and antagonistic, in the best ways possible. In the years since they started producing, much has changed dramatically in the digital and analog worlds. They share reflections on these changes, and how they’ve pushed themselves to maintain a sense of originality and flair.
- We hear how it’s not all about the tools, but also the mood and feel of the music. Going deeper into their Irish roots, the duo tells us about the core feeling in Irish music that they’re drawn to: a melancholy that’s as cathartic and uplifting as it is dark. It’s a feeling they see across the dance music genres they’ve long tapped into as producers, like trance, new wave and Italo disco.
- The duo reflects on their biggest hit to date, “GLUE,” which was a breakthrough for them in the late 2010s. Becoming a festival favorite and a key track in their live set, “GLUE” is a yearning mix of trance, house and breaks — quintessential Bicep. And yet, “GLUE” was a slow burn rather than an immediate success; the result of happy accidents and trials. It’s a lesson for producers out there: good things can come to those who try and try again, and who wait for the right moment.
- Throughout the Bicep journey, from sharing DJ mixes to headlining festival stages, Matt and Andy detail how they have always used SoundCloud to present their music to the world. The duo tell us about how the platform and its features have had a profound impact on how they’ve developed their sound, and how SoundCloud has helped them maintain a sense of community throughout their rise.
LINKS AND EXTRAS
Follow Bicep’s journey on SoundCloud.
Check out “TANGZ”, Bicep’s collaboration with ELIZA, from the duo’s latest entry in their ‘CHROMA’ series.
Press play on Bicep’s 2021 album, ‘Isles.’
Tap in with some of Bicep’s recent collaborators, including Clara La San (“Water”), Ejeca (“You”) and Benjamin Damage (“A.L.O.E”).
Listen to the Buzzing Electronic playlist on SoundCloud.
Never miss an episode and follow the official Sound Advice playlist on SoundCloud.
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF SOUNDCLOUD
- Learn more about using DMs to connect with fellow artists and potential collaborators.
- Learn more about how to make a custom playlist on SoundCloud.
- Learn more about unlimited uploads, available with an Artist Pro subscription.
- Learn more unlocking access to unlimited distribution, available with Artist Pro.
- Learn more about getting heard with SoundCloud’s updated algorithm, available to Artist and Artist Pro subscribers.
To discover additional features a SoundCloud Artist or Artist Pro subscription offers, visit here. To catch up on past installments of Sound Advice and make sure you don’t miss out on future episodes, visit here.
CREDITS Host: Vivian Host, Executive Producer: Mike Spinella, Producer: KC Orcutt, Audio Engineer: David “DibS” Shackney, Coordinator: Trevor McGee, Editorial Associate: Lauren Martin
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