Name: Katie Wilkinson aka Birds
Nationality: British  
Occupation: Producer, DJ
Current release: Birds's debut album Home is out via Feed The Void.
Recommendations: Cocktail Party Effect has a new record out on YUKU soon where they’ve delved more into some interesting experimental ambient vibes. I’m really into that at the moment.
My friend Loradeniz also did a split release with Kems Kriol on Nous’klaer which is a soundtrack piece that’s super beautiful.

If you enjoyed this Birds interview and would like to know more about her music, visit her on Instagram, Soundcloud, and Facebook.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you’re listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

I’ve always associated certain music with certain colours mentally, for example, different colours for different genres.

I suppose what happens when I’m listening to music depends on where I am. Sometimes I’ll dance around the living room, sometimes I’ll be doing something else at the same time eg. travelling somewhere, eating, on a cross trainer at the gym, running (the reason I’m named Birds is that I like to go for long runs surrounded by nature before studio sessions) or I’ll be in a club dancing.

Maybe I’m taking this question too literally?

Entering new worlds and escapism through music have always exerted a very strong pull on me. What do you think you are drawn to most when it comes to listening to and creating music?

I would say most definitely creating an atmosphere for people to lose themselves in. It’s a world that I’ve created and I think there’s something pretty magical about that and something I’m proud of.

I would also say experimenting with different sounds and genres and bringing them together to create something really original is also something I’m really into. Why not put a fuzz guitar on an electro track or a live vocal on a bass music track? There are no rules about these things.

In terms of listening to music, I guess it just enhances everything around me as it gives it a soundtrack.

What were your very first steps in music like and how would you rate the gains made through experience?

I played the violin, piano and guitar when I was younger. I moved to London when I was 18 and started playing in bands from the age of about 19/20. I worked in music as a music journalist, promoter and door host from my teenage years onwards too. I also started DJing around then, initially not so seriously but that changed as I got more and more into dance music and started making my own version of dance music as Birds a few years ago.

I’m not an artist that’s just popped up from nowhere, I’ve been working in music my whole adult life (I’m now in my ‘30s) and I think it’s what has really shaped my vast knowledge of multiple genres of music and the sounds within my own music.

I wouldn’t trade all of this experience to be younger and less experienced ever, regardless of whether it makes my music easier to sell or not.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

At that age I pretty much surrounded myself with music at every given opportunity.

My homework was always done in my bedroom whilst either listening to illegally downloaded old John Peel archived radio shows on my first ever DELL laptop that used to break every 5 minutes (probably because of the illegal downloads), The Radio 1 BBC Introducing Show or The Radio 1 rock show, or my favourite CD of the month. My walks around school and to and from school were accompanied with whatever was on my MP3 player that week. I used to get told off for that daily. I was addicted.

What’s changed: music’s very much still a part of my daily routine. On my average day (it changes a little depending on my work schedule) I listen to NTS or 6Music in the morning or occasionally Operator or Netil Radio if they’re streaming earlier on that day whilst having breakfast. I then take an ear break (those are really important in terms of not losing my hearing) for a couple of hours and get some record label work done or do some Dutch homework - I’m learning Dutch as I moved to Holland 9 months ago from the UK) and then I go to the gym and listen to a DJ mix during that, or if I’m at a Pilates class that day then no music apart from whatever the teacher chooses and then come back and eat lunch - usually in silence but sometimes I’ll have Masters of my tracks or artists from my label to check out or a guest mix I’ve made to check. I then spend the rest of the day making music.

I guess you would say I’m still surrounded by music a lot but know the importance of having a couple of hours of silence in terms of giving my ears a rest. I also find it really hard to type, for example, unless I’m in complete silence. Back when I was younger, I didn’t seem to care but I guess we didn’t really have the same powerful headphones and speakers back then either.

My weekends are usually also based around either which club nights I’m playing or which ones my friends are playing and I’ll go to them and hang out with my friends there. I suppose, not a lot has really changed - I still listen to A LOT of music a day.

How would you describe your own relationship with your instrument, tools or equipment?

I use mainly hardware as opposed to working ‘all in the box.’ I find that much more interesting as there’s always more possibilities and I find learning how to use hardware although initially mildly frustrating, extremely rewarding.

I also feel like I’ve reached a set up with my hardware that I’m really happy with and still excited about and don’t feel like I need to add to it any time soon and I’m starting to get to know it really well, which can often take a while.

Where does the impulse to create something come from for you? What role do often-quoted sources of inspiration like dreams, other forms of art, personal relationships, politics etc play?

It comes naturally to me as it’s something I’ve always done but I would say it’s again that ‘rewarding’ feeling when a track really starts to come together and sound good is something I really love.

The inspiration for my tracks comes usually from somewhere subconscious that’s related to the things happening in my life, but sometimes politics and the mess the world is in also inspire the lyrics as well as the occasional piece of literature (my degree is actually in English Literature and I’ve always loved reading from a very young age).

The lyrics are kind of just the icing on the cake (and the thing I do last) once I’ve already created an entire mood of the track but that being said and although my tracks don’t have many lyrics, I like the ones they do have to be good ones.

Are you acting out parts of your personality in your music which you couldn’t or wouldn’t in your daily life? If so, which are these? What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music?

There’s a darkness that comes across in the music and not necessarily always in my personality. I’m quite humorous person (although in the past a lot of the lyrics have also incorporated my tongue in cheek kind of humour) in real life. Perhaps I’m subconsciously more of a dark person without realising it. I do always seem to be attracted to the darker things in life.

For example, I rarely listen to happy music as it’s simply not for me. I find it inauthentic as life is not that happy all of the time, in fact, life is often really busy, stressful and difficult. Or I would never watch a ‘feel good’ film for example as the film seems too basic and unrealistic for me. So maybe I am quite a dark person after all. Ha.

If music is a language, what can we communicate with it? How do you deal with misunderstandings?

I guess it’s about how it sounds overall and the way it makes people feel. It’s what dance music is all about.

Also, think of all of the times you’ve listened to a track with lyrics in another language or vocals that are so wet that you can’t make out the lyrics and still loved it?

It’s really about the feel of the track and that is universal.

Making music, in the beginning, is often playful and about discovery. How do you retain a sense of playfulness and how do you still draw surprises from tools, approaches and musical forms you may be very familiar with?

I’m always discovering new ways of doing things. That’s the beauty about being a producer, you literally never really stop learning as there’s always more to learn! I also like to use a few fun samples here and there to keep things interesting.

Weirdly I get the same kick out of learning languages too actually. Learning to use the machines and how to mix down tracks properly is a little like learning a whole new language.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you’ve had with these non-human-made sounds and how far would you describe them as “musical”?

I really enjoy the sound of the ocean / water in general and absolutely love swimming so I always feel happy whenever I hear the sound of the sea. I lived in London for a long time so I’m still excited whenever I get to be near the sea. Rotterdam is also a port so the water is too dirty and there are too many boats to swim here.

Hopefully there will be some Dutch sun this summer so I can go to the beach!

There seems to be an increasing trend to capture music in algorithms, and data. But already at the time of Plato, arithmetic, geometry, and music were considered closely connected. How do you see that connection yourself? What aspects of music do you feel can be captured through numbers, and which can not?

I guess how patterns come in 4 bar sections within dance music is somewhat related but other than that, not really.

Someone who knows nothing about maths can still have the ability to play super complicated drum rhythms for example and be an excellent drummer so I think it’s best to not over analyze it.  

How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

It gives my life quite a bit of structure as I always have things to do and goals to aim for. Before I was taking music making seriously, my life was a bit structureless. Strong structures and routines work very well for my mental health.

On that second question: to be honest, I believe that understanding music and art is something that’s already inside you or it's not and it’s not really something you can learn.

We can surround ourselves with sound every second of the day. The great pianist Glenn Gould even considered this the ultimate delight. How do you see that yourself and what importance does silence hold?

Hmmm, perhaps if there were more hours in the day I would try to enjoy silence more but there’s always something I need to listen to as a DJ / label owner / producer so it’s often not very possible.

I also work in music events in venue manager and artist handling roles so my life revolves around noise.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn’t or wouldn’t in more mundane tasks?

It’s entirely different. Firstly, on a funny note, I live in The Netherlands where everyone just drinks black filter coffee (in small cups) anyway and will tell you to go to Starbucks if you want a Flat White (Dutch directness at its finest).

But also even a barista job is just the same thing over and over and unless your music isn’t very interesting, you’re not creating the same thing over and over which makes every day different in its own way which is why it’s so thrilling for me.

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

For musicians to be paid more fairly and evenly.

I think if the tech giants who, as I mentioned earlier, are the type of people that don’t understand music/art should fully hand over the control to those that do by either staying away completely (which may not be an option as we need technology) or employing people within their companies that actually like and understand music to run that side of things.

I also mean this in terms of live performances and bookings, not only should music events all be ran by people that actually love music, there needs to be much less of a pay gap between ‘headline’ acts and ‘warm up’ acts.