Name: Sara Chen aka Ikonika
Nationality: British
Occupation: Producer, musician, DJ, label founder at Hum + Buzz
Current release: Ikonika's Bubble Up EP is out November 25th 2022 via Hyperdub.
Recommendations: One of my fave synths is the Korg poly800 and thanks to Ace-mo he recently put me on a free soft version of it called Fury800. I think the emotive sounds draw me to this synth although some might say they’re cheap sounding - I think the synth is really quite unique and has a fragile character, almost like its giving it’s all before deteriorating.
This synth featured heavily on my 2017 album Distractions and I think the first time I used it was for a track called "Time/Speed" (which is my favourite track I’ve ever produced!)



If you enjoyed this interview with Ikonika and would like to know more about her work, visit her on Instagram, Facebook, twitter, and Soundcloud.



What was your first studio like?

A laptop, headphones and FL Studio. I made my first 2 release on that: "Please / Simulacrum" and "Millie / Direct".



How and for what reasons has your set-up evolved over the years and what are currently some of the most important pieces of gear for you?

I’m a sucker for 80s gear so I have a few hardware bits that I’ve collected over the years. My DX7, Poly61, Poly800 and 707 all have a special place in my heart and they all warm me.

Using classic gear with modern production has always been my favourite thing to do, but most of my stuff is in storage or borrowed to friends, as I downgraded since becoming a mum. I’m pretty much solely using plugins, Ableton and mics for my vocals. I use Massive X and Arturia soft synths religiously. One hits and drum samples from Splice. I’m also getting a soft spot for the Aston Origin microphone.

In terms or DAW, I’ve gone through FL, Logic and now I’m at home with Ableton. Out of all of them I find Ableton to be the easiest and quickest for my workflow.

Some see instruments and equipment as far less important than actual creativity, others feel they go hand in hand. What's your take on that?

This is a great question for me at the moment, cos I’ve been through it all. I love my hardware but with the challenges I face with space I’ve had to really be in the box.

Nothing stops my creativity and it doesn’t stop when I leave the studio. I’m constantly producing in my head, listening to demos, thinking of new ideas, so that when I do have time in front of my DAW I’m ready to go in and I know what needs to be done.

But don’t get me wrong, you can feel so inspired with new gear or instruments in front of you. I always loved looking for new things to try - the learning and palette building is never ending.

A studio can be as minimal as a laptop with headphones and as expansive as a multi-room recording facility. Which studio situation do you personally prefer – and why?

I just need a quiet space to work. I go between my home setup and a professional studio.

I’m lucky that loud volumes are not a problem at home but the studio I usually work in is very boujie and incredibly well designed - velvet sofas, room diffusers, blankets etc … It does help with the creativity. I always remember Ryan Leslie always wore a suit to studio to make him feel a way and using this studio is a treat for me and I am always more productive there.

Back in 2017 I worked in the RBMA studios in Paris for a week and made a 3 track EP. That was by far the most expansive studio I’ve worked in and had it all to myself. I remember feeling incredibly productive to have all that space and time as well all the equipment, like actually using a real life lexicon reverb! lol

One simple thing I absolutely need is a Midi keyboard. I’m not very good at using piano roll for melodies, I need to play it out and my body needs to feel it.

From traditional keyboards to microtonal ones, from re-configured instruments (like drums or guitars) to customised devices, what are your preferred controllers and interfaces? What role does the tactile element play in your production process?

I’m flexible to be honest. I feel I can use any keyboard controller.

I’ve been lucky to have been gifted midi controllers, and my favourites ones are the NI Komplete Kontrol S49 and the Novation Launchkey Mini. I have the NI one at home and the Novation for when I’m on the road. I don’t really need much from a controller but the NI allows me to do many simple things without staring at or touching my computer.

I used to use Maschine for my drums, but now that I don’t have the space its been retired and I just use drum racks in Ableton. I had a Motu Ultralite that lasted me a good 10 years before switching to a Focusrite 8i6, but I only chose the Focusrite cos I got it discounted!

In the light of picking your tools, how would you describe your views on topics like originality and innovation versus perfection and timelessness in music? Are you interested in a “music of the future” or “continuing a tradition”?

It’s a combination for me.

I feel it’s important for me to understand what came before, understand where genres come from and who where the real pioneers. There’s times where I feel there’s nothing left to explore or to be done, then somewhere out of nowhere I get hooked on a style or genre that makes me fall in love all over again.

This is why I’m so inspired by Amapiano and a lot of South African music - because I can see the path taken from genres like Bubblegum, Kwaito or Barcardi into a newer, futuristic club sound. It's the same for footwork for me - it’s all a continuation of classic house.

Most would regard recording tools like microphones and mixing desks as different in kind from instruments like keyboards, guitars, drums and samplers. Where do you stand on this?

I’ve been recording my own vocals recently and I’ve had to acquire how to be an engineer real quick! It’s made me take my mix downs much more seriously.

As someone who tends to be quite maximal in terms of filling up all the frequency space in my productions, It’s a completely different ball game for me. Carving out space, experimenting with different mics and the positioning of them, working out what chain works best for me … etc.

I’ve found myself relearning the basics of mixing again. Like, being very intentional about the eq-ing, compressing and taking time dialling in reverb and delay. Comparing in the box Ableton effects to things I’ve paid for and really trying to understand where the difference is and what different flavours they’re giving.

How would you describe the relationship between technology and creativity for your work? Using a recent piece as an example, how do you work with your production tools to achieve specific artistic results?

I think my No Feelings Required EP is a good example to use here.



I made this EP fairly quick in-between my baby’s naps in just over a week. The objective was to make a beat pack that was UK Drill and Grime inspired in its core but still had that Ikonika melancholy feel about it. I imagined it being used for RnB singers. I think Mariah Carey would of been sick on it to be quite honest.

All the songs are iterations. I stuck to same template and sounds so that I was able to bang out a track real quick, maybe introducing 1 or 2 new synth sounds so they didn’t sound too much like carbon copies. I think using the same template allowed the EP to have a consistent mood throughout.

Within a digital working environment, it is possible to compile huge archives of ideas for later use. Tell me a bit about your strategies of building such an archive and how you put these ideas and sketches to use.

Organisation is key for me, but I actually lost a a lot of stuff recently cos my external hard drive corrupted before I had time to back it up (I’m still tender about it).

I would save all my synths and bounce all the stems of all my songs in case I need to recycle, remix or mutate. All my samples are in folders and are in drums racks. I generally keep it to the following: percs, hats / shakers, snares / claps, kicks, fx / one hits / ikonika idents. I use one template with all these loaded up ready to use as well as fave synths and a couple of empty audio and midi tracks.

If I find myself uninspired for any reason (usually travelling) but still wanna stare at Ableton I’ll tweak my template, add or tighten sounds or audition new sounds to try.

Production tools can already suggest compositional ideas on their own. How much of your music is based on concepts and ideas you had before entering the studio, how much of it is triggered by equipment, software and apps?

I do a lot of automatic writing, but my starting point is always programming shakers or hi hats first, any metronome sound just jars me and it’s quite possibly the worst sound in the world for me.

I always write melodies first and maybe some light percussion. Drums always come last for me. I have a lot of soft synths so it's about running through the presets until something magnetises with me, sounds that get in my feels and get me in a moment, inspire me to then play around with scales and layering simple patterns of the same sound until I’ve exhausted the space.

Have there been technologies which have profoundly changed or even questioned the way you make music?

Just switching to Ableton has completely changed the way I start tunes and also arrange them. It's just so intuitive, even if I’m using it in it’s most simple form.

I love editing down audio, really being clinical and zooming right in - seeing all the dust in-between. I can spend hours just sculpting and refining sounds. This was great for my Poly61 which doesn’t have midi, just me recording bits in then shaping and warping in ableton.

To some, the advent of AI and 'intelligent' composing tools offers potential for machines to contribute to the creative process. Do you feel as though technology can develop a form of creativity itself? Is there possibly a sense of co-authorship between yourself and your tools?

I dunno, I’m still a bit old school I think. I was recently thinking how great it would be for me start recording live percussions and create a new kit / palette.

I feel I don’t wanna rely on stuff from other people or AI. I want my own samples I’ve created from scratch. I think the first step for me is to buy a shaker and some small hand drums.