Name: Felix Müller aka The Offline
Nationality: German
Occupation: Producer, photographer
Current release: The Offline's new album La grande évasion is out via DeepMatter.
Recommendation for Hamburg, Germany: The Port of Hamburg would be the most obvious choice. If you like photography, check out the ‘House of Photography’ in the Deichtorhallen.
Topic I am passionate about but rarely get to talk about: Besides music, I love skateboarding, which is a very important part of my life.

If you enjoyed this The Offline interview and would like to stay up to date with his music, visit him on Instagram, Soundcloud, and bandcamp. 



The path to becoming a producer is a process - but from many interviews, I am under the impression that there are nonetheless one or a few defining moments. If this was the case for you – what were they and why were they so incisive?

I believe that even after you call yourself a producer, the journey never ends, because everything keeps changing, both technically and musically. But that's also what makes this job so appealing.

I also completely agree with you - there are special moments and events that shape you. I think my most important moment was during my school days. We had a project week where we had the opportunity to make music with a MIDI keyboard and a computer.

From then on, I knew that I wanted to do this as a career.
 
Tell me about one or two of your early pieces that you're still proud of (or satisfied with) in terms of production – and why you're content with them.
 
I'm still very happy with my first production for ‘The Offline’, “Plage Des Casernes,” which is also the first song I wrote for the project.



In a way, this song is the blueprint for everything that came after and defines the Offline universe very well.

In how far, would you say, was your evolution as an artist connected to the evolution of your music set-up and studio? Were there shared stepping stones?
 
The development of The Offline's sound definitely has to do with the audio gear I use.

Major milestones were the purchase of the Mellotron M4000D, the Fender Jaguar guitar and, even more importantly, flatwound strings.

Also, the integration of the right preamps, so that the recording path already defines a sound.

There are artists who can realise their ideas best with a traditional – or modified – piano interface, others with a keyboard and a mouse, yet others by turning knobs or touching screens. What's your preferred and most intuitive/natural way of making music and why?

For me, the way to implement an idea is either on the guitar or piano, or on the computer.

So I would say that I don't have a preferred way.  Any way to capture an idea is valid.

Tell me about the space of your current studio/workplace and how you've set it up to optimise creativity.

In my opinion, it's very important to be able to capture ideas quickly and to be able to switch between instruments without having to worry too much about signal flow.

This means that every instrument is within reach and immediately ready to use for laying down ideas, so I can record basses and guitars, also Rhodes, Hammond M1, Mellotron, and a few synths through my Neve or Chandler Preamp if needed.

From the earliest sketches to the finished piece, tell me about the production process for La grande évasion, please.
 
La grande évasion is my second full-length album and the workflow was the same as for the other productions.

I usually start with an idea that I try to capture on the computer as quickly as possible. Over the years, I've found that a time window of 4 to 5 hours is totally sufficient. After that, it often doesn't get any better and you get bogged down in details that aren't necessarily good for the song idea. I usually collect ideas over a period of time, then listen to them again with fresh ears after a while and see which songs have potential, and which don't.

The next step would be to record drums for the selected demos, followed by bass, guitar and finally brass and keys. And other instruments featured in the demo. For all of these things, it's really important to have an idea as clear as possible of the sound you want in advance so that the musicians can prepare accordingly.

Once everything has been recorded, I switch from Cubase to Luna and start mixing. I mix hybrid, in the box, and with outboard equipment through my SSL X-Desk.

Late producer SOPHIE said: “You have the possibility with electronic music to generate any texture, and any sound. So why would any musician want to limit themselves?” What's your take on that?

I think that, on the one hand, it's great to have many possibilities, because you can explore a lot of things. On the other hand, however, it's also a curse, because it's much more difficult to generate a unique identity through sound, if you have an infinite number of sound sources.

And limitations are great for creating something with only the given possibilities. In my opinion, it boosts creativity, since you are forced by the limitation to find a new approach for your idea.

Tell me about your aesthetic preferences for picking effects like reverb, delay, compression, chorus etc … - what was the role of these effects in the production of your current release?
 
My aesthetic preferences are strongly influenced by music from the 60s and 70s, mostly jazz, funk and soundtrack records. So ultimately, the gear that the engineers used back then is the ideal target for achieving the right sound.

I wish I had the equipment and recording studios from that era available. Since that would completely exceed my budget, I try to get the best possible results within my means.

I have a template in the box for mixing with everything I need, most of the plug-ins being from Universal Audio (also a reason why I use LUNA). Outboard wise, I love my echofix ef-x2 and I use it a lot to add reverb or delay to individual instruments. I also use it to create sound textures with feedback and various delay automations.

And I also like to print stems through preamps or reamp signals.
    
Producers work with sound in a very direct way for very long stretches of time. What are some of its qualities that you appreciate now more than before, and how do you try to bring these to the fore in your work?
 
Working is much more practical and faster these days. You can quickly jump from song to song without having to do a total recall at the console. And the quality of the plug-ins has also improved significantly.

People's listening habits are also constantly changing, and nowadays things are mixed differently than they used to be. That’s an important aspect of my work: conveying a sense of nostalgia while at the same time remaining relevant in today's world of production and mixing.

The current production process allows for fast and infinite variations. Can you tell me about how you deal with this potential for the infinite and what ultimately decides on how many iterations to create and which version to release?
 
I guess the most important thing is deadlines, and just as importantly, an idea of how the end product should sound.

During the creative process, I try to commit to things as best I can, so that at the end of the process, only questions of taste remain to be clarified.

Tell me about the role collaboration played in your recent productions – and how you see the potential for machines as collaborators compared to humans.
 
Working with other people is essential in my productions.

Every musician and every engineer contributes their part to create something together that would not be possible alone. I am very happy to be able to work with so many great people who contribute greatly to the creation of the music.

Depending on what you are doing, machines can also help to a certain extent to support you in your creative process. But I am convinced that this cannot replace interpersonal exchange.

Production, as opposed to live performance, can be a lonely process and feedback from listeners isn't always tangible. What is it about it that gives you satisfaction?
 
I love the process of completely immersing myself in music.

It sometimes feels a bit like playing with Lego as a child. Putting different building blocks together and creating something new, simply from a vision.

We can watch videos on production, take producer courses, and exchange deep insights on gear forums. Amidst these options to improve one's chops/skills, how do you keep things playful?
 
I think it's fantastic that such opportunities are open to everyone nowadays. In the past, you had to be an intern at a big studio and spend six months making coffee before you might get the chance to be involved in a production.

Nowadays, you can watch Mix With The Masters to see how Al Schmitt's recording process worked and then immediately afterwards see how Jack Antonoff produced a song by Lana del Rey.

It's more fun than ever because you can try out so many different approaches and, at the end of the day, find out what works best for you.

AI is already capable of making something most people would recognise as music. I am curious, though, and will keep this question somewhat broad on purpose: What do you think that means?   
 
I find it extremely problematic that AI songs are given a platform without being labelled accordingly. The existence of these songs and artists is part of technological change, but the question I ask myself is rather how we as humans deal with it.

The proceedings brought by GEMA against the US AI provider OpenAI play a very important role in this context. The Munich Regional Court issued a very clear ruling on this matter this year: OpenAI is infringing applicable copyright law with the training and operation of ChatGPT.

This precedent establishes a basis for protecting and clarifying the rights of authors: Operators of AI tools such as ChatGPT must also comply with copyright law. This is about securing the livelihoods of music creators.

Creativity can reach many different corners of our lives. Do you personally feel as though producing 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?  
 
Creativity exists in all areas of life, be it coffee, film, skateboarding, even the funky formatting of an Excel spreadsheet.

In my opinion, music plays a special role in this regard, as it can touch people on a different level. Music is a universal language, it conveys emotions, connects people, provides a cultural anchor, and shapes identity.