The trailblazing electronic duo took a break from tour rehearsals to share insight on how they adapt their studio sound for the road, finding inspiration in early influences like Massive Attack and Prodigy, as well as some of the vintage gear they used on their new album.
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 Next Pro offers to elevate their sound, reach the right audience and catapult their careers. Sound Advice is now available in audio format on the SoundCloud Stories profile.
On this episode of Sound Advice, we're linking up with Liam Ivory and Chris Davids from British act Maribou State. The duo debuted in 2011 with EPs on Fat Cat and Southern Fried, plus remixes for the likes of Lana Del Rey, Kelis and Fatboy Slim. But Maribou State really stepped into their own on their 2015 album ‘Portraits,’ showcasing a sublime and melancholy mix of electronics and live instrumentation inspired by the history of modern British music: ‘80s soul-funk, 90s trip-hop and 2010s artists like James Blake, Mount Kimbie and Burial. The Maribou boys, – who, by the way, are named after the Irvine Welsh novel “Maribou Stork Nightmares” – are gearing up to release their third album called ‘Hallucinating Love’ on the Ninja Tune label in January 2025.
We caught up with Maribou State during rehearsal for a handful of huge live shows, and talked about adapting studio songs to the stage, their favorite gear and what inspires their music, plus how they’ve used SoundCloud over the years to connect with collaborators, upload demos, and archive music and mixes.
LISTEN TO “DANCE ON THE WORLD BY MARIBOU STATE, FROM THE FORTHCOMING ‘HALLUCINATING LOVE’
LISTEN TO THE AUDIO EPISODE OF SOUND ADVICE FEATURING MARIBOU STATE
THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE OF SOUND ADVICE
- Liam Ivory and Chris Davids checked in from their London studio as they are working on their live show for their upcoming tour dates. The duo talk through their approach to adapting to a live band setting with the right blend of studio and live arrangements.
- We get details about how the making of their upcoming album, ‘Hallucinating Love,’ which will be unveiled in January 2025, actually started during the pandemic lockdown. The duo had to adapt to not having the creative inspiration that traveling would naturally expose them to.
- How being back home in England brought them back to their roots in British music, pulling inspiration from Massive Attack and Portishead – as they isolated themselves from new music and the outside world to help overcome dark times and struggles, channeling it into their music.
- Maribou State shares insight into the creative flow when working with vocalists and songwriters like Holly Walker and how they’ve built trust as longtime collaborators.
- How the duo channeled ‘90s trip-hop through some vintage gear on new tracks like “Blackoak,” using a Roland 303, Korg Mono/Poly – allowing some of their earliest influences seep into this new record.
- How the Korg MS-20 is their favorite synth and how the Moog Matriarch became a staple of their studio set-up.
- How they push analog gear to make sounds and shape their sonic palate, often leaving fellow musicians puzzled on where some of the sounds came from.
- First connecting with Jack Sibley aka North Downs happened on SoundCloud, even though they lived twenty minutes away from each other at the time.
- How SoundCloud has been integral to their creative journey, both for sharing music and connecting with other artists.
- Maribou State reveals how they came up with the title of their third studio album, ‘Hallucinating Love.’
LINKS AND EXTRAS
Follow Maribou State’s journey on SoundCloud.
Press play on Maribou State’s 2023 album, ‘Blackoak.’
Hit play on Maribou State’s recently released single “Dance on the World.”
Go back to where it all began with Maribou State’s first track on SoundCloud, “Casanatra.”
Check out Maribou State’s 2018 album with Holly Walker and Khruangbin, 'Kingdoms In Colour.'
Listen to the Filter House 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 searching your own Likes on SoundCloud.
- Learn more about using private tracks on SoundCloud.
- Learn more about getting started with Insights on SoundCloud.
- Learn more about Advanced Insights, available to Artist Pro subscribers.
- Learn more about unlimited uploads, available with a Artist Pro subscription.
- Learn more unlocking access to unlimited distribution, available with Artist Pro.
To discover additional features a SoundCloud 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
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
