Yuuki Matthews

CLAWS (YUUKI REMIX)

I’m happy to share the next remix from the WE ARE RISING: RE-IMAGINED project I’ve been cooking, with help from friends (and YOU, too).

This one comes from Yuuki Matthews of Crystal Skulls, and more recently The Shins,* who used little more than an SK-1 (my very first synth!!!) to make it happen. I talk to Yuuki about transforming Claws into a breezy lo-fi jam, playing SNL, and drinking shots with Jonah Hill…

The Shins on SNL last weekend

SL: You successfully managed to make Claws, originally a murky and agonized track, into a sun-glinted, carefree dance jam. I really dig this because I sometimes like to rock a 180 with my live arrangements. Any particular reason you did this?

I knew I wanted to re-harmonize the song in some way because I enjoy hearing that with remixes, but I wasn’t sure what that would sound like initially. I also wanted the pulse of my remix to be peppier since you established the darker, down tempo version already. I started by creating a beat. Once that was in place these happy chords seemed to work when I brought your vocals up. I had to cut your vocal in a couple spots to make the notes fit with my new chords. :)

SL: For the geeks, tell me something about how you made the track (Personally I dig how you took a fragment of the hi-hat double-sticking and looped it). What synths? Drum machine?

I really love that hi-hat stuff too! I knew that was an element that I would keep right away in addition to your vocal. I just created a loop of that in Pro Tools. All of the other sounds were created with an SK-1. This has been my favorite instrument for a long time now and I keep thinking I’ll get away from it one day but it keeps working for me. The sort of pad sound is my voice into the SK-1 into an old Coral amp (precursor to Silvertone) I stuck in my bathroom. The lead is another version of my voice into the SK-1, then through a Maxon delay that I have that I like a lot, into that same amp in the bathroom. The bass sound is bass guitar into SK-1 direct. Everything except for the drums, which is a loop I made with FUNK BOX for iPhone into the SK-1, was performed live. I don’t like messing with programming too much. My wife and I did like 4 tracks of us clapping together in our living room. That was really fun. Oh, and I used cassette tape for some mix down stuff too.

SL: SNL after-party. Go.

I was really excited to tell you some juicy stories about the after-party but it wasn’t as interesting to me as actually being at SNL all day. Doing tequila shots with Jonah Hill before the show started. Talking with Bill Hader dressed as Stefon. Seeing Fred Armisen get into a monkey suit. Meeting Tom Hanks! Knowing that Steven Spielberg and Martin Short were in the audience. And most importantly getting to perform on one of the biggest stages we have with some of my best friends. I’ll never forget it.

* The Shins’ new album is streaming in advance of its release, starting today on iTunes!

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