"Djrum emotionally discusses the impact of a devastating technological wreck on his 2025 electronic masterpiece"
UK producer Djrum - real name Felix Manuel - is a buzzworthy name in the underground dance music world. His jaw-dropping DJ sets, where he manipulates techno, jungle, and hip-hop across three turntables, are the kind of mind-blowing experiences you'd rush home to share with your friends.
Manuel's production work is equally impressive. With releases on labels like R&S and Fabric offshoot Houndstooth, he's built an impressive catalog of tracks that mash up jungle, glitch, dubstep, and acoustic jazz, neo-classical piano, and old school rave.
His latest album, Under Tangled Silence, might just be his best work yet. The record darts between delicate piano tracks and skittering IDM, creating a cohesive whole that feels like a culmination of everything Manuel has experimented with in his career.
The album almost didn't happen. Many of the original ideas for the album were created over five years ago, before the release of Manuel's previous album, Portrait With Firewood. Just when the project was almost complete, a major computer failure threatened to set Manuel back nearly to square one.
He describes the moment: "I had reached a point in 2020 where I felt like the album was almost finished. Then, I had a really major computer failure. It was just a power surge. It basically fried my laptop." Despite attempts to retrieve the lost work, most of it was irrecoverable.
The loss of so much work left Manuel feeling down and uninspired. However, not every idea from the original project was lost forever. "Some things were just lost altogether," he explains, "but I was able to recreate or at least reuse many of the ideas to create something new and probably better."
These salvaged ideas appear throughout Under Tangled Silence, often distorted and glitchy. The theme of technological imperfections and their emotional impact on us runs throughout the album. As Manuel puts it, "there's a relationship between us and our machines that is quite a human one, actually. It's quite fragile and emotional."
The prominence of piano on the album is another distinct element. The piano provides a backbone to the record, with many tracks starting as piano sketches. This newfound emphasis on his piano abilities was initially a source of insecurity for Manuel. "I'm not at the level of my piano heroes," he admits, "but when I add some electronic elements, that helps me feel like I am contributing something meaningful."
In the studio, Manuel primarily uses Ableton, with additional plugins from iZotope and FabFilter. He likes to keep his setup minimal, focusing on mastering each instrument before moving on to the next one. Only a few instruments make it onto his records – Massive, Arturia Pigments, Serum, and his Novation Peak hardware synthesizer.
Manuel's cello collaborator, Zosia, provides many of the album's more organic textures. Some unedited cello lines appear throughout the record, while others are manipulated and transformed into more abstract shapes. Djrum is known for his balance between acoustic and electronic textures, as well as his blending of historical dance music references with contemporary sounds.
Aside from his recorded output, Djrum's unique DJ sets have set him apart from other UK electronic music artists. His style involves playing all-vinyl sets mixed across three turntables in a rough, abrupt manner. Although there's pressure to switch to digital, Djrum remains committed to vinyl, viewing it as an essential part of his identity.
In the video interview, Djrum delves deeper into the creative process behind Under Tangled Silence and his evolving relationship between DJing and production. Under Tangled Silence is out now via Houndstooth.
[1] MusicTech, "DJRUM on Under Tangled Silence - MusicTech Magazine[2] Mixmag, "DJRUM: Making of Frekm Pt. 2[3] Ant hem, "DJRUM[4] The Line of Best Fit, "Interview: DJRUM[5] Mixmag, "Meet the sounds of UK underground talent DJRUM
Technology plays a significant role in Manuel's music production, with Ableton, iZotope, FabFilter, Massive, Arturia Pigments, Serum, and his Novation Peak synthetic instrument being essential tools in his setup. Yet, the emotional impact of technological imperfections, as demonstrated in the distorted and glitchy sounds on his latest album, Under Tangled Silence, showcases the human element of our relationship with machines.
Manuel's exploration of entertainment extends beyond his music, with his unique DJ sets involving all-vinyl mixes across three turntables, showcasing his commitment to the traditional technique despite the growing trend towards digital mediums. This balance between acoustic and electronic textures, as well as his blending of historical dance music references with contemporary sounds, sets him apart from other UK electronic music artists.
