When people describe the artist Stephen Coates, they would say, that he is multifaceted music composer, producer – but that is just one of the his aspect which we could gain.Also known as the author of “X-Ray Audio project” these days, in some moments he tells us the checkered stories of vinyl type discs which has partial images of skeletons, called ‘Bones’ or ‘Ribs‘ in the Cold War years of the Soviet Union. As the pop-art-pop troubadours, he performs as The Real Tuesday Weld, who have been pioneered a style of combining old jazz sounds and electronics, called ‘Antique Beat’ – influencing the current movements of electro-swing producers.

Facts

1. Every X-Ray record ever made looks and sounds different than all the rest – each is an edition of one

2.At our X-Ray audio event in london in april, we recorded a performance by Marc Almond onto one of his own X-Rays from a serious motorbike accident

3.You can record onto all sorts of surfaces. Aleks has a recording made on a road sign.

Questions

1. What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
Bone, dreams, blood, love

2. How and when did you get into making music?
At Art school – I made a sound bed for a project. The project was terrible but I got a record deal out of it.

3. What are 5 of your favourite albums of all time?
Most of the music I love was made in a time before there were albums, but I would say
“Oedipus Schmeodepus” – Barry Adamson
The soundtracks of “Angel Heart”
The soundtracks of “La Dolce Vita”
“Hats” -The Blue Nile

4. What do you associate with Berlin?
David Bowie

5. What’s your favourite place in your town?
Clerkenwell in London

6. If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
Be a psychotherapist

7. What was the last record/music you bought?
A Mahalia Jackson compilation

8. Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Hildegard Knef (oops, it is too late)

9. What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
Tate Modern London, playing a live score to the surrealist film „Dreams That Money Can Buy“.

10. How important is technology to your creative process?
Totally, I never would have made music without a sampler.

11. Do you have siblings and how do they feel about your career/art?
Yes, three: puzzled, proud, envious.

Stephan Coates, as X-Ray Audio going to play in KRAKE festival from 27th to 31th July, at various locations in Berlin.
Check out more details here .

Our favourite:

X-Ray Audio: The Documentary