Melbourne hip hop artist and producer Plutonic Lab is about to release his first solo album in 11 years. ʻDeep Above The Noiseʼ is set to ʻtranscend genresʼ with a futuristic, urban swagger.
Leigh Ryan, better known by his stage name Plutonic Lab, certainly hasnʼt been slacking off in the decade since his acclaimed previous release, ʻCodes Over Coloursʼ.
Between drumming on tour with Hilltop Hoods, producing for countless international hip hop acts and being nominated for numerous music awards, itʼs truly a wonder how Leighʼs had time to consider a new album, let alone write and record one. “Iʼve been chipping away at it for a while, but the right tracks came together, and Iʼve had a bit of time to think about how I wanted it to sound, and what kind of people I wanted to work with,” he says.
“I really started working on it last August, and I finished it late February... It all came together pretty quickly. I had a lot of tracks and a lot of sketches and ideas, and it was just about compiling the right ones and fleshing them out.” As his fourth record, ʻDeep Above The Noiseʼ opened an opportunity for Plutonic Lab, along with his record label Wax Museum Records, to expand the thriving producerʼs horizons.
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With talented friends around the world, Leigh brought in a number of international artists especially for the LP including Guilty Simpson, Miles Bonny, Coma-Chi and Notes To Self, as well as Melbourneʼs Momo. Each feature artist brings an individual touch to Plutonicʼs instrumental-focused tracks, Leigh says. “I let people do their interpretation of the song, and if I felt like it wasn't really going in a direction that I could represent, or it wasn't really my thing, I would say something.
“[Though] usually I'm working with them because I like their music and their tastes anyway, and I usually just let them do their thing.”
Aside from spending time in Japan with Coma-Chi and shuffling tracks across the Pacific with Canadian group Notes To Self, Leigh produced most of ʻDeep Above The Noiseʼ on his own. “Other records Iʼve done, Iʼve had people come in and play stuff, but most of this I just did myself,” Leigh explains.
“It just seems like a faster way of doing it; sometimes the more people you have involved in something, it can really slow it down... especially if you're working with people from the other side of the world.”
After a lengthy, successful career in hip hop production, Leigh is often described as not just a producer but a composer. And a decade on from his previous record, Leigh continues to better himself, describing ʻDeep Above The Noiseʼ as an “upgraded sound”. “It still sounds like me, in terms of – without being too corny – having the same emotive balance that some of my other instrumental work has, but sonically and stylistically itʼs quite different.”
The art of continual, musical evolution is not an easy feat, but is something heʼs learnt from some of his favourite producers including Odyssey and Black Milk. “I like that they keep upgrading [their music], but itʼs still them, which is what I try to do as well; constantly do [sic] new things but not deviate from yourself.”
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Our first taste of Plutonicʼs new sound came with the music video for ʻThe Cribʼ featuring Detroit rapper Guilty Simpson. The song, and the accompanying "effortlessly cool" video, is a real standout on the album. “I think [ʻThe Cribʼ] is one of the more different songs on the record. It has elements of what the rest of the record sounds like, in terms of drums and little bit of atmosphere, but itʼs definitely more on the side of a rap track.
“It would be nice, in a perfect world, to pick an instrumental song, but when I do instrumental music I don't really make it hook heavy. I like them to sprawl a little bit, so I don't think that my instrumental stuff really lends itself to single-worthy songs.”
As for some live dates, Plutonic fans will have to wait a little longer. “Because I have some time away from drumming, it would be good to get back into [touring]. Iʼve had some interest from some people in the industry, whether it be friends or sound guys or AV people to help me with it.”
Nonetheless, it seems Leigh is dreaming big for the potential tour. “Iʼd love to do something thatʼs more of a show, than a bare-bones performance. Iʼd like to do something that definitely incorporates some video and lighting to make it more of a performance in that way. I definitely think Iʼm not going to drum, I get enough of that already,” he laughs.
'Deep Above The Noise' is released 17 June.
