Andy Hunter

You may not recognise DJ and recording artist Andy Hunter's name but if you've played a computer game recently, seen trailers for 'The Matrix Reloaded' or watched any number of TV shows, then his work will be instantly familiar.

Produced with Robbie Bronniman, 'Colour' is Hunter’s second full length studio album and maintains his signature ambient sound; a huge, expansive mix of hard-edged pumping techno work-outs ('System Error', 'Out of Control'), classy electronic ballads ('Smile', 'Shine’)and slinky electronic dub ('Miracle').

Equally dramatic and intimate, Hunter's music is as much at home in a heaving club, a darkened picture house, an exotic beach or a candle-lit lounge.

Although a thoroughly modern sounding record, it also reflects Hunter's musical grounding in the eighties. The gently insistent 'Technicolour' and the sweetly melancholic 'Stars' hark back to the Balearic bliss of The Beloved's sophisticated electro-pop, while the grandiose synth blasts on the storming opener 'Sound Pollution' are reminiscent of Vangelis' 'Bladerunner' soundtrack.

"I didn't set out to make an Eighties record, although I grew up then and a lot of my formative influences were from that time," he explains. "In the current climate I think that those sounds are influencing a lot of music and fashion as well. Music software companies are also making and reissuing some of the old 80's classic synths, so you get to hear and fall in love with those classic sounds (such as Bladerunner) all over again."

As with his debut album, 'Exodus', Hunter wanted to use a number of guest vocalists to express his ideas, which led to a call to former Ultravox frontman Midge Ure.

"For the track ‘Smile’ we needed a new direction with it and a voice with a lot of character," says Hunter. "Robbie had already worked with Midge a number of times before and suggested that we try and get him. He agreed to do it, wrote the chorus for us and it worked really well. It was great to work with someone like Midge with so much history and experience. He seems a busy man and it was hard to pin him down for two days to do it!"

While the lyrical content of 'Exodus' centred around spiritual themes, Hunter’s new album is also wrapped around a concept, with each track signifying a specific colour.

"I thought it would be great to write pieces of music that are inspired by colours and that each song would reflect some essence of that initial idea," he says.

Hunter is based in Mumbles in South Wales, and he began to work out ideas for the album whilst walking along the Gower peninsula with its magnificent scenery and extraordinary light.

"I just love this place," he adds. "Often I go out and walk around the cliffs and sing or say ideas into my phone for when I got back to the studio. The track 'Stars' was inspired by the view from my house."

The album also features vocals from Mark Underdown of Medallist (newly signed to Gut) on ‘Stars’, D'Morgan ('Technicolour' and 'Miracle'), Shaz Sparks (‘Shine’ ), Cathy Burton ('Fade') and Hunter himself. Meanwhile, the more downbeat 'Sapphire' features a string arrangement by Chris Elliott, who has worked on a number of film scores including 'Moulin Rouge', as well as artists as varied as Amy Winehouse, Delerium, Paul Hartnoll and Mark Ronson.

As well as a recording artist, Hunter is highly in demand as a DJ, having played the biggest clubs in the US with Tiesto and toured extensively in his own right, which has given him a chance to road test and fine-tune 'Colour' to audiences as far afield as Argentina, Guatemala and a surfers' paradise in South Africa. In the last year he has also brought his hugely energetic DJ sets to the UK, Holland, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, USA, Canada, Egypt, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

The cinematic nature of his work has led him to follow the likes of fellow DJ’s such as Tiesto and BT into the world of TV and film.

"When I first started writing and producing my music I never really thought about film and scoring, but I soon realised that my sound lends itself well to that. I have just been asked, with Robbie Bronnimann, to score a documentary called 'Expelled', which should be out next February. We are currently working hard at it as it needs to be done in five weeks. Normally my albums take over a year!"

As for which colour relates to each song? Well, you'll just have to work it out for yourself.

Formerly a sound engineer for indie giants Suede and The Wonder Stuff, Hunter became heavily involved in the burgeoning Bristol drum'n'bass scene during the mid-90’s with his band Trip. In 2002, he released his first solo techno album 'Exodus' , which included a track entitled 'Go' that has been used extensively in TV and film trailers and shows. He followed it with a mini-album entitled ‘Life’ in 2005.

Hunter's work is used extensively in film and TV, with tracks from ‘Exodus’ having been heard in 'The Matrix Reloaded' (trailer), ‘Tomb Raider 2’ (trailer), 'Sky High' (trailer), 'National Treasure' (trailer) and 'The Italian Job', while his music has also appeared in the hit TV shows 'Alias’, 'Grays Anatomy' and 'Ugly Betty’.

He has also soundtracked video games including SSX 3, Enter The Matrix, Black Hawk Down, Lumines Mobile and Need For Speed Underground , and most recently Burnout Revenge and Forza Motorsport 2.

Links

The Official Andy Hunter Website
Andy Hunter Myspace page