Studio Essentials: Andres Campo

Andres Campo continues to be one of Spain’s top techno exports, having released on Second State, Intec, Suara and Elrow and played clubs like London’s fabric and Amnesia Ibiza.

Campo also runs EI8HT, a label he owns alongside British veteran Eats Everything that has put out music from Truncate, Drumcomplex, Avision and RISC.

The most recent outing from himself finds Andres bring his Complicated EP to Dense & Pika’s Kneaded Pains label, which also includes a remix from Skream.

We went behind the scenes to take a look inside his toolkit, where we get his thoughts on his DAW of choice, the different sequencers he uses, his collection of Roland gear and more.

Universal Audio Interface

I have been using UAD hardware and software for about 10 years. The hardware is solid as a rock, and I love the plugins, especially the classic old hardware unit imitations, they sound really good. I am a super fan of their compressors and reverbs too. 100% recommended (And no, they don’t give me anything for free) haha.

Ableton Live

This is the core of my studio. I’ve used tons of DAWs – Reason, FL Studio and Cubase for a long time, but for the last seven years (more or less) Ableton Live is my No.1 choice. It’s really simple, ideas flow quickly and it’s very stable.

I do not want to enter into a ‘sound war’ but I think the most important part of sound is your ears, and the effect of each DAW is different for everyone. So many DAWs sound amazing nowadays. I also love the MAX effects, especially the midi ones – there some crazy sounds out there!

Roland Stuff

I am a huge fan of Roland, and my studio is a bit on the tiny side, so new boutique machines are perfect for me. I own a Roland TR8 and it’s really fun, also some synths, an SH-01a which is perfect for crazy techno sounds and powerful leads. My TB03 – which is just totally aaacciiidddd! Then the SE-02 which sounds moog-y, and is also very tweakable.

Elektron Digitakt

I am also a big fan of Elektron. I owned a Rytm a long time ago, and now I use a Digitakt which is smaller, but I love the sample possibilities that this crazy badass thing can offer. Their sequencer is really complex and great, when I need inspiration this machine does the job. I also have an Analog Heat – I use a lot of saturation and distortion and this machine I find is best for it. It sounds warm but can also be explosive and devastating on some synths and drums!

Native Instruments Maschine

I am still using an old one, the screen is broken, but the pads are still working! I love the easy use of this, especially when I need to find a groove element, hihats, shakers, sfx and buzzers etc. The library of sounds is perfect, and I find it easy to find the right sound and ‘draw’ a phase on its pads and sequencer.

A Window

Haha, yes I am OK. I am really talking about the window, as in a glass window to the outside world. Everyone works in these small, dark spaces, and I find that unhealthy. I come from a design background and it’s so important to feel the fresh air and see the light to draw inspiration and creativity. Of course, you can draw the curtain when needed, but I like to enjoy the sun and fresh air, as it puts you in a good mood.

Andres Campo’s Complicated EP is out now on Kneaded Pains.