Fun Fact : My girlfriend at the time worked at PWL as an intern/receptionist, she is the woman speaking in Spanish on the "It's a Sin (Miami mix)" remix.
One of the best interviews for people who genuinely love 80's and 90's music. Not only that but the respect you gave them with allowing them to actually speak indepth and not interrupt them - thank you. They created some of the most important sound that influenced me in my own music (Along with Jean-Michel Jarre and Vince Clarke).
So cool! I've met Phil Harding, back in 2009 or 2010 in a Masterclass at the Thames Valley University (didn't study there, went there just to attend the masterclass and to know the man in person). Still have his book, signed and all (I think it's the previous edition). Regardless to say it was a wonderful Masterclass.
Within the first five minutes of this interview, for some reason I'm suddenly feeling compelled to install a low sloped ceiling in my studio. Must be the secret to great sounding mixes. ;)
This was fantastic. Not seen Ian Curnow since I worked with him and Phil in the early 90s (Primax and The Power Syndicate). Great to see both of them logether again and both looking so well. They are smashing guys and this was a great interview. What stood out most to me was the interviewer: that rare thing on RUclips - someone really knowledgeable who’d done his research letting his interviewees speak and not interrupting them just to try and show off. Great work! Well done and thank you!
Many thanks for saying! Talking with two such legends is an honour and it's really not much for me to do, but to let them talk and sit back and enjoy. ;-)
Great work with this, Espen. Well done and thank you. Highly recommended viewing and listening, everyone. Phil and Ian on top form, as ever, throughout. 🙏👍💯
Thanks for that! In 88 i was called Ian by some of my friends, because they said i was his lookalike in my Studio with the same glasses and 19" Rack 😉 Needless to say they expected me to sound like SAW!
This was fantastic to hear them talk about the PWL days. Also good to hear them answer some questions people have waited a long for. Also, I absolutely love Monty Python! I grew up watching the films and the Flying Circus all the time as a kid. I always loved their production methods.
Kudos to you, Espen, for getting these two legends together for such a wonderful interview. Just to see ‘produced by’ or ‘remix and additional production by’ ‘Phil Harding and Ian Curnow’ on a record, was so exciting back in the day. You just knew you were guaranteed a thrilling mix. Some of their East 17 remixes were just stunning.
Great interview! I LOVE these two guys. I have an autographed copy of Phil's book. I remember hearing the club mixes back in the day and would hear the 'PWL' sound and would always see Phil or Ian on the label. Thank you for so many great memories. One of may fav mixes by Phil is the extended club mix for PSB 'Always on my mind' -- the import vinyl version. 😎
I really enjoyed this interview! 1:10:28 I didn't expect to get a morsel of info from Ian for the recording of one of my favourite Japanese musicians Hyde in there too as a nice bonus :) This will have been the Roentgen album released in 2002, Hyde's first solo release aside from his band (L'Arc~en~Ciel).. it still remains unique in his discography.. always reminded me of a kind of David Sylvian sound on that album. Footage in the studio of the recording process was taken and you can see it in the "A Drop of Colour" bonus video ("A drop of colour-Hyde (in London)" on youtube).. including the mic used
Very interesting Espen, Phil & Ian for this extended interview over my favourite era!!! 😍 Would love you to pursue more of these Espen, if you are up for it again? (sure a lot of organisation & production) 😎👍🎹🎶🍻
omg how good is this, great job Espen getting these guys on !! Edit : oh wow, i gotta see someone recreate the synth patch they used to emulate the electric guitar
This was a fantastic interview, Espen, and just as others have mentioned, thank you for just letting them talk, with the occasional intelligent question from you thrown in. These guys are some of the lesser sung heroes of 80s pop, and important cultural figures (though I'm guessing most who danced to the music then didn't know who was behind it, other than SAW themselves).
Extraordinary Interview. Thank You. It's a remarkable pleasure to watch Three Masters full of passion and experience in one movie. It's a very valuable lesson how to create and manage successful projects and teams not only in music industry. I'm intrigued which Music Legends will be on next Live.
Entertaining and informative! I feel a bit psychic after mentioning a Fairlight and asking you about legendary engineer/producers on your live stream a day before! The Talk Talk "Eddie" guitar was a revelation!
Thanks very much for this Espen. As a long-time fan of their work, that was very enjoyable and informative. Interesting hearing them talk about ‘Never gonna give you up’. If you're interested, I recently did a recreation of that record on my channel, using the Fairlight III, (with reference to a previous interview that Ian Curnow did with the BBC). Interestingly, in addition to the strings and brass, the guitar sounds are also from the Fairlight (again, factory library sounds), rather than being played by MA. As somewhat of a Fairlight aficionado, the PWL Series III was the only non-cream coloured one to come out of the factory. It was a charcoal-grey and had the screen printing in white. I remember reading that the guys in the factory had to cover it in plastic throughout the assembly / testing process to stop it getting damaged and even then, it had touch-up marks. It resurfaced recently, albeit the qwerty keyboard and monitor seem to have got lost along the way, which is a shame. I would love to have explored what sound sources they used for additional parts from the Always on My Mind mix. Like you, I played that record a lot back in the day. The two baselines are clearly DX7 but I’m not sure what they used for the lead sound (I’m assuming it’s from the MKS-80s). If I get time, I’d like to do a recreation of that too.
Very nice video. I watched it all...looking forward to the next producer a.o. interview. I was surprised about Ian Curnow mentioned he prefered the Jupiter 8 sound over the more modern synthesizers at that time.
I have not understood well the explanation at 53:35 about how to generate that perfect electric guitar sound using 2 oscillators on a synth (and a guitar distorter of course). Please could someone explain me how to set exactly the 2 oscillators? Ian Curnow is really a great keyboard artist!
Stock Aitken Waterman´s best mixers who become their own legends. I got this feeling they didn´t know how good they are. ...Hurding / Curnow become a brand and a sign of an incredible phat sound. To me their biggest, greatest and most unbelievable remix ever ist: we don't talk anymore / Cliff Richard 1990 ruclips.net/video/r5tLHjG0vy4/видео.html That was a PWL - Hurding/Curnow Sound Triumph. I remember, when I´ve heard that on the dance floor for the first time- I simply drop dead. Actually I had to stop to concentrate on it or simply enjoy. It was back days way too good. Hurting/Curnow made very aggressive -future- modern & hyped type of sound. Whatever they've mixed - it was brutal, groovy, it was damn sharp, extremely clubby and tasted like million pounds. Kakko- What Kind Of Fool - is my number 2 of H/C. You can hear it and feel it, how Harding is trying hard to sound sweet & poppy, but his typical deep bass in this track, a typical Hurding/Curnow monster bass.... comes along and kill the sweetness ;) I can understand why Mike Stock once said: " for some of my airplay edits I needed Pete Hammond as an engineer, not Harding LOL Hammond was great, but more radio friendly. Sinitta, I Just Wanna Spent Some Time - Extended - Hammond signature pure. But Hurding/Carnow were deep beats club killers. Mastermind and such a nice blokes. I´m Not Scared is my 3rd biggest remix of them. Pet Shop Boys knew ... Legends!
Fun Fact : My girlfriend at the time worked at PWL as an intern/receptionist, she is the woman speaking in Spanish on the "It's a Sin (Miami mix)" remix.
Really? Wow!!! She said... perdóname padre .
that made me speachless ..... perfect Fun Fact!
One of the best interviews for people who genuinely love 80's and 90's music. Not only that but the respect you gave them with allowing them to actually speak indepth and not interrupt them - thank you. They created some of the most important sound that influenced me in my own music (Along with Jean-Michel Jarre and Vince Clarke).
Cheers!
So cool! I've met Phil Harding, back in 2009 or 2010 in a Masterclass at the Thames Valley University (didn't study there, went there just to attend the masterclass and to know the man in person).
Still have his book, signed and all (I think it's the previous edition).
Regardless to say it was a wonderful Masterclass.
Within the first five minutes of this interview, for some reason I'm suddenly feeling compelled to install a low sloped ceiling in my studio. Must be the secret to great sounding mixes. ;)
Slow down now... you are beautiful... shush hush right on the bush,
Some truth to that. ;-)
This was fantastic. Not seen Ian Curnow since I worked with him and Phil in the early 90s (Primax and The Power Syndicate). Great to see both of them logether again and both looking so well. They are smashing guys and this was a great interview. What stood out most to me was the interviewer: that rare thing on RUclips - someone really knowledgeable who’d done his research letting his interviewees speak and not interrupting them just to try and show off. Great work! Well done and thank you!
Many thanks for saying! Talking with two such legends is an honour and it's really not much for me to do, but to let them talk and sit back and enjoy. ;-)
Great work with this, Espen. Well done and thank you. Highly recommended viewing and listening, everyone. Phil and Ian on top form, as ever, throughout. 🙏👍💯
Thanks!
Thanks for that! In 88 i was called Ian by some of my friends, because they said i was his lookalike in my Studio with the same glasses and 19" Rack 😉 Needless to say they expected me to sound like SAW!
This was fantastic to hear them talk about the PWL days. Also good to hear them answer some questions people have waited a long for. Also, I absolutely love Monty Python! I grew up watching the films and the Flying Circus all the time as a kid. I always loved their production methods.
This was amazing! I love how you just let them chat, thank you Espen.
Thanks!
Magnificent Interview... Thanks for posting. These are super legends!!
Cheers!
Super excited about this! Great job bringing this together, Espen! Two great brains on lots of great music! Three, actually. 🧠👍🏻
Thanks! This was so much fun for me and super interesting as well. Great guys!
This was a brilliant interview. Full credit to Espen for having the interviewer maturity to just listen, unlike most other youtube interviewers.
Many thanks!
Awesome guys, who created fantastic music and have a great knowledge of the era.
Kudos to you, Espen, for getting these two legends together for such a wonderful interview. Just to see ‘produced by’ or ‘remix and additional production by’ ‘Phil Harding and Ian Curnow’ on a record, was so exciting back in the day. You just knew you were guaranteed a thrilling mix. Some of their East 17 remixes were just stunning.
Cheers!
wow....2 great 80's legends! Great interview!
Thanks!
That synth solo on Talk Talk's "I don't believe in you"...🤯 God knows for how many years I was absolutely convinced it was a real guitar lol.
Illusions are meant to be broken. ;-)
Awsome chat! Born in 76 synthpop was my first love and catching up on what happened back then is a lot of fun for me. Thx espen
Cheers!
Loved this! I had most of their records back in the 80’s !
You Spin Me Round....that 12" is one of the best sounding records ever.
Loved the work they did with Eighth Wonder's version of 'I'm Not Scared'. Absolutely awesome.
? Pet Shop Boys all the way ;-)
Thanks, Espen for putting this interview together, very interesting
Cheers!
Espen, thank you for this...I miss working in studios back in the 80’s too..glad to relive all the info and methods again : )
Cheers!
This is brilliant! I can't believe the same guy who worked on 'Never Gonna Give You Up' engineered the first Killing Joke album... mind blown.
Yeah, totally agree!
Great interview! I LOVE these two guys. I have an autographed copy of Phil's book. I remember hearing the club mixes back in the day and would hear the 'PWL' sound and would always see Phil or Ian on the label. Thank you for so many great memories. One of may fav mixes by Phil is the extended club mix for PSB 'Always on my mind' -- the import vinyl version. 😎
Cheers!
I really enjoyed this interview!
1:10:28 I didn't expect to get a morsel of info from Ian for the recording of one of my favourite Japanese musicians Hyde in there too as a nice bonus :) This will have been the Roentgen album released in 2002, Hyde's first solo release aside from his band (L'Arc~en~Ciel).. it still remains unique in his discography.. always reminded me of a kind of David Sylvian sound on that album.
Footage in the studio of the recording process was taken and you can see it in the "A Drop of Colour" bonus video ("A drop of colour-Hyde (in London)" on youtube).. including the mic used
Cheers!
Stack of MKS-80s chillin' 😎
This is how Matt pop and projectK got started. I admire this idea so much should have been the direction I took my life in.
Fascinating stuff. Great guests, Espen! 👏🏻🎹
Cheers!
Fascinating about the new vocal part on Always On My Mind. Congratulations on this interview
Cheers :)
Very interesting Espen, Phil & Ian for this extended interview over my favourite era!!! 😍 Would love you to pursue more of these Espen, if you are up for it again? (sure a lot of organisation & production) 😎👍🎹🎶🍻
Thanks!
It takes a great deal of effort. Must be someone I really like and at the same time willing to talk.
Thanks for doing this. A really excellent watch, very interesting 👏
Cheers!
Totally fascinating watch,thank you👍🏼
omg how good is this, great job Espen getting these guys on !!
Edit : oh wow, i gotta see someone recreate the synth patch they used to emulate the electric guitar
Cheers!
This was a fantastic interview, Espen, and just as others have mentioned, thank you for just letting them talk, with the occasional intelligent question from you thrown in. These guys are some of the lesser sung heroes of 80s pop, and important cultural figures (though I'm guessing most who danced to the music then didn't know who was behind it, other than SAW themselves).
Many thanks!
Casually having three MKS-80 synths in a rack... at 0:19.
This was a fascinating interview! Nice work.
Thanks!
I loved a lot of their productions and songs, especially the ones they wrote for Sonia!
Extraordinary Interview. Thank You. It's a remarkable pleasure to watch Three Masters full of passion and experience in one movie. It's a very valuable lesson how to create and manage successful projects and teams not only in music industry. I'm intrigued which Music Legends will be on next Live.
Thanks!
Entertaining and informative! I feel a bit psychic after mentioning a Fairlight and asking you about legendary engineer/producers on your live stream a day before! The Talk Talk "Eddie" guitar was a revelation!
Cheers!
Thanks very much for this Espen. As a long-time fan of their work, that was very enjoyable and informative.
Interesting hearing them talk about ‘Never gonna give you up’. If you're interested, I recently did a recreation of that record on my channel, using the Fairlight III, (with reference to a previous interview that Ian Curnow did with the BBC). Interestingly, in addition to the strings and brass, the guitar sounds are also from the Fairlight (again, factory library sounds), rather than being played by MA.
As somewhat of a Fairlight aficionado, the PWL Series III was the only non-cream coloured one to come out of the factory. It was a charcoal-grey and had the screen printing in white. I remember reading that the guys in the factory had to cover it in plastic throughout the assembly / testing process to stop it getting damaged and even then, it had touch-up marks. It resurfaced recently, albeit the qwerty keyboard and monitor seem to have got lost along the way, which is a shame.
I would love to have explored what sound sources they used for additional parts from the Always on My Mind mix. Like you, I played that record a lot back in the day. The two baselines are clearly DX7 but I’m not sure what they used for the lead sound (I’m assuming it’s from the MKS-80s). If I get time, I’d like to do a recreation of that too.
Cheers!
Very nice video. I watched it all...looking forward to the next producer a.o. interview. I was surprised about Ian Curnow mentioned he prefered the Jupiter 8 sound over the more modern synthesizers at that time.
Thanks! I guess we all "see" sound differently and we find a preferred workflow or way of bringing our sounds together. Not that rare. ;-)
Fantastic interview!!
Outstanding interview. I'm so glad I just found your channel. And subscribed.
Many thanks!
This is great so far, thanks for sorting out Espen :)
Cheers!
Curnow was very heavily involved in Talk Talk's albums as well for a while.
Of which he talks about in the video as well.
I have not understood well the explanation at 53:35 about how to generate that perfect electric guitar sound using 2 oscillators on a synth (and a guitar distorter of course). Please could someone explain me how to set exactly the 2 oscillators? Ian Curnow is really a great keyboard artist!
Stock Aitken Waterman´s best mixers who become their own legends. I got this feeling they didn´t know how good they are. ...Hurding / Curnow become a brand and a sign of an incredible phat sound.
To me their biggest, greatest and most unbelievable remix ever ist: we don't talk anymore / Cliff Richard 1990
ruclips.net/video/r5tLHjG0vy4/видео.html
That was a PWL - Hurding/Curnow Sound Triumph. I remember, when I´ve heard that on the dance floor for the first time- I simply drop dead. Actually I had to stop to concentrate on it or simply enjoy. It was back days way too good.
Hurting/Curnow made very aggressive -future- modern & hyped type of sound. Whatever they've mixed - it was brutal, groovy, it was damn sharp, extremely clubby and tasted like million pounds.
Kakko- What Kind Of Fool - is my number 2 of H/C. You can hear it and feel it, how Harding is trying hard to sound sweet & poppy, but his typical deep bass in this track, a typical Hurding/Curnow monster bass.... comes along and kill the sweetness ;)
I can understand why Mike Stock once said: " for some of my airplay edits I needed Pete Hammond as an engineer, not Harding LOL
Hammond was great, but more radio friendly. Sinitta, I Just Wanna Spent Some Time - Extended - Hammond signature pure.
But Hurding/Carnow were deep beats club killers. Mastermind and such a nice blokes.
I´m Not Scared is my 3rd biggest remix of them. Pet Shop Boys knew ...
Legends!
wow...good interview
Thanks!
I thought Rise To The Occasion Hip Hop Mix was inspired by Lou's Rookies Revenge which Phil and Ian produced.
I love the kick drum
WOW
A FECKING SHAME THAT IAN WILL NOT SHARE THE PWL BASSES HE PROGRAMMED WITH GENUINE PRODUCERS.....
its disrespectful. next time put their screens at your level not below watching your guest from top.... lol
You should take your pills immediately.
Spastic.