RJD2

With the same care he combines sound sources into songs, RJD2 has stitched together animpressive career out of many projects: instrumental albums, international tours, credits forMos Def, MF DOOM, Phonte, producing the theme for Mad Men, and beyond. The Columbus,OH producer titled his new album Visions Out of Limelight in honor of his comfortableplace in the underground and his "self-imposed exile" at work on the tracks. For his latestinstrumental LP, the producer found inspiration in sources that can be taken for granted byless-discerning listeners.

Thanks to time at home with his son, RJD2 was completely immersed in the TV themesongs of the '70s, '80s, and '90s. "I realized how incredibly composed and skillfullycomplex many of them were. These songs contained a few core tenets: a great groove, agreat chord change, a strong melody, and a concise time frame," he says. "It made merealize how hard it is to make instrumental music with a melody that's as memorable as alead vocal."

The producer was also determined to build tracks around interesting basslines, inspired byclassic parts in Dr. Dre's "Deep Cover," KMD's "Black Bastards," and [Diamond D example]. It was a deliberate change from the chord-centric compositions in post-millennial hip-hopand funk. It became a "mini-mission" for the producer to make a modern album that putsthe bass in the forefront of the songs.

Both approaches align on single "Catch The Exit Door," as electric bass percolates up anddown the neck under wah-wah guitars and horns straight out of a syndicated cop drama."Through It All" features crooning from English vocalist Jamie Lidell, pondering hisexistence over piano stabs and a steady breakbeat. Frequent collaborator Jordan Brownflexes his paranoid android falsetto to fit the loose groove of "Fools at the Haul" withrobotic precision.

Some songs were recorded with live instrumentation while others were chopped and re-assembled via sampler "like the olden days," RJD2 says. "I still to this day appreciate theradical shift in mindstate inspired by constructing a song with bits of found sound."

Good luck figuring out which drums are live or samples. With 15+ years of studioexperience, the producer has developed a combination of mic placement, technique, tuningand gain staging to get drum sounds that evoke the same grit and urgency of classic hip-hop breakbeats. "You either run out of great drum samples, or you spend the bulk of yourcreative time chasing new ones, to varying degrees of success," he says. "The finite natureof great drum samples has pushed me further into honing my drumming game."

RJD2 has a wide range of Visions: "Wild For The Night"'s aggro horn loop was inspired bythe legendary Bomb Squad, while "What I Do, Man" and "Asphalt Lamentations" wereinspired by French touch house of Daft Punk and Ed Banger Records. At proper volume, thefull album evokes the thrift-shop psychedelia of Paul's Boutique.

And the producer really did bury himself up to his neck in the dirt [where?] for the albumart."

Album covers have become my opportunity to do something fun in the real world," hesays. It's a dual homage to Funkadelic's Maggot Brain and Redman's Dare Iz A Darkside,two artists with enduring catalogs of no-bullshit, rock-solid music. RJD2 aspires to create asimilar body of work, from his 2002 opus Deadringer to 2020's The Fun Ones on to thefuture.

"I have come to terms with the fact that the most impactful and lasting effort I can put forth in my limited time on Earth is to leave behind the best music I can, not for the sake ofpitching 'me,' but for the sake of the music itself," he says. "The timeless nature of recordedmusic and its ability to touch an unknown future listener makes it as close to a worthyendeavor as I'll ever attempt." Visions Out of Limelight channels RJD2's many influencesinto another incredible instrumental album, and it just might be a classic one day too. -JackRiedy

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Jeffrey James Logan, known as Jel, is an American hip hop producer, rapper, and co-founder of the influential indie label Anticon. A foundational member of such influential early '00's groups as Themselves, 13 & God, Subtle, and Deep Puddle Dynamics - JEL has also produced songs for the likes of Mike Patton, DJ Krush, Atmosphere and Sage Francis. Having toured the world over many times as a live solo producer, JEL has been a trailblazer with a sampler and drum machine on stage.