1: Michael Jackson - Dirty Diana

The track opens with gravelly low synths, risers and a vocal that’s edited to feel otherworldly, almost demonic, and it’s just so visceral. You can see a dark city street and smoke coming from the drains. He made me fall in love with theatrical world building production and writing. The screaming of the fans always sends a shiver through my whole body; this kind of fame and love that MJ cultivated through the refinement of his craft is the closest you could ever be to “God”, and those screams are a reminder of what I saw at the age of 6 watching him on TV. I love the guitar live solo performances from Jennifer Batten too and I was so inspired seeing a talented woman on stage with him. This track was the first time I unconsciously realised that pop could be fierce and hard and emotive rather than just palatable for mass consumption.

2: Madonna - Human Nature

Growing up in an Irish Catholic family where female sexuality and expression were seen as sinful against God, artists like Madonna and Janet Jackson had a profound effect on me. I love the line “I’m not sorry, it’s human nature, I’m not your bitch, don’t hang your shit on me” at the start of this because it directly challenges that conditioning. The video of her in latex with an arm around her neck felt provocative, dangerous and empowering all at once, and as a young woman it awakened something very subconscious in me about freedom and self-expression. I love the R&B-style synths and the bending notes in the production at the start of the track that make it feel slightly sinister and sexual. The whispered “Express yourself, don’t repress yourself” feels like hearing something forbidden, leaning into this sense of voyeurism that excites me so much. There’s also lots of accenting in her vocal delivery, which works as a brilliant contrast to the whispers, almost like a call and response.

3: The Hope Conspiracy - Suicide Design

‘It’s a gun at my neck. A voice in my ear to never look back. Use life as a dagger. Jump in the fire. Burn forever’. I got these lyrics hand poked tattooed on the inside of each of my fingers as a reminder to be brave and to follow your dreams. I’m incredibly inspired by Kevin Baker’s lyrics and this one really hit home for me. He’s also incredible live and has so much intensity! I love his agro vocal and the deliberate muddiness of this track. The stabbing pitch harmonic is so sinister and atmospheric-I love this kind of creative approach to working with organic instruments and I try and emulate these sorts of elements in production when writing.

4: Alexisonfire - Sharks and Danger

When I was 16 I was moved into a temporary council home in a town where I didn’t know anyone and someone broke into my house and stole my things. A few nights later I took 70 pills and tried to unlike myself. I woke up in the morning and with a more sober mind decided I didn’t want to leave. I called 999 and spoke to an operator and I just remember being really embarrassed and trying to explain myself. The beginning of this song starts with someone speaking to an operator at a psychiatric helpline and it always touches my heart so deeply because I’ve never heard anyone speak about that exact experience of reaching out to a stranger when you’re at the very end of what you have left to give. This song is a comfort to me and a dagger to the heart every time I hear it. I love everything about this band-the vulnerability and truth in their lyrics and the hard and soft voices somehow mimic the voices battling inside me and I just feel seen every time I revisit them.

5: Sia - Breathe Me

I started playing piano at the age of 14 and discovered this song at the age of 16 and loved it instantly for the piano at the start of the track. Her vocals are so intimate and you can hear all of the ‘imperfect’ sounds that a mouth makes when it’s close to you. Usually a producer removes these in comping and post production but they chose to leave them in and I love that they did. It makes it feel like she’s next to you speaking directly to you! The lyrics ‘Be my friend, hold me up. Wrap me up, unfold me. I am small and needy. Warm my up and breathe me’. I love this level of vulnerability in art and at that time it’s exactly the words I was looking for and wanted to speak to
someone.

6: ISIS - Garden of Light

I love the rhythmic impetus of this track and if you pay close attention you’ll notice that the drums never stop or miss a beat. I play drums also to a very beginner level and hearing this track whilst learning just had me in AWE! It’s the dynamic skill and use of toms that you don’t often hear in western music that somehow gives a primal feel and mimics the essence of a heartbeat. I love that you get a hint of the melody to come from single notes plucked on the guitar and when you finally get the full melody it’s such a beautiful release. I saw these guys at The Concord 2 when I used to work as a photographer for a magazine in my 20’s and they are record level live! It’s like putting the track on and that just blew me away.

7: Tool - Right In Two

“Angels on the sidelines. Puzzled and amused. Why did Father give these humans free will, and this is what they choose.” and “Monkey killing, monkey killing, monkey over pieces on the ground. Give them thumbs, they forge a blade and beat a brother down.”
It’s near impossible for me to choose a favourite Tool track, but this one expanded my thinking at 18 and set me on a path of personal development, pushing me to extend my compassion towards humanity, the planet and all its creatures. Maynard’s lyrics are pure mastery, and it opened up ideas I hadn’t considered before around scale, violence, and human nature.
The track begins with a minimal, clean acoustic guitar figure in a minor tonality, layered with intricate percussion, before building into distorted guitars and double kick, then breaking back down again. I’ve always loved that pressure and release
dynamic in music, and this track really shaped how I understand production, song structure, and the push and pull between intensity and restraint.

8: Incubus - The Warmth

I first hear this song when I was 16 and at The Brit School. I hadn’t heard a lot of ‘alternative’ artists at this point and was just blown away by the range of lyrical expression, diverse blending of electronic and organic sounds and genres. I couldn’t reach the low vocals with my range yet so I used to sing my along at alternate pitches and interweave with his voice in polyphonic patterns and harmonic pitches. I
didn’t know how much that would shape and develop my harmonic skills within a studio setting in the future but it was an accidental gift and to this day harmonising is one of my true loves in music. ’So don’t let the world bring you down. Not everyone here is that fucked up and cold.
Remember why you came and while you’re alive, experience the warmth before you grow cold.’ These lyrics always made me feel hopeful about humanity at a time when I really didn’t have any evidence to support it and they reminded me of my life purpose and to live to the fullest whilst I can!

9: Wayne Static - Not Meant For Me

This was a track from Queen of the Damned, which I saw when I was 14. I loved anything with vampires and was a big fan of Aaliyah, but I’d never really listened to rock or metal before, having grown up on R&B, dance and reggae, as my mum was an MC on the underground rave scene in Hackney. I’d simply never heard anything like it. It was haunting, melodic, and explored lyrical themes of introspection and
social constructs and I’d only heard songs about longing, positivity and overcoming before this. I loved the synths and atmospheric production, the hit of the snares and
double kicks which felt very primal and like a release of silenced anger. I was really drawn to the vocal layering, where you could hear the main line alongside other voices that are whispered and delayed creating something otherworldly. It felt deeply world-building, and to this day I still use that kind of vocal stacking and layering in my own tracks. Sometimes I record a vocal an octave lower and reverse it so that it
sounds demonic and bury it in the track just for creepy vibez!

10: Britney Spears - I’m a Slave 4 You

I was listening to a lot of N.E.R.D at the time, and when this track came out my jaw was literally on the floor. The production is so tight and restrictive, everything precise,
with loads of risers and breath-like elements that mimic sexuality and intimate energy. The entrance of her vocal being so gravelly, low and close-mic was so sexy and emotive and it fits perfectly. I love her ad-libs over the track and the additional breaths that are distorted in post production, a technique I sometimes use when I want to create a feeling of intimacy. There’s also a fat sub in this track and I think
that had a big influence on my production style without me even realising at the time. I love that it sits in a minor tonal centre with strong Phrygian inflections, which is where that tension and edge comes from. I’ve written so many tracks using Phrygian and the flattened 2nd since then, and my next chapter of releases actually has at least four songs in that kind of harmonic world.