Do you keep track of much of the electronic music coming out of Brazil: the whole Gui Boratto trip, the post-samba electro?
Not really, as I haven't lived there since I was a kid. But I'm always interested. Last time I checked, there wasn't much opportunity in Brazil to support less commercial music. It's a madly strong musical culture though, and the good stuff always finds a way to surface.

My guess is that the older you get, the more stretched your influences become. So what're your primary musical ideals beyond drum & bass and jazz?
I'm getting more into psychedelic stuff, and electronic, too, although I suppose more toward classical electronic. I'd love to one day make a true psychtronic album, if only to coin the term.

Do you ever hear "singles" in your sound - tracks that connect with people at a more mass/dance level? Or are you just having a laugh, melody comes out, and people groove to it?
I could be wrong but I don't think it's the right time for "singles" in the kind of music I make. Even if I made a catchy "hit" it wouldn't be a hit right now because the genre isn't very fashionable. Instead, I'm concentrating on making things as beautiful and delicious as I can just for the pleasure of it.

What was so new that you were looking for in Foley Room?
It's more like just another step [in my process] than it is a new step, really. I'm trying to learn more about the way music is made in general ... because I'm curious. I think it's important to look in depth at specific things, but also to keep moving, even in small steps. On the other hand, all my music is about changing sounds. Here I'm not so much re-thinking as expanding into different source material. Vinyl still plays a large role on this album, but I'm also looking at sound design, Foley and field recordings.

What was so fascinating about filmic sound FX in the first place, in relation to score?
Certain sounds have always stuck in my head from different films. The sonic interpretation of an action on film is fascinating. We take these things for granted, but think of the music in Psycho during the shower scene or in Vertigo when the dizzying sensation is interpreted in Bernard Herrmann's score. It's imaginatively effective to the point that it seems obvious ... but only after the fact. The notion that someone tried to figure out what fear or nausea sounded like and then successfully pulled it off to the point where now it's considered cliché is an achievement indeed.

My favorite Foley-track soundtrack is the Planet of the Apes soundtrack - the old one. What's yours?
I love Planet of the Apes, too. But when it comes to sound design, I'd have to give it again to Bernard Herrmann for The Birds. All the sounds the birds made were actually synthesized, so they take on a kind of hyper-real and strangely zombie quality that makes them all the more sinister. The Exorcist also had incredible sound design, as did Star Wars, obviously.

How did Splinter Cell 3 set the pace for Foley Room?
During the mixing of Splinter, I'd occasionally look over to another studio where they made all of their Foley stuff. I remembered their Foley room when I came to do this album, and they very kindly gave me access after hours to try out some of my own experiments. The room itself is a dead space that I could make a mess in.

Why drag the likes of Kronos Quartet and Sarah Page into the Room?
I just wanted a range of unusual sounds, really. The idea was to try and get highly trained musicians to disregard years of practice and make their instruments do strange things they weren't supposed to do. Most of the sessions with musicians involved playing with swords, chains, bits of steel wool, etc.

What was your favorite Foley moment, then? And what do falling chickpeas sound like?
I loved the robots we recorded at an animatronics studio in Arizona. And chickpeas? That's easy. Stchhhhhsshhh.

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