Four Tet: “It feels very much like a sort of end of an era”

Four Tet (Press)

Four Tet: “It feels very much like a sort of end of an era”

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Written by

Yotam Khrizman

Kieran Hebden, widely known by his stage name Four Tet, delves into the creative process behind his album ‘Three’ and other significant songs in the latest edition of the Tape Notes Podcast.

Four Tet describes in the podcast how he strives to make music that interests him, regardless of genre or style. Talking about his album “Three”, Kieran reflects on creating an album that combines nostalgia from his teenage years with current life experiences. He views it as a culmination of his previous work, exploring familiar techniques and ideas in a refined way. Four Tet considers this album potentially the last in this style, marking the “end of an era”.

As we know, lately he has been working on music with artists like Fred Again and Skrillex. Additionally, he mentions how life became more liberated and easy when he combined styles of live performance and production. He also spoke about his recent performance at EDC which is quite contrary to the shows he usually does.

“A lot of the record that i do, have pretty much no connection sometimes with what’s going with some of the performance that i’m doing, the live music, the DJing, and all those thing. So i don’t really worry about how those things connect particularly. ”
Kieran Hebden (Four Tet) – Tape Notes Podcast

Kieran also explains the importance of enjoyment in the creative process, which some producers these days have been struggling with. Additionally, he mentions how important it is to maintain a healthy life, find balance, and prioritize well-being. Being tangled up with anxiety won’t let you enjoy the process of music production as you should. It is important to stay mentally healthy; we all know from the experience of other artists that anxiety and stress can cost lives.

”Something i’ve been thinking about a lot is to be making music this long, in the position i am and to find a way to actually enjoy it. I think more complicated thing than you might initially assume or people would understand, very easily get yourself into all sorts of trappings. ”
Kieran Hebden (Four Tet) – Tape Notes Podcast

Starting his musical journey with the post-rock band ‘Fridge’, Kieran released his first solo album as Four Tet, titled ‘Dialogue’, in 1999. Since then, he has become a pioneering figure in the music industry, blending genres like hip-hop, jazz, krautrock, electronica, dance, and folk. With twelve albums under his belt, Kieran has remixed tracks for notable artists like Radiohead and Bjork and collaborated with musicians such as Burial, Fred Again, and Skrillex. Check out the complete conversation with Four Tet on Spotify or in video on Tape Notes’ Patreon.