Two Fingers are Amon Tobin and Joe 'Doubleclick' Chapman. The pair met when Amon lived in Joe's hometown of Brighton and they bonded over an interest in music that ran way beyond the boundaries of 'electronica'. Later in Amon's hometown of Montreal they made their self-titled debut album that was released in April. Now they're back with a new single and an album of instrumental versions of tracks from their album. We got the latest on this and a whole lot more speaking to Joe Doubleclick recently.

 

Can you explain what the Two Fingers project is all about?

We're making music primarily for vocalists, and we're making hip-hop the way we want to hear it. We don't think hip-hop should be a rigid style influenced only by itself, so we incorporated other music to construct our take on it.

 

We love bass and beats with a lot of texture and character, so you'll hear all kinds of booming, growling and skittery sounds in our music. Most of the tunes are huge-sounding, some are more skeletal. We pull together influences from music all over the planet, but it still ends up sounding somehow unearthly. Ms Jade called us Martians, which should give you an idea.

 

Why have you decided to release an album of instrumentals of tracks from your album released earlier this year?

We had a lot of people contacting us wanting the instrumentals for mixing, or just to have the tracks without vocals. Others were aware that more tracks existed because they kept hearing bits of Two Fingers in Amon's DJ sets, so there were requests for those too. It's not a shift towards instrumental work at all - we're still set in what we're doing, and this LP is a companion to the first one rather than a sequel.

 

Why are their 22 tracks on the album when there were only 12 tracks on the original album?

We went to the vocalists with a lot more material than we needed for the LP. By and large, we let the vocalists make their own choices about which tracks they wanted to do. Listening back to it all we realised that there was a certain sound in common between the tracks in the LP sessions, and we have a new style emerging in the latest material. This LP is a good way to draw a line under the Montreal sessions so that we can move on to the next stage.

 

We've packed the CD with 75 minutes of music. This represents the best value available in your local emporium, and I hope your readers appreciate the futility of even considering buying any other records featured in your website this month. Bribery is such an ugly word, but we would like to extend the gift of a free track to anyone reading this interview.

 

Were these other tracks recorded before or after the tracks you made for the album?

A few of the tracks were made since the release of the vocal LP. For example, there's a completely reworked version of What You Know on there, and we closed the LP with Subway Rhythm, which is our most d&b-like track so far. We've talked about making an all-out d&b tune soon, maybe even an EP. We've got a lot more tracks too, but those are staying under wraps for now.

 

You also have a new single called Bad Girl coming out, can you tell us more about the new version and the remixes as well?

The original LP version of Bad Girl was with Ce'cile, so for the single we have a different version with Sway doing the verses and Ce'cile on the choruses. We've got remixes by The Bug and also King Cannibal, a treasured associate who is about to release his debut LP on Ninja Tune very soon.

 

Have you started working on new material yet?

Yeah, we're always making new things. There was a bit of fuss on the internet recently about a brand new track which was featured in BBC's Top Gear, and it's been nice getting such a positive response from all the people who were trying to find out what it was. We're looking forward to getting a vocal recorded to cap off that track. I still don't own a car so the show's not really aimed at me, but we couldn't fail to be amused at hearing MC Jeremy Clarkson shouting over the music "EAT MY EXHAUST FUMES, DINOSAUR".

 

What else are you currently working on?

We're seeking out vocalists in the US so that we can work as producers for them. The aim from the beginning was to become producers for other people rather than solely releasing our own material, so that's what we're pursuing now.

 

What else do you have coming out soon?

We've released two LPs, 12 bootlegs and three singles so far this year - it's been a busy time. We want to focus on creation for a while, so there will be a bit of a break until we put anything else out.

 

Anything else you want to tell us about?

A version of Marmite Rhythm was recently added to the Wipeout HD Fury expansion pack, and Amon did the soundtrack for the PS3 game Infamous earlier in the year. He's now working on a new solo LP too.

 

I'd like to get out to California to where Amon lives now as soon as I can. We keep in touch by phone all the time, but cost and time constraints have kept me from seeing Amon for quite a while. The internet is a great tool for collaboration but an opportunity to get into the studio side by side is long overdue. Amon keeps telling me I should move out there permanently; we'll see what happens. He certainly seems to be happy with the move, but I find it much harder being away from England.

 

Download all 12 Two Fingers bootlegs for free on their blog and a 25 minute mix here

 

 

• Two Fingers
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• Amon Tobin
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• Doubleclick

Related Links:

• Amon Tobin - ISAM Art Exhibition
• Amon Tobin Announces ISAM LP
• Dom & Roland Interview
• Cinematic Orchestra @ The Royal Albert Hall
• The Qemists Return With New Single

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