Swans In Flight in session - A Drummers Perspective

January 2012

I recently had the pleasure of being in the studio for four days with Swans In Flight, working alongside the immensely talented Sony writing team of Cassell ‘The Beatmaker’ and Eric Appapoulay, one of the U.K’s hottest and most in demand writing/production teams, having been awarded both Guild awards and an Ivor Novello for their work with artists such as Plan B and Akala. From a drummer’s perspective, knowing that you are going to be working so closely with a drummer as highly accomplished and revered as Cassell was both a hugely exciting and slightly nerve wracking prospect, but one that I was immensely looking forward to in advance of the session, and I certainly wasn’t disappointed with regards my expectations of what the session would produce. Cassell immediately puts you at ease with his very encouraging and gentle approach to what is being created, with any and all suggestions he may have for rhythmic parts and textures offered in a very encouraging way, giving you a complete confidence in both your own abilities and the strong vision that these two exceptional musicians have for the direction of the tracks being recorded. Cassell’s deep understanding of how the right drum part can make a huge difference to how good a song sounds was completely evident throughout the whole session, and his ability to hear the perfect pattern for the tune is immensely quick yet incredibly well thought out, resulting in a very deep sense of groove throughout everything that he suggests. Both Cassell and Eric are incredibly passionate and precise about their work, and being such easy people to get along with really helped to make the whole of the session feel like it was one big team effort from all involved, with Cassell and Eric being certainly a strong influence in how I will approach my drum parts in the future!!