Where some people see a sampler, Lionclad sees a world of possibilities. Tucked away in a curious corner of Seoul among an impressive array of wired machines and miniature toys, the South Korean producer, beatmaker, and all-around artist conjures gritty yet ethereal moods that flow from her fingertips. As a finger drummer, her skills are remarkable. Yet it’s her uniquely musical approach that sets Lionclad apart from the beat-scene pack. Together with her Azikazin crew of like-minded eccentrics, she’s chasing the edge of creativity in the name of having fun. Lionclad invited us to her den for a quick chat about mixtapes, puppet shows, analog synths, and more.
Cub to Club: The Beginning
Did you grow up playing instruments, and was your family musical?
Well, my family really loved music like me, but they’re not musical people. When I was young, I used to play piano, but I didn’t know how to read the music score. I just enjoyed listening and copying the songs I wanted to play. It gave me listening skills, and I started to know about a lot of instruments; I played trumpet, but I’m not really good.
I used to burn CDs for my dad. In the US when I was young, in North Carolina, he had to drive to school every day and asked me to make him a playlist of songs. It was like my DJing start.
What kind of songs did you put on mixtapes for your dad?
My dad wanted to listen to music from Europe, so I put on electronic Euro songs for him. He wanted to listen to dance music, not hip-hop. Still, I wanted to introduce him to a lot of music, so I dug into various genres and learned a lot.
Finger Drum Roll, Please
When did you first see finger drumming?
I was really into DJing before finger drumming, and I went to a fellow DJ’s studio. He introduced me to the DJ battle scene and showed me DJ Craze. That was the first time I was shocked by a performance. It was stunning. I saw he was cueing the pad in the mixer, which was the first time I realized you could use this as a skill. Then I looked for others and found Jeremy Ellis, who’s really good at finger drumming, and Araabmuzik. It was new to me, and I thought, “I could go deeply into this.”
I was considering different techniques. Then I went toward producing, because I like to create stuff, and I had to choose between scratching, beat juggling, or finger drumming. I focused more on finger drumming and practiced a lot to make myself good at it and to find originality.
"I went toward producing, because I like to create stuff, and I had to choose between scratching, beat juggling, or finger drumming."
Mind the Technique
How long did it take to understand the technique and feel in control?
I started around 2017, and it took maybe around two years to have some vibe. There wasn’t an exact time, but when I was performing, I realized that this was so much fun. When I was truly enjoying it and not memorizing it like, “I have to hit this pad before this and that and then this.” I realized I didn’t have to think about all those things, and I was just enjoying hitting the pad and enjoying the music. The people seeing me and dancing or grooving with me, that is when I felt confident with it.
Are there ways you’re pushing yourself with it now?
Yeah, I’m still exploring, but it’s always exploring. It’s not really about technique. I just produce music with a pad and think, “What would people think of this? Will they be hype or not?” I started to think of composition more, and technique just comes after that. It’s all about composing and thinking about performance, showmanship, all of that, right? Every technique takes a lot of time to practice, but if I imagine people vibing with me, then the practice is so much fun.
"I realized I didn't have to think about all those things, and I was just enjoying hitting the pad and enjoying the music."
Samples, Synths, and Style
Your music is very textured. It’s moody and melodic, but it’s beat-centric. Was your musical style developed in part around finger drumming?
Maybe it affects it a little bit, but I like weird music—creepy, trippy, a little cute. When I first started to finger drum, I relied on sampling too much, which a lot of finger drummers do. It’s really common, but I wanted to make samples by myself.
I went deep into electronic synthesizers and started to create sounds for myself. Synthesizer sounds just randomly come out and I say, “Oh, this is good. I like that.” I stopped relying on sampling and started to blend those two and make a more textured or lo-fi sound.
Do you use analog synths or software synthesizers?
I’m really into analog synths. I’ve started to use the computer less and like to play with gear. Gear gives me chills. It’s attractive. You can touch it. You can use it like a toy. You have to have fun when you make music.
I eagerly find fun while in a workflow when I make art or music. If the process isn’t fun, it’ll get boring and you’ve lost the love of the art. It’s really important to seek the fun part, and analog synthesizers and effectors are fun to play with. I like to collect things like dolls or little toys, and synthesizers are like toys to me.
"I like to collect things like dolls or little toys, and synthesizers are like toys to me."
Inside the Toy Factory
How do you use the SP-404MKII and MV-1? What are some specific things you do with those toys?
For my last video, I used the MV-1 as a sub gear to chop vocals I recorded. The MV-1 makes it easy to quickly record your voice, because it’s focused on making verses for rappers. It’s fun gear to play with. So I chop my own vocals on the MV-1 and used it as sub gear, and I used SP-404MKII as the main gear and the effector.
The SP-404 MKII controlled all the main gear, so I can change the lo-fi tape effect. I used that effect to make things lo-fi while performing. It’s amazing. I chopped drum rolls and did vocal chops in the MV-1, too, but the main samples were all in the SP-404 so I could switch easily. It’s a small amount of gear, so it’s easy to switch.
Loving the Crew
Tell us about your crew, Azikazin. How did you meet, and what does it mean to be part of an artistic collective like that?
I like my team because it’s all home-town friends I’ve known since high school. They love art, and I want to make music because that gives a narrative visually or in different ways. I wanted to find artistic friends who also wanted to make something like this.
Azikazin is Mmddyyyy. He is a musician and art director. Kiho Song is a visual artist and he does stop motion art. Gyeongtae, he loves to make stuff with his hands, like hand crafts and handling storyboards. He is analog style. Sungmoon Lee does the project management and is also a musician. No one does just one thing. I do animation sometimes and I draw.
"We keep seeking creative ways to tell the story with music, video art, or visual arts."
We did an online festival show with puppets. The audience was puppets and the festival fans were a little doll set. We make music video art and 2D animation games. We actually made a game with a game programmer and recorded the gameplay as a music video. We keep seeking creative ways to tell the story with music, video art, or visual arts.
Full Team Ahead
What are your goals for this year, and what are you working on?
My goal for 2021 was to focus on more team projects with Azikazin, and it went well. I wanted to perform a lot but couldn’t because of the COVID situation. So we focused on more team projects instead.
This year, I’m focused on releasing an album or singles—music and new sets. I’m going to make more live videos to show people a different way to play. With Azikazin, we’ll make music, so it’ll be weird. It was more me back in the day, but I’m going to put my people up musically. So, I think it’ll be new and fun.
