- When I went to London Electronic Music Event last year, I was a novice producer looking for basic instruction. In the year since then, though, I've gotten to a stage where the majority of production tutorials I read are going over familiar ground. So this year I attended LEME with a different agenda. I wanted to fill gaps in my knowledge, sure, but the questions I had were the kind that aren't often answered in magazines or online. They were about the creative process, about artistic development, about the path that I should take now. I also wanted to meet people on my wavelength to make and play music with. It was in these areas that LEME really shone.
Once again, the programme had technical talks in the morning and seminars in the afternoon. Generally speaking, the former covered production while the latter covered industry matters, though more time seemed to be given to industry topics year, such as the role of journalism, how to run record labels and club nights, the meaning of "underground" and the role of managers. Some of the technical lectures had essentially been repackaged from last year, but not many. Ableton, Roland and Korg were all offering product showcases, and there was a lot of gear on-hand to try out.
LEME 2014 had more of an underground mentality than past years. Legowelt, Karenn, Matt Black from Coldcut and Theo Parrish were just a few of the speakers. Parrish's talk was particularly special—the revered house artist had the room alternately captivated by his wisdom and in stitches from his unrestrained sense of humour. It was significantly busier this year as well—by now they've almost outgrown Rich Mix, a four-story venue. Somehow, though, it felt more intimate. People were willing and eager to talk to each other, to find out about each other's projects and exchange details in the bar. The speakers were always waiting behind after each talk to offer advice and make contact with budding producers. These are things that you can't get through the internet, or at any other event in London at the moment. Perhaps those were two of the reasons that LEME 2014 felt like a rising force this year.