HECTOR PLIMMER – NEXT TO NOTHING [ALBERTS FAVOURITES]

Our album of the week is Hector Plimmer’s ‘Next To Nothing’ out on Alberts Favourites on the 25th of October.

Born and raised in South London, Hector Plimmer is a multi-faceted producer, composer and DJ whose sound is drenched in tribal rhythms and beautifully crafted bass. Influenced by beat-makers like Flying Lotus and Theo Parrish, but with the subtleties of the classic Metalheadz era drum and bass, his second album ‘Next To Nothing’ is released on 25th October 2019. The album features guests Ego Ella May, Emma-Jean Thackray, Andrew Ashong, Pie Eye Collective and Alexa Harley.

After featuring on Brownswood Bubblers 11, curated by Gilles Peterson, Hector proved his talent when he was selected as a winner of the PRS Steve Reid InNOVAtion award. At a performance at ‘Sounds Of The Universe’ Record store, Hector caught the attention of Albert’s Favourites’ label heads Adam Scrimshire & Dave Koor. A conversation was started which led to the transfer of almost a whole album’s worth of material and resulted in his debut full length record ‘Sunshine’.

‘Sunshine’ was met with rapturous acclaim. The record went on to be awarded Gilles Peterson’s album of the week on his BBC 6 Music show and was championed by both Lauren Laverne and Tom Ravenscroft on the station as well as Jamie Cullum on BBC Radio 2. Its success on the airwaves transcended to streaming with the inclusion in the top 50 viral US chart on Spotify.

“This album has been a real labour of love. I spent the most part of a year trying to make music I thought would be fitting to follow my last album, whilst not actually knowing what that might sound like. ‘Sunshine’ had been received way more positively than I had anticipated and although praise is a lovely thing, it was the cause of much anxiety when the time came to start on this record. I put a lot of pressure on myself to produce music and kept going down routes that felt forced or just didn’t click for me, in hindsight I realise this was me making music not for myself, but for what I imagined other people might want to hear. In a way ‘Next to Nothing’ is my first real album, ‘Sunshine’ was more like a collection of four to five years worth of music compiled into the shape of one. This is my first dedicated attempt at creating a cohesive project, something that shows who I am right now and what got me here.”
– Hector Plimmer

As a DJ Hector has a monthly slot on NTS radio. He has played alongside the likes of Gilles Peterson, Kutmah, Alexander Nut, MNDSGN, Onra, Dego, Kaidi, Max Graef & Glenn Astro; Hector finds himself in the good company of those talented selectors who play genres across the spectrum of Hip-hop, Beats, Funk, Soul, Disco, Afro-beat, House and Jazz.

Last year saw the launch of his live performances. Flanked by Dave Koor and Tim Doyle on keys and percussion, with Vocalist And Is Phi heading up the quartet. Recent performances have included supporting Nightmares on Wax, Amp Fiddler, Yussef Dayes and Flako. Key festival performances include Glastonbury, The Great Escape and Brainchild.

As a composer Hector was selected by Google to test and compose the inaugural piece on their open source AI synth, the ‘N Synth Super’. His tracks have been synced to date by the likes of WACOM, Nike, i-D, Zandra Rhodes & Kitty Joseph.

Tracklist:
1. Next To Nothing feat. Ego Ella May and Emma-Jean Thackray
2. Sonnet 17 feat. Ego Ella May
3. Still Here
4. Somebody Else feat. Andrew Ashong
5. Tapeloop
6. Stack feat. Pie Eye Collective
7. Before The Sun feat. Ego Ella May
8. Step
9. Joyfulness feat. Alexa Harley
10. Circle
11. 2 Minute Switch feat. Pie Eye Collective
12. Wall Street feat. Andrew Ashong
13. Communication Control