Jimmy Edgar

Jimmy Edgar
Edgar in 2015.
Background information
Birth name James Michael Edgar
Also known as
  • Michaux
  • Kristuit Salu and Morris Nightingale
Born 1983 (age 34–35)
Origin Detroit, Michigan, United States
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • graphic designer
  • photographer
  • filmmaker
Instruments
Years active 1999–present
Labels
Associated acts
Website Jimmyedgar.com

James Michael "Jimmy" Edgar (born 1983) is an American musician, graphic designer, photographer, and filmmaker from Detroit, Michigan.[1] Influenced by Detroit techno, Rap and R&B,[2] early in his career he released two hip-hop glitch albums under the names Michaux and Kristuit Salu and Morris Nightingale. His first solo album Color Strip (2006) came out on Warp Records after he signed to the label at age 18. This release was followed by XXX (2010) on !K7 Records in 2010. After his last solo LP Majenta (2012), he has released several EPS on his own Ultramajic Records, often designing the album covers himself.[3]

He is known as a member of the music duo Black Affair along with vocalist Steve Mason, and has also been a part of the side-projects X District with Laura Clarke, Her Bad Habit, the duo Plus Device, the group Creepy Autograph, and the duo JETS with Machinedrum. Currently based in Los Angeles, he tours frequently as a collaborator and solo artist, and has performed at venues such as Bang Face, I Love Techno, and the Detroit Electronic Music Festival. Edgar has also showcased his painting and fashion photography at a number of international exhibitions, and is known for making short films and directing music videos, often of an abstract nature.

Early life

James "Jimmy" Edgar was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1983.[4] He is of French, Romanian, Filipino and West African descent.[5] Raised in Detroit, Edgar developed an early interest in music and learned multiple instruments at a young age,[1] including string instruments, saxophone, and percussion/drum set.[6] He learned songwriting and piano from several musicians he met at Baptist churches in Detroit.[6] Experimenting with electronic music by age ten,[7] around age fifteen he started performing at Detroit raves.[1][8] As a teenager he also began playing the drums in experimental bands and making tape recordings.[7] Most of these recordings, consisting mainly of pitch bent tape loops, tape splicing, field recordings, and noise tracks, were the beginning of his experimentation with the technical aspects of production.[2]

Music career

1998-03: My Mines I and %20

Edgar in 2014 photographed by Vitali Gelwich

In 1998[9] Edgar began digitally producing conceptual music under the name Michaux. However, several years would pass before an official release under the name.[9] In early 1999 Edgar signed his first record deal with New York City based Isophlux Records, following a release of a techno track called "We Like You" on the German label Poker Flat[7] under his real name.[8] His EP Seual Dual, under the name Kristuit Salu, was released on Isophlux in 2001.[9]

Miami-based Merck Records then signed him and released his first full-length album My Mines I by the "dual alter ego" Kristuit Salu and Morris Nightingale. After the release of My Mines I in February 2002,[4] Edgar continued touring, performing in locales such as New York City, the Miami Infiltrate, Vancouver, and several cities in Japan. On tour he incorporated visuals such as synchronized projections, and he also performed at the Detroit Electronic Music Festival in 2003, his debut as a Warp Records artist.[7] He had officially signed to Warp at the age of 18.[6] Edgar's only release as Michaux came in August 2003[10] on the label Audio.NL.[9] The album is named %20, URL code for the space character, and explores the concept of silence as well as sounds outputted by computer viruses.[4] According to Audio.NL, sections of the album are so "extreme in frequency" that vinyl wasn't feasible, and it became the label's only CD release at the time.[4] The Michaux project was considered by music critics to be an early example of the genre glitch or Microsound, just as My Mines I had been.[1]

2004-08: Warp EPs and Color Strip

His first release on Warp Records was the 2004 4-track EP Access Rhythm, which had a more "hip-hop sound" than his previous albums.[1] Access Rhythm was shortly followed by the 6-track EP Bounce Make Model,[9] which according to Allmusic, "first crystallized the erotic electro-funk sound for which [Edgar] would become well known."[1] After touring in support of the two EPs, Edgar began working on his debut with Warp, a process that would take him two years.[1] According to Edgar, his goal with the album was to "capture the essence of Detroit."[1] It was made using software Edgar had customized himself, then recorded to analog tape.[1] He released the full-length album as Color Strip in February 2006,[11] to a positive critical reception. Allmusic called it "breathtakingly original," praising the album's "sleazy urban feel that combined techno, electro, R&B, glitch, and hip-hop influences."[1] Pitchfork Media wrote in a review that "There is no new ground being broken but that's not the point; Edgar comes across as a committed student, absorbing twenty-five years of electronic music and figuring out how to integrate and mold the history into something that sits comfortably in the now."[12]

2007-09: Early side projects

Color Strip would prove to be Edgar's last solo album for some time, and he spent the next four years involved with a number of side projects.[1] One of them was X District, which started out as an accidental exchange of cryptic and symbolic writings between Edgar and Laura Clarke from Leeds. These conversations and typed words ended up as the Color Correction EP on Noir Push Recordings in 2007.[13]

Jimmy Edgar (left w/turntable) live in Beirut, Lebanon at the Share Conference in 2011

Around 2008 Edgar began collaborating with vocalist Steve Mason of Scotland's The Beta Band, and together they formed the electronic music duo Black Affair. Referencing musician Bell Biv Devoe as their primary influence, Mason described Edgar's sonic contribution to the group as "sophisticated, with an air of fashion. But ultimately it's pop music - with slightly dark sexual undertones."[14] The Guardian described their sound as drawing from "old school R&B, electro, early hip-hop, Chicago house, Detroit techno, even the pristine white synthpop that influenced all of the previous black artists in the first place."[14] Edgar co-produced & engineered their debut album Pleasure Pressure Point,[9] and was also involved with the media for the album's promotional campaign, producing and directing a music video, photography, and the album and single's artwork.[4]

2008 saw the debut release from Edgar's electrofunk project Her Bad Habit, on the Citinite label. The five-track EP contains more live instrumentation than his previous work and combines a variety of influences, from Chicago house to Minneapolis funk.[15] He mutually left Warp Records in 2008 due to creative differences shortly after his single "I Wanna Be Your STD" appeared on the label's top ten 20th anniversary box set WARP20.[16] In 2009, he released FACT Mix 98 for FACT Magazine. It included solo material, as well as a collaborative track with several musicians such as machinedrum.[17]

Edgar is now known to be half of the anonymous Plus Device, an electro duo first released on Hefty Records around 2-08.[18] Edgar is now also known to be part of the anonymous Creepy Autograph,[6] along with several other members including Nels Truesdell, Alice Wakefield, and Dutch Master. Creepy Autograph have seen releases including Erase in Mind EP, Sexy Body EP, and Murder Sex on vinyl, published under Valentines Connexion and distributed through Rush Hour (Netherlands).[9]

2010-12: XXX and Majenta

Edgar's solo album XXX, formerly called Deeper, came out June 2010 on K7 Records.[9] Andy Kellman of Allmusic gave XXX 3.5/5 stars, writing that Edgar's increased use of analog equipment in the recording process "refines his smutty neo-electro."[19] Around that time Edgar continued to tour internationally, notably in cities such as Tokyo, Zagreb, Istanbul, Athens, Tallinn, Moscow, Turin, London, and Berlin.[20] In 2012, Edgar released the solo album Majenta, on Hotflush Recordings. In a positive review of Majenta for the BBC, Rich Handscomb focused on the erotic element of the sounds, also writing that "As difficult as it is to take Edgar seriously at times, so earnest is he about his sexualised sonic seercraft that resistance is futile."[21]

External video
Emika - 'Hit Me' feat. Jimmy Edgar (Official Video) - Jan 2012 - Edgar handled the production of both audio and video[22]

In 2011 and 2012 Edgar worked with artists such as Emika, who was also an expat living in Berlin at the time. Edgar is known for appearing in the music video for her 2012 track "Hit Me," also producing the track and creating the video for the Ninja Tune label in London.[22] FACT Magazine reviewed the collaboration positively, calling Edgar's musical contribution "all tactile basslines and 808 bombast," and stating that it draws from "the sparse, funky electro of his native Detroit."[22]

2012-14: JETS and Ultramajic

External video
Jimmy Edgar - Hot Inside' (Ultramajic Official Video) - Jun 2013
Jimmy Edgar - 'Who's Watching' (Ultramajic Official Video) - Oct 2014

Edgar and Machinedrum released an eponymous EP in 2012 as the group JETS,[4] and they also toured in support of the material, playing a number of major festivals.[23] As a solo artist, as of 2014 Edgar has Deejayed festivals such as Bang Face, I Love Techno, and two appearances at the Movement Festival (DEMF). In late 2013 he continued to be based in Berlin,[24] though he soon began working out of Los Angeles as well.[24]

Edgar founded the record label Ultramajic with artist Pilar Zeta and Travis Stewart (machinedrum) in 2013. His first EP on Ultramajic was Hot Inside, and the lead single's music video was featured on THUMP in late 2013.[24] In May 2014, he was brought in by the BBC to create an Essential Mix, focusing on the theme of "Ultramajic doing Detroit radio circa 1993."[25] As of early 2014 Ultramajic had released over a dozen albums in the electronic genre, with both Zeta and Edgar designing most album covers.[4]

In 2014, Resident Advisor released RA Podcast: RA.401 which was produced by Jimmy. The mix spanned 90 minutes and went through a meticulous recording process including mastering, cut onto 6 dubplate vinyl discs, digitally pasted together and remastered.[26]

2015-18: Production

In 2016, Jimmy Edgar released "Dreamz Come True" featuring Toronto R&B artist Rochelle Jordan. In 2017, after a chance meeting with SOPHIE, he began production on Vince Staples album Big Fish Theory and produced the single "745"[27]. In 2018, Jimmy released a single under his own name called "Burn So Deep" featuring Dawn Richard.[28]

Film and photography career

Sample of Edgar's work

Edgar is a professional fashion photographer,[29] and has seen his work in such publications as Spot Magazine, Urb Magazine, Blink Magazine and others. Edgar's fashion photography was featured on the cover of the 10th anniversary issue of H Magazine in Spain, which also published the entire story titled "Adaptable Color." The story also made the cover with accompanied interview in UK's Notion Magazine and a video interview for ELLE Belgium.

He has done photography work in Los Angeles and New York City, while exhibiting his work in Europe and Japan. Edgar shoots in a varying of different styles from new digital HDR technology, to medium format film inspired by early Prada, Fendi and Calvin Klein ads. He often test shoots select agency models. In addition to shooting fashion, Jimmy has also shot press photos for Hercules & Love Affair,[30] Kelley Polar,[31] Morgan Geist,[32] and Black Affair,[4] among others. He also shot the photos for Holograph Unvrs catalog, the brand worked on by artist Pilar Zeta. In 2010 he began directing and producing fashion films for such designers as Japan's BLACKOPERATOR, and his own series with Liz Centolella.[33]

Style and influences

Musical influences

In his early years he was influenced by funk, street beat and R&B, also experimenting with pitch bent tape loops, tape splicing, field recordings, and noise tracks.[2] Wrote City Weekend about is sound, "Edgar has transformed the sounds and energies of old-school Detroit electro and techno with suped-up eroticism and funk influences."[34] He is also seen as an innovator in the genre of glitch.[34]

Visuals

Jimmy Edgar has dubbed himself an advocate of "sound couture" in interviews,[35] and he often designs his album covers himself. According to Allmusic, Edgar is a "postmodern polymath" whose music "is like the aural equivalent of those mid-'80s 'sexy robot' airbrushed pop art posters by Hajime Sorayama -- the sound of a sleek digital future when machines have the same erotic desires as human beings."[1]

Filmography

Selected film credits for Jimmy Edgar
Yr Film Type Notes, role
2006"LB LB Detroit"Music videoDirected by Christos Chrestatos (Jul 1, 2006)
2008"Nothing is Better"Music videoDirected by Jimmy Edgar (Aug 1, 2008)
2010"She Lets Him"Short filmDirected by Jimmy Edgar (May 2010)
"Black Operator"Fashion commercialDirected by Jimmy Edgar (Sep 2010)
2011 "Elpha"Fashion filmDirected by Jimmy Edgar (Jan 2011)
"Kate"Fashion filmDirected by Jimmy Edgar (Jan 2011)
"Bridget"Fashion filmDirected by Jimmy Edgar (Jan 2011)
"Playing with Fire"Short filmDirected by Jimmy Edgar (Oct 2011)
2012"Hit Me"Music video for EmikaDirected by Jimmy Edgar for Ninja Tune
2013"Hot Inside"Music videoDirected by Brez for Ultramajic (Jun 2013)
2016"Dreamz Come True"Music videoDirected by Robert Fox for Ultramajic (Jun 2016)
2018"Burn So Deep ft. DAWN"Music videoDirected by Robert Fox for Atlantic (Apr 2018)

Art exhibitions

Selected exhibition and artwork credits for Jimmy Edgar
Yr Exhibition Gallery/venue City and date
2006Art exhibitionMuseum during Torino Winter OlympicsTurin, Italy
2007Photography exhibitionFinite GalleryNew York City
Live sound installationMOCA Museum of Contemporary ArtMiami, Florida
2008Jimmy Edgar painting exhibitionWhite MuseumNew York City
XXX Exhibition (Photography/Polaroid)New York City (May 2008)
2009Jimmy Edgar painting exhibition555 GalleryDetroit, Michigan (Aug 2009)
Jimmy Edgar Complete Works
(Painting on Canvas Series)		Vernor's RoomPontiac, Michigan (Nov 2009)
2010Exhibition featuring Work No. 11Installation Link MuseumBologna, Italy (Jan 21-24, 2010)

Discography

Albums

EPs

EPs by Jimmy Edgar
Year Title Label/date/notes
2001 Seual Dual (as Kristuit Salu) Isophlux (Jan 8, 2008)
2004 Access Rhythm Warp (Jan 12, 2004)
Bounce, Make, Model Warp (Nov 8, 2004)
2006 Rhythmic Denial (1 track) Warp (Feb 20, 2006)
2007 Color Correction
(as X District with Laura Clarke)		 Noir Push/Playhouse
2008 I Don't Know (What You're Doing To Me)
(as Her Bad Habit)		 Citinite (Jul 2008)
Divine Edgar EP
(with Richard Devine)		 Detroit Underground
2009 Funktion of Your Love E.P. Items and Things (Sep 2009)
2010 Tell It To The Heart No.19 Music (Jun 2010)
Hush EP Glass Table (Jun 2010)
Hot, Raw, Sex Remixes Studio !K7 (Jul 2010)
2011 New Touch Remixes Studio !K7 (Jan 2011)
2012 Sex Drive Remixes Hotflush (Oct 8, 2012)
This One's For The Children Hotflush
JETS
(as Jets with Machinedrum)		 Leisure System (Oct 29, 2012)
2013 Hot Inside Ultramajic (Jun 10, 2013)
Mercurio Ultramajic (Dec 2, 2013)
2014 White Majic 001
(with Aden)		 Ultramajic (Feb 24, 2014)
Saline Ultramajic (Oct 13, 2014)
2016 Dreamz Come True Ultramajic

Singles

Selected songs by Jimmy Edgar
Year Title Album Release details
1999 "I Like You" SinglePoker Flat (GER)
2004 "Inner Citee Color Reprise" SingleWarp
2006 "My Beats" Color StripWarp (Feb 2006)
2007 "Nothing is Better" SingleMusic video (May 2007)/
Moodgadget (Nov 4, 2008)
2008 "I Wanna Be Your STD" SingleWarp
2009 "Lips Sealed" (as Noir Friction) SingleNight Moves (May 5, 2009)
"Private 1/3" SingleSemantica (Feb 2009)
2010 "Private 2/3" SingleSemantica (Jan 2010)
"Hot, Raw, Sex" Single Studio !K7 (Jul 9, 2010)
"NXTLVLNXTLVL / My Balance (Last Priority)" Split singleNonplus (Oct 2010)
2011 '"New Touch" Single Studio !K7 (Jan 25, 2011)
2012 "This One's For The Children" 3-track singleHotflush (Apr 2012)
"Let Yrself Be" 2-track singleHotflush (Jun 11, 2012)
"Sex Drive" SingleHotflush (Aug 10, 2012)

Further reading

Interviews and articles
  • "No 323: Black Affair". The Guardian. May 27, 2008.
  • "Jimmy Edgar Interview: Look into my eyes". Resident Advisor. August 10, 2012.
  • "Building Rainbow-Colored Bridges Between Music, Aesthetics & Metaphysical Ideas". Redefine Magazine. December 2, 2013.
  • "Interview: Techno Wizard Jimmy Edgar Explains His Paranormal Experiences". Vibe.com. December 11, 2013.
Discographies

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Buchanan, John D. "Jimmy Edgar Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  2. 1 2 3 "JIMMY EDGAR Biography". Mog.com. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  3. ↑ Maymind, Leo (July 23, 2013). "Jimmy Edgar's Ultramajic Label Readies New Release Series". XLR8R. Retrieved 2014-12-05.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Biography for Jimmy Edgar". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  5. ↑ "My ethnicity". Twitter.com. Retrieved 17 August 2009.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Hernandez, Jorge. "About". Jimmy Edgar Home. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Jimmy Edgar". Detroit Underground. February 5, 2011. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  8. 1 2 "DJ, Producer", Outlar, archived from the original on 2011-07-15, retrieved 2008-09-10
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Jimmy Edgar". Discogs. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  10. ↑ "Michaux". Boomkat.com. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  11. ↑ "Sonar 2006 Prologues: Jimmy Edgar Interview". Resident Advisor. 2006. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  12. ↑ Richardson, Mark (April 11, 2006). "Color Strip". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  13. ↑ "X(XX) District". Resonator Magazine. Retrieved 2008-09-09.
  14. 1 2 Lester, Paul (May 27, 2008). "No 323: Black Affair". The Guardian. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  15. ↑ "Jimmy Edgar Returns With Her Bad Habit". Dazed. Archived from the original on June 17, 2009. Retrieved 2008-10-09.
  16. ↑ "K7 - XXX - Jimmy Edgar Releases". K7.com. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  17. ↑ "FACT mix 98: Jimmy Edgar". FACT Magazine. Nov 6, 2009. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  18. ↑ "Detroit, West Yorkshire?". Sluttyfringe.wordpress.com. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  19. ↑ Kellman, Andy (2010). "XXX Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  20. ↑ "Artist Profile: Jimmy Edgar". The Electric Frog. 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  21. ↑ Handscomb, Rich (2012). "Jimmy Edgar Majenta review". BBC. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  22. 1 2 3 "Emika feat. Jimmy Edgar – 'Hit Me'". FACT Mag. February 10, 2012. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  23. ↑ Burns, Todd L. (August 10, 2012). "Jimmy Edgar Interview: Look into my eyes". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  24. 1 2 3 Bhavnani, Rishabh (December 11, 2013). "Interview: Techno Wizard Jimmy Edgar Explains His Paranormal Experiences". vibe.com. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  25. ↑ "Jimmy Edgar". BBC. May 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  26. ↑ https://www.residentadvisor.net/podcast-episode.aspx?id=401
  27. ↑ https://mixmag.net/read/flume-jimmy-edgar-sophie-featured-on-vince-staples-new-album-big-fish-theory-news
  28. ↑ https://mixmag.net/read/jimmy-edgar-turns-up-the-heat-on-a-distorted-infomercial-for-burn-so-deep-news
  29. ↑ "Sex, Drugs, & Detroit", DJ Mag, retrieved 2008-09-10
  30. ↑ "Hercules & Love Affair – "Painted Eyes (Radio Edit)" - Stereogum". Stereogum. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  31. ↑ "Junior Boys Frontman, Kelley Polar on Morgan Geist LP". Pitchfork. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  32. ↑ "A photo of Morgan Geist by Jimmy Edgar". MTV Artists. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  33. ↑ "May - 2011 - Jimmy Edgar Photography". Jimmyedgarphotography.wordpress.com. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  34. 1 2 "Party of the Week: Jimmy Edgar at Dada". City Weekend. May 21, 2013. Retrieved 2014-12-20.
  35. ↑ LittleBig: Jimmy Edgar, Lttlebig.org.uk, retrieved 17 February 2015
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