John Roberts launches Brunette Editions with solo EP

Tell us about how and where Orah came together. I made the record in New York earlier this year after deciding I needed a break from working with the computer. I wanted to try something a bit different, to see if the confines of an alternate production format would cause me to think about song structure and melody in new ways. I decided that I would teach myself to make songs on the MPC 2000 (I had used it in the past but only for bits and pieces), and make a record using only that machine, sampling from records that I bought at junk shops around the city. It was an interesting challenge as I had to work within the limitations of the MPC (64 tracks, no effects beyond a lowpass filter, etc.) It only has a floppy disk drive so I bought some dead stock semi-opaque purple floppy disks which felt both technologically advanced and archaic at the same time. Each song fit on ten disks but it was a total pain to save and gave me a lot of anxiety as I never really knew if the previous day's work would be there when I woke up. The sounds that the floppy drive made were not the most reassuring. Anyway, it was fun to experiment with something new and to spend some time away from the computer, making music in a slightly more physical and pared down way. Can you explain the visual direction of Brunette Editions? Who does the artwork for each release? I am doing the art direction for each release, but working with friends who are also involved with or inspired by music in one way or another. For example, this release has a printed inner sleeve with a blown up photo taken by Palomino, who is a visual artist and a sort of pop singer with a really interesting voice. She is going to release a record with Brunette in the near future. You mentioned that Brunette Editions will dabble in books and other media. Can you shine some light on the outlet's plans for this side of things? We are currently shooting a video for "Orah" and the first more 'multimedia' release will be out later this year. We'll announce everything in more detail soon!