The Mix 044: cell m8

“Wna go bk 2 a simpler time? TXT 07999-CELL-M8”

You might have seen this message printed on a sticker, stuck to various surfaces at Glastonbury Festival last summer. If you made it to Houghton, you might have seen similar stickers reading: “make fones dumb agen.”

It’s the work of cell m8, an anonymous artist — a man, woman, group, we don’t know — who happens to make excellent club music. There are so far only three official cell m8 songs, plus a few edits and the occasional unreleased snippet, but every one of them is pure, arms-wide, peak-of-the-rave quality. True to the sound of the day, it’s replete with pop samples (listen for Gabrielle, Sexxy Red, James Blake, Flight Facilities, Chip, Lizzo and many others), breakbeats, trance riffs, grime bars, Reese bass and all sorts of other general euphorica. There’s not much more that we know, other than that Four Tet, Eliza Rose, Kevin Saunderson, Jaguar, Jacques Greene, Avalon Emerson, DJ Seinfeld and Ben UFO are all fans.

Now this is all very well, but — you’re probably asking — didn’t Two Shell already do the whole anonymous thing? Don’t embarrass yourself. Yes, they did. But so did Burial, Daft Punk, Aphex Twin, SAULT, DJ Paypal, SBTRKT, horsegiirL, Traumprinz, Deadmau5, MF DOOM, Gorillaz and Banksy.

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Inevitably this was never going to be straightforward, so cell m8 insisted that we interview them over text. This is how they communicate with all of their fans — or m8s, as they call them — and they’ve also used the “foneline” to offer exclusive links to new songs and dubplates bearing each new single. Herein lies the premise: things were better in the days of Nokia phones when you had to abbreviate all your words because text messages cost more to send if they were longer. For this reason, even though our conversation takes place on WhatsApp, cell m8 writes every response in lower case, ending each one with a kiss and never once missing an opportunity to replace a letter with a number. Our conversation appears verbatim.

We’ve also managed to get a mix of all-original productions, complete with voice notes from enthusiastic members of the foneline.

What’s going on here then

ello m8. gd 2 b connectd. all sorts goes down on the foneline. xclusive tunes & dubpl8s etc or just about for a chat.

(/.__.)/ \(.__.\)

If I’m not wrong your mix is all originals. How long ago did you start producing the tracks on there?

yh the mix is 100% my own tunes & edits. ive wanted to do a production mix since i 1st started puttin tunes out & so some of the tunes go as far back as a couple yrs - others i made a few weeks ago specifically 4 the mix. x

There’s obviously lots of samples and remixes of famous artists in there like James Blake. Is that what you’ve grown up listening to?

yh theres a couple nods 2 my early yrs of music discovery that i wanted 2 play with. that early 2010s era was sick & im hearing more & more of my m8s chattin bout it. theres been a lot of positive changes in music since then but u cant help but miss the cre8ivity of producers at that time. x

Evidently your creativity extends into your press strategy. What makes you want to stay anonymous?

i dno if i wna stay anon 4ever. jus think we r so over satur8d with information & id rather ppl connect with the music & concept than an image. looking back, the dumbfone era was the 1 - u can say everything u need 2 in a txt & save the rest 4 irl. lookin fwd 2 being able to meet the m8s ive made on the foneline at some point :) + sumtimes the most powerful things are left between the lines 4 ur imagination 2 decide. x

Tell me about who’s messaging the foneline. How many ppl have messaged? What do you talk to them about?

we chat abt nething and everything but mostly send tunes back n forth, share production tips & nu musical discoveries aswell as gettin 2 kno eachotha a bit. sum ppl hav sent me vids of them playin my tracks @ clubs & house parties which has bn sik 2 c. i always send tunes xclusively 2 the foneline cru 1st 2 c what they think & give them 1st dibs on dubpl8s. it was rly nice 2 have my m8s from the foneline involved in this mix - u can hear them @ the beginnin & end. big luv 2 every1 who sent me voice notes. x

It seems like a really sweet community. I’ve put a few friends onto your music in the past year and every time I’ve told them about the mysterious identity approach they’ve said “oh like two shell”. What do you make of their shtick?

1stly tysm 4 sharin the music. yh the 2shell comparison was always gna happen but lots of other artists have done it as well - burial, mf doom, daft punk r a big inspo cos the art is the focus. with 2shell i think its fair enough 4 ppl to feel let down if they pay 2 c them if its a decoy but imo u should respect the cre8tivity & out the box thinkin in the way they present the music. the tunes are sick 2.

faceless or not, 4 me the special thing is building up a community with personal connection, m8 by m8 on the foneline, staying tru 2 an ethos & idea - like im workin in a record shop or flyering outside a club. fan experience is always gonna come 1st & i wanna be there irl at every show if i start 2 get sum bookings. x

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I’m sure it won’t be long before the bookings start coming. Are there any other musicians you’ve grown up admiring, not just in their identities or whatever but in terms of their tunes? Like any formative DJs, producers, singers, rappers etc that you’ve always loved?

my uncle blessed me wit a bunch of his old records when i was young & learnin 2 mix. i fell in luv wit them & havin these tunes from the vaults started a habit of lookin back as well as fwd. amongst these were loads of ukg tunes & dnb records. i got obsessed wit rip productions who taught me abt vocal chops. theyre the unsung heros of that genre imo.

wit mc’s im always drawn 2 that raw uk energy so ppl like ruff squad, eksman & chip i consistently look back @ - i sampled chip on my tune unleaded. x & hes always been the bst grime lyricist 4 me. the way he had commercial hits & then brought it back 2 the underground shud be celebr8d.

from a producer pov its obvs 2 say but burial & evian christ i've always admired - sound design wise & 4 pushin genre boundaries. ive always rated anz & im jus mad impressed wit her annual production mixes - massively inspired me 2 do my own. dj wise ive neva seen a josey rebelle set that didnt gas me up - i rate her low-profile approach & no ig. x

You mentioned sampling chip and there’s lots of other recognisable voices in the mix too, like Erykah, Sexxy red, Flight Facilities and loads more. Have you cleared those samples?

chip 1 i managed 2 thx 2 a personal connection but the others r jus edits 4 the mix & free dl’s 4 the foneline so wnt get a full release. theres some propa forthcoming bits in the mix tho… x

I won’t snitch on you if you wanna keep that off the record.

hahaha yh if that’s kl, unless uve got links to those guys?! lol ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

lol no I don’t know sexxy red unfortunately

idk if this is gna make it in2 the interview but sexyy red if ur reading pls hmu 4 the collab <3 x

It’s interesting you mention a personal connection to chip. Do you know many other musicians in the UK scene?

hahah now ur fishin 4 clues :) ive got a few m8s from skl doin music & its propa useful 2 get their input and advice. their stuff is a bit diff from the kinda stuff im makin tho…

When you say mates from school doing music do you mean they’re like successful well-known DJs and producers?

yh a few of them r doin it full time. djing round the world, in bands and producing 4 artists. i was v lucky 2 go 2 a state skl that actually pushed cre8tiv subjects & was surrounded by like minded ppl. its such a shame 2 c how the arts have been massively devalued in skl’s now. the knock on effect of that is q sad 2 think abt. x

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There’s been a fair few big name DJs playing your tunes in the short time since you’ve been releasing stuff, like four tet, bufo, Eliza rose, even kev Sanderson. Have you had any personal contact with them?

tbf i think some of those hav supported with spotify playlists but hopin they r playin them out as well! big thx 2 all of them. v gassed abt four tet who included my tune mmm k. x on a r1 mix. that meant alot. i jus sent him the tune on email & hoped 4 the best - kinda mad rly cos i dread 2 think how many emails hes gettin a day. bufo & eliza rose were the same. so yh no real contact just a lil dl notification on my soundcloud stats but theyre always welcome 2 join the foneline. x •͡˘㇁•͡˘

Ha yeah ok. Let me come back to what you said about the dumbfone era. There’s quite a lot of y2k nostalgia going on rn with Charli xcx and ed hardy and all sorts of other stuff. Are you just rehashing the past by embracing that era or is there more to it?

ye i kno what u mean, theres a bit of fetish 4 y2k rn & these things always seem 2 work in cycles so no doubt it will move on sn. i think that era had its problems 4 sure & weve made a lot of positive progress, but theres also a lot 2 learn from lookin back. pre-piracy & even in the early stages of it, music was more valued. its kinda crazy 2 b able 2 stream pretty much every tune ever made 4 a 10r a month. then theres fones out @ raves which i think kills the vibe a bit, i get that ppl wna remember but theres beauty in those memories not bein documented where ur mind & imagination fills in the gaps. its funny that it feels like we r @ a place where if u dont hav the vid 2 show 4 it, it didnt happen. it seems like theres more & more clubs adoptin the no fone rule which is kl 2 see. dnt wna preach just wna raise the question that mayb advancement doesnt always = improvement. a few yrs ago my m8 inspired me - she works monday 2 friday usin an ifone and then puts it in a drawer and swaps her simcard 2 a dumb phone on the w/e, prioritisin her free time wit meaningful in person connection - the fone only there 2 organise a link up via txting.

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from a music pov, id love 2 think of my tunes as straddling past, future & present & try my bst 2 channel my fav bits of each. 2 much nostalgia can be limiting and narrow ur mind but i think its gd 2 b able 2 say 'u kno what, the bass was probs better in v4 than v10, lets go with that'.

can you tell me anything about your own club experiences? which ones do you like going to now and which ones did you grow up going to, if any?

im a fan of a medium size club where it still feels like a bit of a spectacle without losin intimacy. in ldn fold is a staple, white hotel in manny is sick & i had some rly life affirming times @ the old cause space in tottenham. i dno if its novelty of being abroad or the clubs r actually jus better but i have a deep luv 4 griessmuhle in berlin which is sadly now gone.

sayin that ive had some of the bst nights of my life in tiny rooms - freddies @ pikes in ibz, macarena in bcn & theres a place in tokyo called redbar that id highly recommend. plus the upstairs room @ low profile studios in manor house, ldn i have a big soft spot 4. wbu m8 im always on the hunt 4 nu spaces 2 dance? x

can you tell me anything about yourself… how long have you been making music for?

im just some1 who luvs music & not sure what id do without it. its escapism at its best. i been making music 4 abt 10 yrs but always struggled 2 juggle it wit jobs. when covid happened i made a promise 2 myself to take it more srsly & started honing in on a sound. its taken a while & still gotta run the day job but im gassed abt this project. ive got 3 tracks droppin sn. stay vip is out this week, hƐ>rtburn in feb & ruined home in march. u can get a 1st listen to them in the mix. would luv 2 get ppls thoughts so txt me on +447999-2355-68. x

Can you tell us about your mix?

this is the 1st mix ive eva done & is 100% my own tunes & edits. i wnted it 2 reflect the full spectrum of my sound. moving from 130bpm-170bpm in less than an hour might sound a bit nuts but i hope it works 4 u. honestly ive had the most fun puttin it 2getha & i hope that nrg is transferred on2 the listener. if ur feelin any of the tunes in the mix specifically pls lmk on +44-7999-2355-68 & ill get them 2 u 1st b4 theyre ever released. big up the foneline cru who sent me voicenotes that ive included in the mix, the ongoing <3 from u guys keeps me goin. x

Text cell m8 on +447999-2355-68

Sam Davies is a freelance writer, follow him on Twitter

Tracklist:
cell m8 - hello. x
cell m8 - stay. x
cell m8 - dreams. x
cell m8 - so sweet. x
cell m8 - fone. x
cell m8 - stay_vip. x
cell m8 - unleaded. x
cell m8 - ruined home. x
cell m8 - rich baby daddy. x
cell m8 - x me thru the fone. x
cell m8 - hƐ>rtburn. x
cell m8 - cmyk. x
cell m8 - i crave trance. x
cell m8 - mmm k. x
cell m8 - caught by the wind. x