CHRIS CLARK has been labelled the torchbearer of the ‘traditional Warp Records sound’ blueprinted by Aphex Twin, Plaid, and Squarepusher, but with his third album Body Riddle, the playful producer carves his own newly-shortened name (now simply ‘CLARK’) indelibly into the genre. CHRIS HARMS asks the Birmingham resident a few wriggly questions.

So, just to get it out of the way – why the shortening to 'Clark'?

It was either that or “Christopher Stephen Clark, thrust initially into the world from the virile loins of Frederick Clark into the nurturing womb of Bavarian Mother Ilse Clark, and then born into the world in Welwyn Garden City, Home Counties, United Kingdom.” Warp said it might affect my sales if that was my artist name, and since that’s obviously all I care about I changed it.

Is there a significance to the album title?

Not really, other than I like the words. I like the way it evokes the idea of a puzzle, something that is perplexing, fits together like a jigsaw puzzle kind of thing. A few people say Body Wriggle. Maybe that would be better. I like the word ‘wriggle’.

I understand you spent a lot of time fiddling with the tracks on this album to get them just right – how did you go about collecting the sounds to build the tracks initially? Did you have a set plan, particularly for the live instrumental sounds?

I never really plan anything at all. A bit worrying really coz I have hours and hours of music that I just forget about... I've started giving it to friends to look after. Only people I can trust. People who protect it, guard it. I've got so many tunes I just forget I've written them and then people are like, “put this on the album you idiot, it's your best track”.

Do you find it useful to disconnect and detach while you're making music?

No, not at all...quite the opposite. I feel totally present/connected/attached. I do like detaching from the world in general though. It's useful when you’re doing boring shit like shopping. I've had so many epiphanies in Morrisons [the fourth-largest of the UK supermarket chains – grocery expert Ed.] it's wrong, almost like fits of euphoria by the canned potatoes, and it's usually linked to listening to music. My music more specifically. I've always been an absent-minded fucker. I can control it and channel it into my work now though, which is ace.

Are they actually your own mutated vocal samples on the track Roulette Thrift Run?

Yeah, I've been doing a lot of singing recently. I was in a daft mood on that track. It's a pretty daft little tune. The lyrics are: yaaaar----er / da da da dadle der der / da da / der / derdle / de. I have to admit I've got a way to go yet with lyrics...it'll come though. Slowly, surely, sharply.

There also seems to be a few more hip hop elements on this album (like the opening of Vengeance Drools) – is that a reflection of sounds and beats you wanted to explore more?

I've always been into the beat element of hip hop but not so much in an obvious vocal referencing way. It's cool if your DJing or whatever, having loads of a capellas is always a laugh, but as for stuff I release I keep it pretty pure – I like it all to be me. I've done it once on Gob Coitus, but that was just taking the piss really. The track would still rock without it. Vengeance Drools has emceeing and vocals on it, but it was my mates round a campfire in a cave in Wales recorded with a particular kind of tape saturation, and then using a particular combination of pitch shifters that enhanced the reverb of the caves. I love my friends and want to do them justice in my music.

Since you started making music, have you ever undergone any formal training? I read once that you'd never had a piano lesson, yet melody often forms a really important part of what you do…

I had a few violin lessons as a kid and I know how to read music. I used to write out these little folk ditties on manuscript paper, and I remember hearing EMF’s Unbelievable and writing out all the drums and guitar parts in a sort of hand-written sequencer way. It's a little silly to feel chuffed about that, as it is a fairly retarded song. I was only about 9 though.

Body Riddle is out now through Warp/Inertia

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