Love and Music

Alfred Darlington (AKA Daedelus) has always been obsessed
with history. His interest in past eras visibly inspires an eccentric
stage presence, but he stresses that his style is not Edwardian.
The fanciful coattails, formal vests, and top hats he so often is seen
wearing onstage are actually influenced by early Victorian
culture—pre-Prince Albert dandyism to be specific. That he named
himself Daedelus, after the brilliant mythological inventor, shows a
fascination both with antiquity and innovation, a dynamic that can
easily be traced back to his music.

Trained in classical jazz, Darlington had a defining moment as a
young teenager when he discovered rave music on a pirate radio station
while traveling in London. Since that moment, Darlington’s sound has
meshed the past and the present; a dusty, forgotten film score from the
’30s playing on a scratchy old turntable while lush, modern beats
dreamily propel the music along, reflecting his roots in the distinct
Los Angeles avant-hiphop scene.

While Daedelus cultivates a bygone aesthetic, his live show looks
remarkably futuristic. The centerpiece of his performances is the
Monome, a peculiar interface made up of a simple grid of many backlit,
unmarked square buttons. The device looks incredibly minimal and
operates on a theory of simplicity, but can be combined with
open-source software for countless different electronic sounds and
visual functionalities. Witnessing Darlington play the thing, it looks
like he’s just randomly wailing away on the buttons, but the sounds
that he produces—though clearly improvised—are tightly
sequenced and controlled.

Darlington’s unusual blend of old-world energy and unconventional
technology has caught the attention of plenty of other electronic music
tastemakers. He’s collaborated with Madlib, Busdriver, and Taz from
Sa-Ra, and landed record deals with some highly respected experimental
labels including Mush and Plug Research.

Daedelus’ latest full-length album Love to Make Music To was
released by London label Ninja Tune. It displays all of the nostalgic
delicacy that Daedelus is known for, but also returns to the original
inspiration of the ’90s underground dance music he heard as a teenager.
As a musician, Darlington has crafted an aesthetic that is entirely his
own—a compelling mix of old and new, classic and current, aged
sophistication and modern-day bump.