About this episode
John is joined by Lorde and producer Jim-E Stack to talk about how he wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Virgin ’. Lorde, is a singer-songwriter and producer from New Zealand who rose to fame in 2013 with the Grammy winning global hit track ‘Royals’ . Her albums 2013’s ‘ Pure Heroine’ , 2017’s ‘ Melodrama’ , and 2012's ‘ Solar Power’ all showcase her sharp, raw lyrics and sophisticated production . In June 2025, after collaborations with artists including Charli XCX, Lorde released ‘ Virgin’ . Produced by Jim-E Stack, the record reveals a bold new sound and explores themes of self-discovery and identity. In this episode, the pair discuss the subtle changes made in the development of each track. As well as sharing numerous voice notes and demos, they talk through how the lyrics and production informed each other, the importance of muting and stripping songs back, with deep rooted percussion at the music’s core. Tracks discussed: Favourite Daughter, GRWN, Shapeshifter TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 20% off. LANDR Get 20% off LANDR Distribution and Studio at landr.com/tapenotes MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your discount HERE LISTEN to ‘Virgin’ here - https://lynkify.in/album/virgin/wuWmkwlQ ‘Universal Music’ LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES linktr.ee/tapenotes Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective - https://lynkify.in/song/sunshine-buddy/YT47TLFI GEAR MENTIONS Soundtoys Decapiator Soundtoys Devil-Loc Soundtoys FilterFreak FabFilter Pro Q Decimort Waves Soundshift Waves RVox Waves SSL Compressor Kontakt Strings OTT Goodhertz Lossy Korg PolySix Shure SM7 Moog Rogue Thermionic Culture Vulture API 550 EQ Neve 1073 Neumann U47 CL-1B Compressor Roland Juno AMS DMX Unit Telefunken 251 Mic CR 8000 Drum Machine Roland VG-8 Teenage Engineering OP-1 OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon , where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on: Instagram: @tapenotes Twitter: @tapenotes Facebook: @tapenotespodcast YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear! Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk