Blake Lee is an artist who wears multiple sonic hats. For over a decade, he’s worked as the guitarist and musical director for Lana Del Rey, but he is also a composer who has spent the past few years developing an experimental-leaning solo project. The fruits of that labor are present on No Sound In Space, his debut album. Released by OFNOT, a Berlin-based label run by the acclaimed Kenyan sound artist KMRU—who also collaborators on two tracks—the album trades in a sort of textural ambient drift, which sees Lee using his guitar as a tool for abstraction far beyond the parameters of the song-based music he works on with Del Rey. We sent over some questions to the artist—read the interview and listen to No Sound In Space below.    

How did you link up with KMRU?

I saw him open up for Fennesz at Zebulon here in Los Angeles in 2022. I really resonated with his sound and felt we were speaking the same language. I felt compelled to reach out to him via DM, and that quickly started a back and forth of getting to know each other and sharing music.

This record has been germinating since 2021. What has that process been like?

It was both cathartic and experimental for me. I loved having all of my tour gear and pedals at home since we hadn’t toured between 2020 and 2023, and I just started creating as a release and form of escapism, without the concrete thought of making a record. The process was very meditative for me and everything that made it onto the album was performed live improv and layered in the moment—tracks one after the other—and then I would edit and mix afterwards.  It was very much “getting out of my own way” and capturing those moments of inspiration. The times I actively tried to create with something in mind, I could immediately feel that the next day when listening back, and I hated that.

How do you navigate your different creative roles—music director, artist, producer? Do you find that they feed off of each other?

They do feed off each other. I’ve learned so much from Lana [Del Rey] over the years, especially when it comes to upholding artistic integrity above all else … Also learning to appreciate when inspiration strikes and exploring when those moments happen. Her music has always been very cinematic to me, with different textures, moods, and emotions … Which is very much a part of my music as well. I feel fortunate to work with someone in that capacity whose art I truly respect and admire.   

What is your history with experimental music?

I love anything pushing the envelope … From the Beatles experimenting with tape loops in the mid-1960s, Jimi Hendrix records, and early Terry Riley, to the approaches of players like Kevin Shields and Glenn Branca. I’ve always been inherently drawn to drone music as well. I find myself resonating with music that makes you feel something and has an emphasis on emotion rather than quintessential structure.

Were there any main pieces of gear that informed the sound of this record?

Many of the sounds emanated from guitar through various pedals, but I also used piano, mellotron, synthesizers, and some VSTs. Some of the sounds I would process and alter through granular samplers in Max, and then feed those back into the Logic session. I found myself bussing sounds into the UAD EMT140 reverb, and a couple Lexicon reverbs on many of the tracks, trying to achieve a certain level of depth.         

What is your ideal performance situation?

A very immersive environment … Whether that’s similar to an art installation, or a dense room of fog with solid or strobing colors that alter your perception. Sonically, it would be blending a PA that can handle a very loud dynamic range with loud vintage guitar amplifiers.         

Did cinema have any influence on the making of this new record?

Yes, absolutely. Music is very visual for me and the marriage of sound and picture has always been inspiring. Oftentimes I would have some Kubrick movies playing in the background while creating and other movies with beautiful cinematography. I remember having a kind of lightbulb moment when I saw the movie Annihilation and heard the score by Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow. I also love the scores and sound design of composers like Jóhann Jóhannsson and Mica Levi. Atmosphere is everything.          

What kind of music have you been listening to lately?

Recently I’ve been checking out the new The Smile album Cutouts, the collaborations between Not Waving and Romance, an Alessandro Cortini record Risveglio, and I’ve also been revisiting some of the film scores from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.