Learn how Apollo interfaces and UAD plug-ins define his textural, modern pop productions.
Growing up in San Francisco, producer Jim-E Stack spent his days drumming in his high school jazz band and nights absorbed in music, alone in his room. After a stint in music school in New Orleans, he realized the real lessons came from making tracks, not sitting in a classroom. He later moved to New York, where he DJ’d and released solo work, but soon found that working in isolation left him searching for deeper artistic connections.
That search eventually brought him to Los Angeles, where collaborations with producer/songwriters like Dan Nigro (Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan) and Ariel Rechtshaid (Vampire Weekend, Charli XCX) lit his communal spark. Around that time, Stack got his first Apollo Twin and began leaning heavily on UAD plug-ins — tools that became central to his mood-driven, often minimalist tracks. Today, Stack has a string of hits with Lorde, Bon Iver, Dominic Fike, and HAIM, and an in-demand style that favors patience and intimacy over chasing trends. Here, he details the importance of time and space and why sometimes, you just need to go outside.
“When the chords that hurt meet the drums that bang, that’s the sound that speaks to me,” says producer Jim-E Stack.
How did music first show up for you?
I played drums in garage bands and school jazz bands, so I always had that communal side of music and making noise with friends. But honestly, even before that, it was just me in my room with CDs, feeling stuff and trying to process whatever was going on in the music. Toward the end of high school I realized music can’t just be a hobby. I have to really go for it.
What did music school in New Orleans teach you?
Well, I quickly realized that I was learning way more by actually making tracks. That was the real education. I started to figure out my taste, and I realized that building a voice came from working in apartments and studios, not in a classroom, necessarily.
“Making my own electronic music early on gave me a sound and a language I still use,” says Jim-E Stack.
You’ve said your time in New York was productive but isolating. What did that period look like?
I was trying to figure life out. I had an early version of my solo project, Ephemera and I was DJing a bunch. I liked what I was creating, and I liked the artists I crossed paths with, but it was isolating. I was DJing in a club at 1AM and making tracks alone in my bedroom, and it just didn’t have the camaraderie I’d grown up with in bands. That’s when I realized people were a huge reason why I loved music, and I was missing that.
Tell us the story behind “Note to Self” from your solo project Ephemera?
That song is Ephemera in a nutshell. I’d made this synth loop with my friend Micah Gordon and just stashed it. Later I heard Clara La San’s vocal idea over a totally different piece, and one night it just hit me — her vocal belonged on that loop. I literally jumped out of bed, threw them together, and it worked. Then a drum idea of mine slotted in, and Empress Of cut the lead vocal. We pitched it in a way that made her voice really cut through. It was like this scrap of gum rolling around, picking up little bits until it turned into a song.
Jim-E Stack’s “Note to Self” featuring Express Of from his Ephemera solo project.
How did relocating to Los Angeles change your approach to music making?
California was already calling me back, but LA specifically was about the community. I had friends out here doing songwriting and production, and that energy was exactly what I was craving. I scraped money together to visit, and pretty soon I just kept coming back until I moved.
What really changed, however, was realizing that the more I tried to force a song, the less it worked. I’d be in a session trying to muscle an idea into existence, and it never felt good. The good stuff did happen when I treated the creative process like hanging with a friend, no pressure. When an idea has the space to be nothing, that’s when it can actually become something.
You’ve worked with Justin Vernon of Bon Iver over the past few years. How was it working at his April Base studio in Wisconsin?
The first time I went out there I was blown away by how relaxed it was. Justin is always making music, but not in a way that feels forced. You’re just hanging, making things, eating, maybe having a beer. There were no expectations at all. That way or working really planted a seed for me — you don’t need to treat everything like some giant, career-defining move. If you show up and act like a human first and let things be fun, that’s when you capture magic.
“If Only I Could Wait” by Bon Iver featuring Danielle Haim from the album SABLE, fABLE, produced by Jim-E Stack.
“Only keep what’s ‘load-bearing’ in an arrangement and make sure the vocal stays front and center.”
Jim-E Stack
Your work with Lorde really emphasizes your minimal production aesthetic. A track like “What Was That,” for example.
Yeah, with Lorde, it’s all about blank space. We’d cut vocals with a Shure SM7 for demos, and sometimes those takes stayed. When we did re-record, it wasn’t like, “let’s pile on more production.” Our thinking was more, “let’s capture a better vocal better and turn it up.” That’s the move. From the beginning we were only keeping what felt essential. Her voice was always the center, and everything else had to serve that.
Produced by Jim-E Stack and Lorde, “What Was That” is the lead single from Lorde’s fourth studio album, Virgin.
How do you prefer to start a song with an artist?
It’s always different. Sometimes the obvious move is the right one — give a guitarist a guitar and just let them go. Other times it’s about throwing them somewhere new, like handing Justin a synth and seeing what he comes up with. With Lorde, it might be piano or guitar. With someone else it might be me pulling up a beat I started. My job is to sense where the person’s at and determine do they need comfort, or do they need a nudge into a different space?
You’ve talked about embracing imperfection in pop. What draws you there?
I already know how to make everything polished. That doesn’t feel fresh anymore. I’ve always been drawn to the broken edges — the guitar that wasn’t miked quite right, the vocal that cracks a little. Those things feel human. To be clear, I’m not trying to make stuff sound bad, but when something is raw, that’s when it sparks a feeling in me.
“Imperfect instruments give me perfect results.”
Jim-E Stack
When you sit down to start something, how do you ensure its forward progress?
I like having things at my fingertips so I can keep the idea moving. There’s a version of me that wants all the vintage hardware stuff — Neve, Culture Vulture, all that — and I love using that gear when I’m in someone else’s studio. But in my space, I want it simple. Because at the end of the day, the idea is what matters. You could make an incredible record with just a laptop and plug-ins. Don’t let ritual get in the way of the song.
“I’m always making stuff without knowing exactly where it’s going,” says Jim-E Stack. “A lot of my process is making things, stepping away, and then coming back later.”
So where do Apollo and UAD plug-ins fit into that?
Apollo was my first real piece of gear. I got an Apollo Twin and it was everything to me. So much of the early Dominic Fike stuff we did was literally that box and a laptop. And the plug-ins are still where I start. The ADA Flanger, Ocean Way, Brigade Chorus — I’ll just cycle through presets and suddenly a track has a whole new identity. Sometimes I’ll put one straight on the master bus, which feels wrong to some people, but to me that’s where you find the personality.
Dominic Fike’s “Double Negative (Skeleton Milkshake)” from the album What Could Possibly Go Wrong produced by Jim-E Stack.
Which UAD plug-ins are essential to your productions?
I’m a preset guy for sure, and one of my favorites is “Smooth Flanger A” on the A/DA Flanger. Throw it across a beat if you want that underwater warp, then tweak. Ocean Way Studios is another one. It’s an “instant place.” When I ask “Where does this synth live?” Ocean Way answers. The one that’s a real sleeper is the Raw Distortion pedal plug-in. It’s an emulation of the Pro Co Rat distortion and its combo of filter and distortion gives any source so much identity. And I’m not scared of using it on my master bus. In fact, sometimes it helps a song’s character finally snap into focus.
You’re obviously a synth geek. What are your favorites?
The Korg Polysix has a purity to its sound. It’s a little dinky, but it leaves so much space in the arrangement. Plus, iIts arpeggiator became a real character for me, especially on the Lorde track “Favourite Daughter.”
“Favourite Daughter” by Lorde, produced by Jim-E Stack from the album, Virgin.
The Sequential OB-6 was the first synth I ever bought. A friend said, “Everyone’s got a Roland Juno — get the OB-6 — it’s freakier.” He was right, and it’s all over my tracks. Then there’s the Kawai K3, this oddball ’80s digital hybrid synth. I love running it through pedals like a Boss BF-2 Flanger or Fairfield Shallow Water until it feels alive. And I’ll always come back to the Ensoniq ASR-10 and Mellotron. The crunchy sampling and gritty choirs give tracks a human edge you just don’t get from software.
“The idea is everything — don’t let ritual beat the song.”
Jim-E Stack
A simple trick you use during sessions is to step outside and lay in the grass. Why?
It’s a quick way to feel human again. Skin on the ground, sun, a reset. I’ve had artists take a guitar outside to figure out chords. It’s not woo-woo — it just feels good — and a good break usually leads to a better take.
“Working on other artists’ projects keeps me inspired,” says Jim-E Stack. “But it also takes time away from my own music.”
What kind of projects excite you now?
I’ve realized I do my best work when I’m invested in most or all of a project with someone I believe in. It’s not about chasing trends or working with whoever’s “hot.” Sometimes I wish I could bang out five songs a week, but that’s not me. I need time to live with things. It takes longer, but that’s when the music feels real.
What’s the rule you keep coming back to, no matter the artist?
The idea is everything. Make a space where the idea can happen fast, where nothing breaks the flow, and the song will usually tell you what it wants to be.
— Ryan Hunter and Darrin Fox
Use of artist name(s) does not constitute official endorsement of UA products or services.
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