Electronic musician George FitzGerald and producer, singer and songwriter Lil Silva have teamed up to form OTHERLiiNE – which is also the title of their forthcoming eponymous project. Merging their sounds and influences, the pair say the creative partnership represents something entirely new and experimental, creating a space for both of them to thrive (an idea reflected in its name, where the two lowercase “i’s” signifying space for each of them).

After releasing “Chimes“, their debut single together in August, today, they’ve dropped mellow electronic track “Hates Me” – which premiered last night on Radio 1 as Annie Mac’s Hottest Record.

We spoke to the pair about the record, their new sound, why their collaboration works and what else we can expect from “OTHERLiiNE” early next year…

Hi both, where did you first meet?
LS: George did a remix for one of my tracks, “Lines”, off my “Jimi” EP. We stayed connected from then and he got in touch to do some work when he was writing his last record.
GF: I didn’t realise it was him singing on the track ’till I got the stems, and I was blown away. After that I knew we had to work on something original together, so I got in touch.

What was it about your respective sounds that made you decide to collaborate?
GF: I’d been a fan of his productions from the beginning in the UK funky days. I was just emerging then as a producer too, so we were kind of in parallel. For me, it was the combination of that amazing production and Silva’s vocals that made it so intriguing to get in the studio together.

How did you come up with your name?
LS: It took a while! It started from Lines, which was a nod to how we first met, and it ended with OTHERLiiNE.

You’ve said before it’s not two halves, but something new when you guys come together – can you elaborate on this a little bit?
GF: I feel the sound of the music we make together as OTHERLiiNE isn’t just a middle-point between George FitzGerald and Lil Silva sonically. It’s definitely a third aesthetic. Maybe it’s because as a pair we have the confidence to try things out that we wouldn’t pursue individually.

What is it about your respective personalities that work? And what do you find are the biggest challenges?
GF: I’ve collaborated with people before, but never over such a protracted period of time. The hardest part is to trust each other in the studio, otherwise it simply can’t work. Honestly, that trust has been there more or less from day one, so it hasn’t ever felt like a struggle getting this music done. It’s been a pleasure. That’s probably why we stuck at it.

What are your favourite tracks on the record and why?
LS: I think “Chimes” and “Hates Me” have always stood out as potential singles, but I also love the interludes we made. They’re fleetingly beautiful and I love that.

How would you describe the genre?
GF: A big canvas at which we’ve thrown bits of house, garage, grime, techno, R&B and IDM.

Where did you get your main inspirations from?
LS: I think we drew a lot of inspiration from the music we had in common growing up. Old garage, grime and techno and house records. We might have been jamming something out and then we’d be pulling up old Wookie or MMM 12″s on YouTube and following that vibe for a bit.

What’s been the feedback so far?
GF: Very nice. You never know how people will receive a new project, so it’s been very heartwarming so far to see people embrace it.

What’s next for both of you? What are you excited about?
LS: Excited for you guys to hear the rest of the project and to perform this live!