Kate Hutchinson's Desk Notes
The music journalist and podcast host gives us an annotated tour of her desk.
The star attraction of my desk is the river view, a sliver of unkempt countryside at the edge of Hackney. I love it so much that sometimes it’s hard to tear myself away; I love hearing snatches of people’s random conversations as they walk by; the swans; the piratey boats chugging up and down and the scent of their log fires. I show pop stars I meet on Zoom–check out my river! I imagine myself as a wizened old crone, bottom fused to my desk chair, looking out of this window for all eternity. It’s an amazing place to daydream — but I do have to be careful or I won’t get anything done.
Microphone + tabletop stand. I have two of these Audio-Technica shotgun microphones and they come everywhere with me when I’m making podcasts on location, or at home.Listen, I know you’ve all seen video clips of people with little spherical mics on mic arms having podcast chats, but these are like little boom mics: the quality is lush and they’re directional, so they drown out most background noise.
Windowsill–pot with plant / candlestick holder / vase with handles. Like anyone in their thirties who lives in east London, I have recently become obsessed with ceramics. These creations are all by my friend and former neighbour Robyn, who gave me these pieces when she moved out of our block. She can throw a pot like no other!
Bose Quiet Comfort II. My life is divided into the time before I had these headphones andthe time after. It figures that someone who’s been writing about music for 20+ years andDJing is either a/ partially deaf from all the loud gigs or b/ hyper-sensitive to noise and I am,weirdly, both. These headphones have a gentle little hiss in them that tune out irritating sounds so I can really zone into listening, which is especially helpful for going through podcast edits.
Desk: I guess you could say my interior vibe sticks one finger up to the Modern House and longs for the mid-2000s maximalism of The Selby. Most of my furniture is thrifted or fromFacebook Marketplace, which I am almost as obsessed with as I am with music. I can find almost anything on there–even, once, a boyfriend (he bought a sofa from me). This old Ercol plank table, also my dining table, is very wide so I can fit even more junk on it.
Coffee accoutrements. I wouldn’t say I was snooty about coffee–I’ll drink any old gravy water–but as a woeful caffeine addict, I need to be near a cafetiere at all times or I start toget a bit twitchy. The mug is by my first ever boss at Time Out’s very talented daughter, Juliette Swindells.
Box of doom. The cables graveyard lives on my desk, which is usually where I’ll also find spare USBs for DJing, batteries and manky old lip balms. This is the content you wanted, right?
Box of tissues. Safety first. Hay fever season is upon us after all.
Promo CDs. I know what you’re thinking: but she’s a music journalist! Where are the speakers! What about the endless piles of CDs? My decks and the records are behind me, against another wall, but there’s always a box under my desk of promos waiting to be sorted through. This stash is just for show-sorry!
Like any self respecting writer, there are piles of books all over my flat that I haven’t read.But my desk is where all the reference stuff I need for articles lives, or books that my smart friends have written. I’m currently hoovering up Lanre Bakare’s We Were There, an amazing document of Black culture and resistance in the UK, and Alice Vincent’s Hark: How WomenListen (the Q&A of which I’m hosting at Rough Trade East on 28 April).
Bird whistle. I bought this from a market stall at the top of a mountain in Quito, Ecuador. No one has been able to make a nice sound out of it yet.
Notepads. My eco obsession extends to the rather fetching A4 clipboard I have on mydesk, which sometimes I talk to host talks with for that accidental school teachery effect butwhich usually houses scrap paper I write on the back of, as I can’t bear tothrow it away.
Notepads. My eco obsession extends to the rather fetching A4 clipboard I have on mydesk, which sometimes I talk to host talks with for that accidental school teachery effect butwhich usually houses scrap paper I write on the back of, as I can’t bear tothrow it away…
Green papier mache cactus. I have a small collection of these plants, which used to be in ashop display. I’m weirdly attached to them, and they are pleasingly easy to look after anddon’t wilt in the winter. They are a bit silly and playful, like me. But if there are any interiordesigners reading this, call me.
Kate Hutchinson is a music journalist, DJ, presenter, and the host of the new podcast Studio Radicals.
You had me giggling at your boyfriend find. What a variety store indeed. Sweet work place