Who wrote this?
One of my favourite albums of late is the new solo album by Satori (of El Mundo & Satori fame) on the Dutch techno label Bla Bla. In fact, we were so excited by the sound of this album that we invited Satori to perform his new live-set at our upcoming event Midnight Wonderland. To spread our excitement and to make sure the room is packed when he takes the stage, I interviewed Satori about his inspirations, Zen moments and the live jam session with keys that he will perform at Midnight Wonderland.
To start off easy, who is Satori, what does he do, and what does he sound like?
“My name is Djordje Petrovic, a producer from Nijmegen, Holland. I go by the name Satori, because I have a preference for Zen philosophy. In Zen there are Satori moments: short moments of enlightenment or a euphoric feeling. I think we all know this feeling in music. When people are dancing and the vibe is good, you can have a moment where you feel euphoric.. A Satori moment!”
“I play piano and guitar, and I have been making music since I was 15. I’ve made electronic music since 2009, and 3 years ago I started collaborating with El Mundo making dance floor tracks, which I still do with him. In February 2012 our new EP on BLA BLA records will be released, but in my solo Satori projects I don’t focus on the dance floor. I simply make music in the way I feel at that moment.”
You’ve had quite some success as a duo with El Mundo. Why did you embark on a solo project?
“With El Mundo I make dance floor music. It simply is about getting people to dance. In my solo project I drop that focus. I don’t make music for a specific scene or genre. I am not focussing on a particular sound. I just make music like how I feel. So why did I embark on this project? I think I needed it in a kind of way. I have another musical side in me that I can’t show in the El Mundo & Satori project. I can express this side of me in my solo project.”
Where do you get your inspiration for your solo work from?
“I get my inspiration from films, art, travelling, documentaries and most of all world music. I grew up with a Serbian father and a South African mother. At home we always listened to music from the Balkans or African music, so world music is a part of me. I think my album Into Void is full of influences from African music, Balkan Music, gypsy music and percussions from India.”
Can you define the sound and vibe of Satori in one or two songs that influenced you?
“It’s really hard to answer this question because the process of making a track is really strange. For example, the track Yes I Can’t was inspired by the Plastikman track Disconnect. When you compare Disconnect to Yes I Can’t, its like day and night. There is absolutely no sign of Disconnect in Yes I Can’t. In a strange way something, be it a film, book, piece of art or another track, can inspire me, and I just make a track. This process of making music is what my solo album Into Void is all about.”
“I can give you two songs that inspire me in general, though. Samite – Wasuze Otya, one of the most purist songs I ever heard, and Trentemøller – Miss You, I think this track reaches a level of perfection!”
Now that you’ve released your solo album Into Void, what’s your next BIG goal/ambition?
“Two things: doing live-sets all over the world with visuals at cool places and alternative festivals, and making film music or music for documentaries. And of course to rock with my El Mundo & Satori project.”
If you could invite any DJ or producer in the world to work together with, who would that be?
“Can I pick more? Axwell: I am not really like his music, but the sound is soooo good. Working with him would be because of fat sounds and mastering. Henrik Schwarz: I like the vibe and soul he puts into his music, but it still has balls! Trentemøller: I still play his albums and they never get boring. He layers so many pads, basses and strings, I want to see it live. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo (Neptunes): I want see how they make their beats so fat!”
Any upcoming DJ/producers we should start looking out for?
“If you haven’t heard of Peter Horrevorts, check him out. His music is amazing! Bas Amro is a very innovative producer. He dares to look beyond the scene and is not following the popular tech-house sound. He let me hear some stuff that will be released next year, it’s really original and special.”
You’ll be playing at our event Midnight Wonderland, are you looking forward to this?
“Yes I really am! My solo live sets together with Fat Fingers on the keys and the visuals of the Wonderboys are exclusive. I don’t want to play three times a week in this setting. I am really busy with El Mundo & Satori project, so for me this set-up has to be something special. Because its not a weekly gig for me, I am really looking forward to it!”
Can you tell us little bit more about your live set-up? What is going to happen in your set?
“I am playing live together with Fat Fingers on the keys. Fat Fingers is a jazz musician. My album is very deep and not really danceable, the main idea is to play these tracks live in a different way so they can move the floor. We have a lot of parts in the live set where we are jamming, and in these jams I play parts of the album. Most of the time it’s very energetic, so people can dance or at least bop their heads.”
“On top of this there will be interactive visuals to create an extra boost. The visuals respond to everything Fat Fingers does on the keys and I do on the drum computer. In some parts there will be a lot of spheric sounds instead of high danceable energy, the visuals will increase this effect so people wont lose their attention. And when we are jamming, the visuals will be more simple, just responding to what we do.”
Curious yet? I’ll see you up front during Satori’s set at Midnight Wonderland. For those without a ticket (it’s sold out), there will be 200 tickets at the door from 22:00.
Sharing is caring!
Tweet
