Artist interview #6
OTTOMAN GRÜW
Q: Who are you? Where are you from? And where are you going?
A: I am an interdisciplinary artist with a practice primarily focused on sound (techno; electro; noise; punk; ambient…) but also with other practices such as writing and video. I grew up between Paris and Rome and currently live in Brussels. And where I’m going… I really don’t know! But I hope somewhere where I can continue to meet inspiring people and work on beautiful artistic projects.
Q: What brought you to music production? Why are you loving it?
A: I started early to go out in clubs or raves, and after a while I wanted to try to create music suitable for these contexts. At first with second hand synths that were a bit broken, spontaneously and with very little knowledge of the subject. Then I realized that this had touched a nerve, and I wanted to go deeper. One thing led to another and I discovered the world of digital production and sound engineering – and, little by little, I understood that this could take my practice further. I love creating/producing music, and while I’m not entirely sure why I chose this over anything else, the fact that it fell into my lap allowed me to see music as a sort of guide to finding some meaning in the current chaos of the world. I have to say that I don’t see it as an escape, but as a practice directly related to the times I live in.
Q: For how long have you been producing? And what are the main pieces of your setup?
A: 5 or 6 years.
A: My Shure SM58 microphone, basic but essential. I use a lot of voices in my productions, both as a “vocal” element and for atmospheric sounds. Recently, I bought the OTO Boum compressor, which I also use a lot to give character to tracks during recording as well as on the master bus during my live sets.
Q: How do you see (and go through) the technical sides of production and especially the Mixdown stage?
A: My brain having trouble respecting logical order, I often find myself working instinctively – which can sometimes be a gift in terms of the originality of the results! However, depending on the complexity of my recordings and/or the desired result, the mixdown can take me a really long time. Fortunately, I have some trusted friends that I like to ask for advice in the final phase of the project. On specific projects, I let someone else do the mixdown.
Q: What’s your latest release? And do you have any upcoming projects?
A: I have several latest releases but one of the ones I like a lot, although looking back, I find a lot of mistakes in it, is the main track of my first vinyl release on the Laburnum Records label.
OTTOMAN GRÜW – We Want Your World And We Want It Now [LBRNM09]
Although my production pace has slowed recently, I have several projects coming up and several of them explore lower BPMs, between 115 and 130.
Q: Anything else you would like to share, maybe for people beginning music production out there?
A: It’s important to take the time to create your music, to understand what your inspirations are and what your artistic lineage is in order to find artists that inspire you and from that to create an aesthetic that is your own and that makes sense. It takes time and it’s a long term process, but I think it’s worth it – if we want to contribute to the building and not just participate in a mediocre standardization of artistic creations. I can’t remember the exact quote from jazz pianist Michel Petrucciani, but referring to jazz giant and pianist Oscar Peterson, Petrucciani said something like: “I tried for a long time to become Oscar Peterson, and then one day I managed to become Michel Petrucciani”. In my opinion, we should not be afraid to have artists who inspire us and serve as models.
Q: To finish with some music, what’s your favorite track those days ?
A: “Walk into the Broken Night” The Orphx duo with a vocal by Marie Davidson, released on Adam X’s excellent label “Sonic Groove”.