I am proud, and eager to introduce to you a french artist who knows what dedication, passion, and practice makes “perfect” is Vadim Svoboda.
Vadim is an artist I was lucky enough to experience a few weeks back for his debut at Gourmet (NYC) which was also his first public live set. He may have kept us waiting until 10am, but he delivered more than promised.
I really don’t need to say to much about Vadim and he isn’t the tell all biography kind of guy anyways (he wants it that way). It will come across to you in his special live set recording. But because I feel I should share what I did get out of him....
Vadim has just released this past May “Plastic Guitar EP” with Lessizmore, along with “Smooth Running Hare EP” in 2008 on Schieber.net (05) under the alias Kevin Svoboda (first release on Beatport).
He has spent the past four years “locked” in his studio working on music. Ok not literally but close enough. Vadim isn’t the abelton live act we all have grown use to ....its much more complicated but I will let him explain.
Interview by : Faisal Hamadah
FH: Vadim, we’d like to thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. First, as you recently played your first live set, can you explain what you see as the difference between live electronic music and a set spun by a DJ?
VS: I would like to thank you for asking me, feel free to ask as many as you want!
Basically a live set and DJ set should work in similar ways in terms of editing and mixing. It still functions as a continuous movement of rhythm. If there was one main difference, it is that during a live set, a performer is performing their own tracks while a DJ is spinning a tight selection of other people’s music. This makes it much easier, in my opinion, to play with tracks you have made to reach the desired progression. If you know your tracks and their parts you can be as precise with the movements as you want. Because my memory isn’t very reliable, I personally have a little book that I keep with shorthand references to the parts of the tracks. The other difference is that you can edit tracks in real time. You can be more in touch with the needs of the people dancing in front of you, and this opens the door for you to improvise.
FH: How do you personally go around preparing for your live sets? It sounds like it takes quite a lot!
VS: It starts with the conception of a track. When I make a track on the machines, I let the pattern grow for hours and decide if it works better live or as a studio recording. Some tracks just deserve to be listened at one specific time on a dance-floor, some on a nice pair of speakers at home as many times as you want. If I decide to use the track live, I just keep playing it live in my room over and over, sometimes adding things, sometimes taking them away. It will even happen that I take parts of an old track that was missing something and put it into a new one. Like any instrument though, with these machines practice is the most important thing.
FH: What are these machines that you work with?
VS: You know, I haven’t been sponsored yet, so I don’t want to reveal any of my tricks haha! In seriousness, I work with two machines. The first, which I use for rhythm, is an Elektron SPS1UW Machine Drum. I produce the bass lines, the leads and everything else on an Elektron SFX 60 Monomachine.
FH: How do these machines influence your sound and the way you make music?
VS: The machines both have a very recognizable sound. They’re not like a computer program, and it’s more of an organic process and sound, which is why I prefer them. However because of the 32-step pattern structure of the machines, you can’t envision the entire structure of the track. This is a limit that can be overcome by imagination and creativity, and an ear for improvisation. I have to focus more on the feel and keeping the ‘trip’ of the music continuous and congruent. The machine drum UW also allows me to bring in a sufficient amount of samples to enrich the rhythm, and add unexpected layers.
FH: How would you personally classify your sound?
VS: You tell me! ...I try to focus on the relationship between rhythm and bass, and the sound I go for tends to be droning, hypnotic, and very groovy.
FH: Who are the producers that you think have influenced you and your sound?
VS: Easy, my list of inspirations would include DJs and producers like Matt John, Magda, Matthew Dear, Troy Pierce, Daze Maxim. As I was too lazy to take sound classes, I learned most everything I know about techno from just listening to those guys. I have infinitely techno-obsessive conversations with my crazy friend Roberto, and that’s where the rest of my education comes from.
FH: You played your first actual live set at Gourmet, and since then you’ve had a plethora of appearances from places ranging from rooftops in Brooklyn to clubs in the West Village? We just want to ask: What took you so long to actually share your stuff with everybody?
VS: I’ve been recording for a while, and have several releases already, but when it came to actually performing I wanted to be completely sure I was ready. I wanted to come out when I felt I had something truly communicative but still retained an intensity that was strong enough to keep people dancing. When people aren’t dancing, both the performer and the crowd are disappointed. Mostly though, I needed somebody to kick me in the butt and get me out there, and luckily the Gourmet guys went through a lot of hoops to get me to perform that night (or day, depending on how you look at it.) Luckily, people liked that performance, and now I’m getting more requests to play.
FH: Where do you see your music evolving from here? Is there anything you would like to do?
VS: For now, I’m definitely sticking with the machines. I want to maintain a pureness and simplicity to my music that I feel is very important to electronic music. If anything, I’m thinking of adding a small sampler to add things like glitches, vocal samples, and acoustic instruments to the shows, but nothing too glaring. I’ve also heard people talk about toys for kids, like diction machines or ‘School Bus to the Zoo’, being modified with a pitch control and analog outputs. Connected to a T-Resonator, maybe you can make crazy noises live with those things!
FH: You are leaving New York soon, after recently gaining a name for yourself as an up-and-comer worth watching. What’s next?
VS: Well I have one last live set here. After that, I’m going back to Paris with all the new courage that performing in New York has brought me. I have a show lined up my first day back there on July 5th, and after that, we’ll see!
http://music4addicted.com
Vadim on Soundcloud:
http://soundcloud.com/music4addicted
Vadim on Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/music4addicted
Thank you Faisal & Vadim!
Always, Meghan
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