I recently had the fortune of conducting an interview with talented ambient downtempo musician Michael Sundo a.k.a Vonoom via Facebook. Vonoom's music has always hit a chord with me with it's warm dubby bass lines, psychedelic filters and crisp percussion. So let's read on for a look at the life and times of this psychedelic ambient wizard.
PA :
How did you get started making music ? Do you come from a musical family ?
V:
I began making music back in 2003 as a natural development from my interest in DJ'ing psytrance. I loved the vast possibilities of sounds that synthesis provides, so I began to experiment with programs like Propellerheads Rebirth, Fruity Loops and Reason. It took a long time, however, before I really began to grasp what was going on instead of pushing buttons until happy accidents happened. I never really had anyone to show me the ropes, so getting to where I am today was a long process. It took many years before I began to be satisfied with my sound. My family is not really musical as such, but I was introduced to psychedelic trance by my brother, DJ Akindo, who is still an active DJ.
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| Vonoom - Michael Sundo |
PA:
How would you best describe the kind of music you make ?
V:
Hmm that's a tough one. When people ask I usually say psychedelic chill-out for lack of a better label. I like to think that I have a fair amount of variation in my tracks, and I like to experiment with different ideas and atmospheres. Overall, my goal is to make positive music that puts a smile on your face while making sure that there's enough chunkiness to shake your ass to.
PA:
Did your early psytrance productions have an influence on the kind if psychill /psybient/ downtempo music you create ?
V:
I suppose it probably did. For the first few years of my experimenting it was mostly psytrance that I was attempting to make, but my creativity was a lot stronger whenever I was working on something that wasn't psytrance. I found psytrance to be too restrictive, the bass had to be a certain way, the kick in 4x4 and so on. You can of course break with these formulas, but I found myself just repeating what I'd already done or heard before, so I felt the need to do something different. My many years of listening to trance have definitely had an influence on the way I look at melodies and track structures though, so yes, it has had an influence.
PA:
You are known for being quite a gear head - if your studio was on fire what equipment would you try to save first ?
V:
Haha probably my computer! It would be a bit of a disaster if that thing went, in spite of serious backup strategies. If I were to pick a bit of gear though, it would be a tough choice between my Waldorf Q and my Nord Rack 2X. It would probably depend on the fire. If possible I'd take the Q, as it's my first synth and a monster! On the downside, it's also very large and heavy, so if the staircase was on fire and my escape would involve climbing over things, the Nord would win as it is very portable in its rack version.
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| Vonoom's comfy studio space |
PA:
You have released about a dozen tracks on successful compilations from labels like Spiral Trax, Sentimony and Warp Brain. Do you have any tips for people looking to get their music published for the first time ?
V:
Most of my releases have come about in a very organic way, either through an acquaintance or by a label contacting me. But if I were to give a tip I'd say that one of the best things you can do is make use of the many online tools that are available these days. A solid soundcloud page or something similar is a good place to present your work. Once you have that you can send it to various labels where you think your work would fit in. Personally I think there's a fine line between sharing music and spamming music. Make sure to pick out your best tunes and don't send a mail every week to your favorite label. Many good things also have small beginnings, so don't be afraid of small labels, the music gets out there in either case and it's a good way to get your name out.
PA:
Does the idea of a Vonoom solo album appeal to you ? Are you working on anything in that direction ?
V:
Absolutely! I actually have plans to keep any future tracks I make to either release an EP or a full length album. My main problem is that there's often a far time between finished tracks. I experiment all the time, but actually getting a track finished is hard work! On top of that I'm really busy trying to finish off my degree and a bunch of other projects I have going. So yes, I am working towards that, but I think perhaps it will be an EP with 3-4 tracks instead of a full album. We'll see though.
PA:
You recently did a track with your fellow Flik Flak Family artists Lauge and Baba Gnohm. How did that come about ? Are you guys old friends ? I saw it was used in a Nespresso advertisement - was that surprising ? Get any free coffee ?
V:
The track is actually somewhat old, we made it about a year or two ago, so yes it was quite a surprise to hear it was used in a Nespresso advertisement. Hmm I certainly never heard about any free coffee! But I wouldn't be surprised if Lauge & Baba drank it all hehe. We've known each other for quite a while yes. Kalle, aka Baba Gnohm was one of the first people I met when I moved back to Copenhagen in 2007, and we've been good friends ever since. I don't see Lauge as much as I used to, but we've had some great times making tunes together.
PA:
The past few years you have done a fair amount of touring, playing at festivals and the like. Has any one event particularly impressed you or stood out above all others ? Are there any events you would like to play at in the future ?
V:
I'm not sure if I have any one event that stands out above the others. There have definitely been some gigs that were better than others, but overall they all have their ups and downs. This last summer I really enjoyed playing at Freqs of Nature in Germany, as the whole festival was a really good experience and I had lots of friends there as well. They all differ though. Just recently I played at a Burning Man afterparty here in Copenhagen and I've never seen people dance so much to my music which was really nice. I would love to play at Lost Theory festival in Croatia as I know it's a good one and it looks the part too! Boom festival is of course also on the list, but in the end for me half the experience is in the journey and the people I meet along the way, so I'm always open for any event provided it will give me a chance to get out and see the world.
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| On Stage - nice hat ! |
PA :
Speaking of playing live. How do you go about preparing for a live gig so that it is more entertaining for the crowd ?
V:
Playing live. Dangerous words amongst us producers hehe. I must admit that it's only really within the last year or so that I've moved towards making my live sets more 'live'. I've always had effects and sounds I could tweak of course, but now I've moved my set over to playing it mainly from a control interface called Lemur running on an iPad. This means all the mixes are happening on the spot instead of a press-play setup. Additionally it has given me a lot of control over samples, effects and adding new synthesizers in over the top of my existing tracks. So that's the direction I'm moving in now and I aim to make my sets more and more interactive as I go along. Now that I've gotten comfortable with the current setup I can think more about how I want to play a track live while I'm making it, which opens up a lot of possibilities. Before I've always been focused just on finishing a track instead of how I want to interact with it at a later date.
PA:
What kind of music did you listen to when growing up ? What are you listening to these days ?
V:
While growing up I listened to all kinds of stuff, going from 50's music to groups like 2Unlimited and that whole wave and ending up in Punk before I was introduced to the whole psychedelic scene by my brother. I spent many years listening exclusively to psytrance and it kind of did my head in regarding that genre. I love to go to the parties, but I rarely listen to psytrance at home anymore. Chill-out took over in that aspect, but that being said my speakers are just as often pumping out music like blues, dub, glitch-hop, drum n' bass, 60's & 70's tunes or whatever I'm in the mood for. After spending too many years having a narrow taste in music it has exploded and now I listen to anything that speaks to me and isn't some mass-produced crap.
PA:
How important is it for you to create new sounds, melodies or rhythms that people have never heard before ?
V:
Well that's definitely something I keep in mind, but I also think it's tough to do so. So much music has been made through the years that in the end it's really a tall order to make a sound, melody or rhythm that has never been made or heard before. That being said the way in which these elements are put together can often be quite original. In the end, music is my hobby, it's something I love doing and I make it first and foremost for myself. So my main goal is more to satisfy my own ears rather than to produce something which hasn't been heard before. I'm not really afraid of recycling other people's ideas as long as I make them my own.
PA:
You spent an amount of time in Japan in the past. I've been living in Japan for the past 8 years myself. It's a great country. What bought you to Japan and did you enjoy your time here ?
V:
Japan is an amazing place for sure. I moved there because my dad was offered a job in Tokyo back in 1995. I was only 10 at the time, so it was quite a change moving from a small town with a couple thousand people to Tokyo with 25 million or however many it was at the time. I definitely enjoyed my time there, but my experience was also somewhat confined to the international community. I first had to learn english, so Japanese was a little out of reach in the beginning, even though I managed to learn a few phrases along the way. I do look back fondly on my time there and I'd love to come back and see it again!
PA:
How is the trance and electronic music scene in Denmark these days ? Are there many producers based there ? Anyone we should check out ?
V:
The trance scene in Denmark is a very mixed experience. There's loads of parties here in Copenhagen, but I stay away from most of them as they tend to draw a pretty negative crowd. There are the occasional good ones, I've arranged a fair few with my friends from Flik Flak Family (we also do some decorations here and there), but we like to keep them a bit underground and have even resorted to some invite-only parties to keep some of the negative elements away. On the other hand, you have the whole Parvati scene happening over in Aarhus, who usually throw a couple parties every summer in a beautiful forest right by the sea. So it's a pretty mixed bag. In terms of psytrance producers, I'm a fan of the Parvati sound, so be sure to check out their website. Besides that I can recommend my good friend Messy Mass if you like glitch-hop, and of course Lauge & Baba Gnohm. Baba Gnohm recently got a forest psytrance set up and running as well.
PA:
Dub-step, Psy-step, glitch-hop and other bass heavy genres have had a big impact on psychedelic ambient music over the past few years with acts like Desert Dwellers and Kaminanda proving to be incredibly popular in that crossover region. Are these genres you would like to explore more of in the future ?
V:
Definitely! And I'm already doing so actually. One of my best friends here in Copenhagen is the glitch-hop producer Messy Mass. His relentless enthusiasm for glitch-hop is slowly rubbing off on me and I've been experimenting with some glitch-hop influenced tunes. I'm still keeping it in the chilled end of the scale, but there's some serious bass shenanigans going on in some of the projects in my 'in progress' folder. I really like some of the things glitch-hop has going on and it's a refreshing change up in the electronic scene in my eyes (or ears?).
PA:
Who do you see as the current innovators when it comes to electronic dance or downtempo music ?
V:
That's a bit of a tough question. I must admit I don't follow the releases as much as I used to, which is probably connected to me playing fewer DJ gigs and more of my own music. The stuff that really grabs my attention as a producer though is definitely the whole Australian glitch-hop thing going on. Not just the bouncy party music, but especially the more weird soundscape-ish things like Sun in Aquarius and basically quite a lot of the stuff being released on Enig'matik Records. I wouldn't necessarily say that it's something I listen to a lot, but it's really very innovative both in terms of sounds and rhythms. Spoonbill is another artist that I've been enjoying a lot in the past few years. Lovely circus thing he's got going on.
PA:
What are you all time favorite albums ?
V:
Well I am a chill-out lover, so for me Ott stands for some of the most timeless releases. I find that they are some of the albums that have been with me for many years and still haven't ended up in a cd-spindle, collecting dust in a cabinet.
PA:
Could you tell us a track by another artist that blew you away or left you thinking "how did they do that ?"
V:
Sun in Aquarius is one of the guys that is currently way ahead of the curve in terms of production in my opinion. He describes it well on his soundcloud page, 'Aquadelic Squid-Hop' haha. Perfectly encompasses his weird and very WET sound. From a production standpoint I find it pretty damn fascinating. Give it a listen if you haven't yet.
PA:
In 2004 you traveled to Australia. Did you enjoy the scene down there ? I grew up in Australia and have great memories of the outdoor music festivals such as Rainbow Serpent and Earthcore.
V:
I absolutely loved the scene in Australia! I was down there for 6 months with a good friend of mine, we bought a car and just drove around, hunting parties and beaches. Some of the best 6 months of my life! We went to Rainbow Serpent and a bunch of other smaller parties, and I've got to hand it to the Australians, they certainly know how to party! I'd love to go again, especially with the whole glitch thing that's sprung up in recent years down there.
PA:
How are the studies in digital design going ? Is this an field you are interested in working in sometime in the future ? Is it difficult to find time to study and also produce music, dj ?
VA:
They are going very well thank you. I'm currently writing my thesis in the field of interaction design actually. I'm trying to get people to use the garbage cans on the street by making them interactive and react to people's presence. Good fun! As a general field I find it pretty interesting yes. I've worked with webdesign as a hobby for many years and its been nice to further develop some of those skills. It is pretty tough to do both, I'd say not so much because I don't have the time, but more because having the room for creativity and inspiration to grow can be difficult when you have a lot of other things on your mind. So I do have the hours, but it can be tough to make good use of them if that makes sense. That being said, my music-making definitely comes in waves. I can go a month or two without making anything productive and then all of a sudden I'll have a week or two where the ideas keep on coming.
PA:
The track Therapy Pudding has quite a dubby vibe to it ? Do you listen to much dub music ?
V:
Yes! I love the old stuff. King tubby, Lee Scratch Perry and so on. I also really enjoy the old roots reggae. Such lovely atmospheres and vibes in that music, and it's definitely something that I try to work into the occasional track. I'm currently working on a more dubbed out remix of Therapy Pudding actually, the first time I'm trying to remix one of my own tracks. So far it's going well!
Well, there you have it - I'm sure you would all agree - a most interesting chap. Thanks to Michael for taking the time to do this and if any of you guys want to check out more of Vonoom's music follow the links below for some true mental extensions.
Vonoom Soundcloud
Vonoom Bandcamp
Vonoom Discogs
DJ Akindo
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