Something magical is happening with Crosstown Rebels, and as I write this, I’m remembering the powerful set that Damian Lazarus played at Ultra Music Festival Mexico last year. What’s more, as the director of the record label, he’s a genius when it comes to recruiting certain artists onto his team; artists that can take their music further than just being a funky or friendly (mystic) set for the ears of those who consider themselves electronic music experts. One of those great surprises is Djordje Petrovic, better known to the world as Satori—who, among his many talents, seamlessly shifts between genres. We caught up with the producer ahead of his show on February 23 at the Ground inside Club Space, and got the scoop on Maktub and what he has in store for his international tour.
The word Satori refers to enlightenment in Zen Buddhism. Why use such a powerful and meaningful artistic name?
I love the meaning of the Satori experience. It’s what we commonly seek in art, in movies, in paintings or even music: that moment when you surrender and lose yourself. Humans feel the need to lose their ego, identity, personality, or whatever you want to call it, and just live fully in the moment without the presence of one’s ego. With my music, I like to search for these moments with the crowd during which we both lose ourselves for a moment; or for the whole set, but that has never happened (laughs).
What kind of music do you listen to regularly?
Music from West Africa, mainly Mali, country music and film music. Lately, I have also been into the blues, stuff like Son House or Muddy Waters. To be honest, I barely listen to electronic music.
You have Serbian and South African heritage; how have the Netherlands influenced your career?
I was born in Holland so a big part of me feels Dutch, and the Dutch have great focus and discipline. I work a lot, I practice and make music every day during my 15-hour sessions. I go home, I sleep for a few hours and when I wake up, I will start a new session. That type of concentration is definitely Dutch.
How would you describe your own understanding of music?
When I think about the music I don’t think in particular styles, I think in countries and inspiration. I use this approach for my live sets and music production. What I never do is think "I want to make a deep house track or a jazz track.” I am inspired by cultures and countries; if Henri Matisse were to ask me to make a soundtrack for his masterpiece, The Tree Of Life, I would ask myself what type of atmosphere I would want to create with that track." During a live set, for example, I like to start the journey in Mali, then take you to North Morocco, then to Seville in Spain to dance the flamenco. I don’t like it when a set sounds like it is just playing good tracks in a random order; this is what radio DJs do. We are performing on stage so we must think about what we want to present and tell otherwise we are just a jukebox.
From shamanic house to other genres derived from tech house in your work, what made you want to work with these types of sound?
I am a Balkan man and I use ethnical samples that I grew up with. I think ethnical music has the power to let people surrender themselves, similar to Georgian choir music, which elevates the spirit. Be it shamanic or ethnical flute, it is spoken in the language of the spirit. That’s why I don’t believe in styles, they imply that there are limits when actually the spirit is limitless.
The use of organic sounds and instruments in your live presentations is another aspect of your productions. How do you engage them with synthetic sound?
My music has a very instrumental approach and I love to combine that with the digital world but, in order to let these two worlds communicate with each other, it’s important they speak the same musical language. I carefully studied what I hear musically in a traditional instrument and I translate that to a digital instrument or vice versa, when a digital instrument gives me something interesting, be it a sequencer or a smooth groove, I try to translate that to a tangible instrument. I love combining the traditional world which contains instruments, nostalgia, and passion —a conservative world that found its perfection long before I was born— with the digital world that is new, unlimited and constantly evolving. It brings the past and future together.
Do you believe your music is able to transmit emotional and physical experiences?
Yes it does, but I want to clarify something: I don’t believe that the electronic music scene I belong to is the only music scene creating these experiences. Spiritual music doesn’t need to start with ritualistic vocals; an intense techno set from Ben Klok can transmit the same emotional power. You have to consider how much a person can give himself up to the music on the stage, how far they are willing to go to let go of their ego and follow the performer in his musical world. It’s in this mindset when emotional and psychological transmission can happen. In general, I think that my music scene attracts more spiritual people who are willing to surrender themselves. It’s not just about the music, it’s about the quality of the people that like my music; they have a more spiritual state of mind. Ultimately, all music has a spiritual power and for me, Erick Satie is a great example of that.
What does Maktub mean?
It is an Arabic word that means "it has been written”, it’s the name of my latest album that I worked on for Damian Lazarus’ Crosstown Rebels. It was a very special musical achievement for me. It’s the first time that I made music which had a specific theme, Arabian nights (a compilation of Middle Eastern tales). The aim was to break boundaries and to combine cultures. The trap is that it can sound a bit random, like a mix of foreign sounds. Thanks to this album, my live shows became more meaningful and profound because they centered on a theme.
What were the main challenges you found when producing it?
Well, I explain it a bit in the answer above, nowadays everybody can make music. Everybody can download a music software, buy a keyboard, download some YouTube samples, add a drum loop and a bassline under it and call it a track... It’s fun, but that is an empty approach that is pretty much created by a laptop instead of a real person. But what distinguishes us from computers? Intention!
Which instruments are you going to use this time?
I will have musicians with me on stage, my band The Band From Space. We will be using the cello, bass and electric guitar, Moroccan gimbri, flute, piano and the synthesizer.
What kind of vocals are you using?
Everyone in the band sings but lately, I am using more of my own voice. I love poetry and I love to write, so I feel a big need to share my own thoughts in my music.
What song makes you feel really proud and what was your technical process for them?
I really love Umama, the first track in which I was able to use Malian desert blues in electronic form. This is not to say that I have mastered this genre, I need to live 10 lives before I can reach their level of musicality; what I am saying is that I found a way to transform it into digital form. Our guitarist, Niek, studied the genre and we analyzed it together, noting down the scales, the rhythm and the tempo until we had our blueprint. Every time I hear that song, I remember the months it took us to achieve it; it makes me feel like I climbed a mountain.
When you finished producing this album I am sure you had many other ideas. Will they come alive anytime soon?
Yes. With this album, I was wanting to link the tracks one by one like in a live set, but in the end, it didn’t work out so I did something else. However, that is something I definitely want to do with my next album.
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