Last Friday, Lee Burridge’s All Day I Dream imprint released its semi-annual compilation series, A Winter Sampler VI. The compilation fosters emerging talent and highlighting the cutting edge of melodic house music, featuring incredible music from an array of artists. Stage Hoppers sat down with Seth Schwarz and Solidind to learn more about their individual journey’s as artists as well as discuss their collaboration “Create The Universe.”
The Fusion of Classical Virtuosity and Electronic Innovation with Seth Schwarz
Seth, can you share what inspired your fusion of classic violin with electronic music which, to many people, are two seemingly different worlds together?
Seth: “I have a classical background playing the violin since the age of 7. I played in orchestras and a jazz band in my teens while making beats in Fruity Loops and writing conscious rap lyrics. In these early productions I started working with violins and later on released my first vinyl Magnolia including a Monkey Safari remix on their label. Here I played with a friend’s trombone and pianos for a more danceable approach after having visited the Fusion Festival (in my view still the mother of all festivals) for the first time. I think the basic structures and possibilities to layer musical ideas within electronic music and being able to make music from your laptop nowadays opened various universes for cross genre productions and experiments.”
Seth Schwarz
With this integration of two different musical worlds, how does that affect your productions?
Seth: “I almost always use my acoustic violins either very subtly in the background or fuse layers of recorded violins together with pads. I love tweaking the electric violin though with guitar fx pedals and trying weird effects on it – like oscillators that react differently on volume curve or attack while pizzicato playing (listen to the track ‘Eisheimer’). Then of course I love to play real piano and other instruments to play musical motives which dance with each other. Having other instrument sections picking up the musical ideas and slightly alter character, timber, timing position and space. A track can sometimes contain over 70 individual recorded layers that need to be cut up, timed and mixed to blend well – which can be a long job.”
Your live shows are described as a “one-of-a-kind musical experience.” Could you take us behind the scenes of your preparation for a live performance and what you hope the audience takes away from it?
Seth: “There are basically three ways to go into a live performance for me. What’s similar is me improvising with the electric violin – sometimes a lot – sometimes delicately. I would play my own songs and collaborations like ‘Create the Universe’ up and down and make it a technically great set or go completely nuts and play new promo tracks for the very first time, and focus on my own surprise and excitement. Then I use the cue listen button to quickly find the right pitch and key in my headphone and when the break comes I hopefully have figured out the DNA and story of the track to musically ride on top of it with my electric violin. A set could also be a combination of both, working in my own tracks spontaneously where I feel a calling from the moment. In these highly focused live situations I do often deeply feel like becoming a portal when I let loose and let the music play me.”
A Solidmind Odyssey in Downtempo Exploration
Solidmind, you’ve quickly risen to the top tier of downtempo and organic house artists. How has your background as a backpacker influenced your music, and what cultural influences have left a lasting impact on your sound?
Solidmind: “Traveling around the world really changed my perception of many things and impacted how I approach other cultures. This also is true for my music. Downtempo really started for me in small underground locations and people seemed to be so open minded and open to new experiences. It is no wonder that organic house and afro house are becoming more and more popular since they bring so many different instruments, sounds, percussion and languages together.”
Solidmind
Being the label boss of ‘Elysion,’ how does your role as a producer and DJ influence your approach to running a label?
Solidmind: “I would like to say DJing doesn’t affect the label work but it does. Putting out music that resonates with me is very important but no track works in every environment. I try to do more club tracks that myself and other DJs can play out, but I often find myself liking the more calm and emotional sound which doesn’t always work in a techno club. But these tracks can really inspire you, listening on your headphones while doing work or in other circumstances outside of the club. If I can sign a track that is good for DJing and also for listening at home, I’m happy.”
You’ve been producing music since the age of 16. How has your sound evolved over the years, and where do you see your music heading in the future?
It really started with techno and house grooves and from there I really fell into these slower techno, downtempo, and organic genres. While going to festivals, I really enjoyed the music during day time most, and it was so refreshing to hear melodic but also groovy tunes. I really loved to hear fusion sets like ten years back in time, and I still very much enjoy individual live sets as well. For my own tunes it really comes down to what I feel inside. Genres are changing but the emotions are always there and that’s the ultimate goal, to transport emotions. No one cares if it’s an afro house or organic house or tribal house track if the vibe is there.
Synergy in Sound: The Birth of “Create The Universe”
Can you tell us how this collaboration came to be and what brought you two together?
Seth: “I met Solidmind in Sicily at a wedding. At the after party he played lots of his new music that I instantly liked. Being connected through the same amazing club Bahnwärter Thiel in Munich we linked again and I asked if he’d be up to collaborate on some sketches.”
Solidmind: “That wedding there was really cool actually haha! There were like 100 French people coming to Sicily only for awedding with three Djs and a gospel choir and an endless afterhour at a private villa haha. We didn’t catch the plane but we made it home somehow. When I met Seth I could tell he was as a really interesting personality and I really enjoyed working together on this project.”
How did you integrate both of your styles into this track? Was that difficult or did it come more naturally?
Seth: “Resonating together in music as well as in person came so naturally. Playing synths and strings over the groovy Solidmind loops that he shared was a smooth dance. Then writing lyrics and having Lydgen sing the vocals that just sat in the mix like angelic voices intertwining with the layers of strings gave us goosebumps, and on the last day wrapping it up with a violin solo just felt like the last bit that the track could take was added.”
Solidmind: “Seth is a really diverse artist who can read tracks like a real composer so it was really productive to work with him. I had an idea for a groove with a melody and an atmosphere and we then took it to a new level. I think the track is packed full of emotions, which is very important.”
What do you believe makes for a successful collaboration between two artists?
Seth: “In so many different areas I do believe the basic human harmony makes it easier to connect and understand each other. Allowing musical changes in the production requires letting go of ego, which can be challenging, especially if more people contribute ideas to a track. Here it really flew smoothly together and the track got better and better after working in new ideas that formed while playing the track at events like Burning Man.”
Solidmind: “I can totally agree here. The ego of artists can make a collaboration or destroy it. Everyone has a different taste and making music is already complicated enough, so sometimes collabs are even more challenging. Often you have to take a step back, let the track version rest before listening again and you will notice that changes in the track are probably good and that you were just used to the old version. We are all people of habits and things we know, when something changes we don’t like it from the first point of view. This is very important while doing collaborations. When I compare the end product to some early versions, it is way better now haha!”
What’s next for both of you? Any future collaborations together? Any upcoming performances or releases you’d like our fans to stay tuned for?
Seth: “I founded a music label Nasaja (www.nasaja.art) and a booking agency called Schwarzbooking (www.schwarzbooking.com) with Lydgen. We will publish our own and friends’ tracks there. Actually we have another collaboration with Solidmind in the making that should be good to go in summer. Being a co-founder of the music streaming platform WeR1 (www.WeR1.ai) that will be launching its environment to monetize DJ Sets fairly by the end of the year, I am actually looking forward the most to seeing our vision manifest. Come join the waitlist or DM me on Insta for an invite referral code to beta test with us.”
Solidmind: “I just rebuilt my studio again with some cool gear to play around with during the cold winter here, so you will probably hear some more new releases in the future! I’m also going to a very cool label release party in Baku Azerbaijan which I’m looking forward to. Normal DJ gigs sometimes seem very boring compared to live sets and actually producing music. I will also support Seth with some tunes on his new label.”
For our fellow Stage Hoppers and festival goers, what is your favorite festival, show or venue that you have attended?
Seth: “I am a longtime fan of Fusion Festival – I remember having tears in my eyes coming back from it the very first time. A few years later I got invited to play various stages like Seebühne, Luftschloss and Sonnendeck, which was more than a dream come true. Looking back over 15 years of attending it either as a guest or live act, I would say it changed my life. Beyond that, I am a big fan of Afrika Burn and Burning Man, both of which had an absolutely mind expanding impact on my personal development.”
Solidmind: “For me also the Fusion Festival was an one of a kind experience where every true raver should go at least once. It is very different from the normal commercial festivals with big stages and VIP areas- everyone just feels as one and connected there. I’ve never seen so many people getting along with each other so easily. If Fusion Festival was a company I would work there haha. I don’t know why it is like this but maybe it’s just that everyone loses the pressure of society there for a week and just exists in the now. If you go there don’t bring your designer clothes haha.”
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Connect with Solidmind
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