“Music is sonic refuge, the ability for an individual to transform emotion and energy through sound. As a creator, I often experience a therapeutic effect from writing and performing my lyrics, as if I liberate pent up energy with every melody. When I listen to the music of others, it allows me to relate on a deep level, a level of shared experience and it reminds that we are not alone. What a great blessing for our human race.”
Hi Løki, how are you today?
Feeling happy and grateful, thankful for my health and my ability to still make music given the current circumstances. Thank you for asking!
How would you describe your sound?
My sound is a dreamlike blend of ethereal vocals, ambient melodies using both live instruments and synthesizers, backed by trap influenced percussion. I call my genre – Dreamwave
Which artists have influenced you the most over the years?
My biggest influences have been quite varied as I was exposed to a lot of different genres growing up. I’d say the music of Lil Peep, Juice WRLD, and Tame Impala really inspired me to dive into my specific sound and pursue music fully, but I love the music of groups like Owl City, Foster the People, Wardruna, and Porter Robinson, and Tool. They all have a distinct world-building quality to their songs and projects. I find myself inspired by new and old artists all the time!
How did your latest single, ‘SUBTERRA’, come about?
SUBTERRA was created at a time when I was experiencing a very emotionally distant relationship and felt quite isolated despite being around her quite often. The main hook speaks to outward appearance being perceived as positive “She’s covered in ice” (diamonds), but also speaks on the toxicity of being involved in a loveless relationship “I’m catching a cold”. I’ve since fully recovered from my heartache!
Are you planning to make it part of a larger release, such as an EP or album?
Yes, Subterra serves as the second single off my new project “Satellite” coming in November. This project will be an 11 track journey through my thoughts, emotions, and experiences over the last several years of my life and will be my first official project.
The lockdown has affected everyone’s plans right now. What are you doing to stay productive throughout it and are you still able to work on new music?
Thankfully I’ve been able to collaborate with other artists through Matter Streaming and SoundCloud, I’m sitting on quite a few new tracks that I can’t wait to release!
I’m very blessed as I am in control of all of my own distribution as well as being my own producer and mixing/recording engineer. This allows me to release music at my own discretion, so I’ve been able to keep a consistent schedule. I’m always battling the urge to drop all of my finished music, but I like to stay strategic. I’m looking forward to releasing a couple more singles this month as well as releasing my debut project in November.
What advice would you give other artists who are trying to stay productive during this crisis?
My thoughts go out to all of us affected by this difficult situation. I meditate and use active journaling to help me with my mental health, but I know that everyone is in a different situation. I stay as active as I can and go outside as often as I can, and I keep a small garden that I tend to. Use this time to call an old friend on the phone or set up a web-call with a relative, just talking to someone can help tremendously!
Above all else, don’t be harsh on yourself for having unfinished work or creative blocks. That will only hinder you further. We as artists are experiencing a lot of personal, environmental, and social upheaval and it’s important to stay grounded within your mind, body and your spirit. Give yourself room to heal and process this situation, transform that energy into music!
Anything you would like to add?
I would like to say thank you to the Keep Walking Music Team for the opportunity to do this interview! I hope this will be the first of many.
I’m lucky to have an amazing and very talented videographer that has shown me incredible support with shooting music videos, visualizers, and creating my overall vision. Thanks Carlos, you rock!
Thank you to my wonderful family streaming my music and being so supportive of my dream. My debut project – “Satellite” releases on Spotify and iTunes in November.
5 thoughts on “Interview: Løki – SUBTERRA”