House Music Has A Home

Normally we sit on the House side of the musical fence but recently we came across an album by an artist that really explored new territory for someone who will not be defined by genres. As such, we at Switched on Music! in an effort to always bring you great music and interviews we present an interview with one of Sweden’s finest talents..

With a musical career spanning over 20 years, plus releasing over 100 tracks, Rasmus Faber is an established artist who has collaborated alongside some industry heavyweights including Kaskade, Deadmau5, Pete Tong, Axwell and many, many more. His releases clearly demonstrate that he is a multi-talented producer and his new album ‘Two Left Feet’ is his most breathtaking body of work to date.

"Two Left Feet’ is made with bold and delicate brushstrokes of real stories with raw emotion painted across an organic canvas of House, Afro, Folk and acoustic inspired grooves. All recorded with live instruments, the album showcases the maturity, class and talent of an artist who really knows his craft and yet still continues to push boundaries and surprise his fans. It is majestic in its scope and intrinsically elegant in its treatment of the material.

This careful balancing act of nuances has been a feature and a by-product of his upbringing. He was born in Stockholm and infused with music from an early age by virtue of his family and attending a musical academy. At age 20, following his musical education, he started working as a session musician and as a pianist/musical director for local acts in Sweden. At age 25, Rasmus decided to quit this career to focus solely on his own artistry performing as a pianist in his own musical projects and in his DJ sets.

Rasmus sat down with us to discuss the album and life in general.

Like many successful artists there was a musical influence in your life with your father being a jazz saxophonist and you started to play the piano at seven. How was that educational experience for you? Was it a natural migration or was it something that was expected?

RF: Definitely natural. I was never pushed. In fact, I was probably lucky to have a certain drive at a young age that made me pursue music. I think many kids needs a bit of push though not too much in particular if parents want them to continue beyond young adulthood.

Going to musical college must have been a great experience. Do you still play with your classmates? 

RF: There were quite a few people in all sections of the arts in school at the same time as me who have made it into professional careers. Many of the musicians I still play with a lot appear on my records. That is of course a great luxury to still be able to play with your school mates!

Were you just switched on to Jazz? What other artists inspired you at a young age?

RF: Jazz, but also acid jazz and funk and stuff. Jamiroquai was a big one and also the more obscure bands in that genre. 

You have paid your dues as a session musician from an early age. What fundamental lessons did you learn from working with seasoned artists?

RF: Man, to be honest, one thing I learned is I should probably not work too much with seasoned artists haha! It requires quite a bit of patience with their egos and I realised pretty quickly that’s not my cup of tea. Because I was also the musical director of their tours, I had some pretty major clashes with the artists!

So bypass your club career which has been a catalogue of main room anthems, this is an album which has big sweeping vistas and large arrangements with perfectly layered vocals. You say it has more of a connection with your first album. Can you explain what you mean by that?

RF: Well, I guess the energy comes in phases. My first songs were quite energetic by the standard of the day being latin and soulful tracks. Then came my first album ‘Where We Belong’ which was more thoughtful. Then I had another go at more energetic house, trying to find my place in the EDM landscape around 2010. 

Now after that period I’m back with very little thought of genres and the purpose of the music in general. I’m just trying to make stuff that I enjoy and most importantly for this album, in a way that I enjoy making it. I used to force myself quite a lot production-wise, sometimes with good results, but it was always a bit stressful. Now I really tried to make music in a more moderated flow state.

The album is called ‘Two Left Feet’. Which could refer to being out of step with the majority or being social awkward or clumsy. Is that how you see this album i.e. is it different from the rest? How did you come up with the name?

RF: The name came with one of the songs on the album which emphasizes your description of the word. But in my view, there’s also a deeper meaning to it because the only reason you would use those words for someone is that he or she actually stepped out of their comfort zone in the first place. I guess we can all relate to feeling a bit out of step when making efforts to achieve more of our potential. 

The artists that you have collaborated with for this album range across a broad expanse of stylistic influences. Do you actively seek these artists out or are these relationships formed over a life time of friendships? 

RF: It happens in all sorts of ways. Chance encounters, management introduction, artists themselves reach out, old friends, etc. There’s certainly a randomness to it which is quite fun! Definitely some unexpected collaborations on this album! 

How do the songs evolve for you? Do you own the process or do you allow collaborators to influence the sound?

RF: I would say I have a pretty good overview myself but at the same time working with musicians, unexpected things can happen. Sometimes those things can lead the way into completely new directions. I love learning from the musicians since they have a very deep knowledge of what is possible with their instruments. A lot of my understanding of different rhythms, ever since I started making tracks 20 years ago, has been in collaboration with percussionist Thomas Eby, for example.

You spend a lot of time in Japan with your jazz orchestra. How has that country affected the direction of this album? 

RF: Hmm.. Perhaps in the sense that my Japanese fans are quite diverse and open minded musically, which might have helped in allowing me to feel more comfortable making a more diverse album. Also, Japan has given me some opportunities to score music for animated tv series, which definitely has allowed more of my role as composer to come through.

Explain the appeal of jazz to the uninitiated.

RF: Its great dinner background music! Joking! Or actually, it IS, but of course it’s so much more than that. But truth be told, I’m quite far from a hardcore jazz fan myself. I’m quite selective with all music I listen to, jazz included, and tend to always search for certain chords and moods, rather than embracing whole genres. But listen to Miles Davis’ ’Kind Of Blue’ I would say would be a good initiation. If that doesn’t do anything for you, I think you can safely give up. 

Which songs on the album do you think you could tweak for the dance floor if you so desired?

RF: Hmm… Probably most of them, I mean there’s so much you can do when remixing right? Question is more about how to do it. I don’t feel a really strong connection to any particular club direction at the moment, so I don’t really feel anything too natural right now. That’s probably partly why the album turned out pretty relaxed as opposed to more club oriented.

What is in the water in Sweden. So many diverse and interesting artists come from there? Why do you think it is such fertile ground?

RF: I get this question a lot. I mean, part of it is tradition surely. If we’re talking about today, there’s a kind of reinforcing process because there are lots of people around which influences young people etc. Also Sweden has a solid social safety net which allows people to follow a musical career in a more certain environment. 

Your fascination with anime. Please explain your passion for it.

RF: Well, I wouldn’t say I have a passion for watching anime. But in terms of the music, I think it’s interesting because many animes are truly epic in their story-telling in a way that only very few western movies/series are. This allows for a lot of passion in the music, which I love. If we think about it, that is often the music pieces we really love in movies. The ones written for really epic stories. In anime, big emotions and dramatic movements are quite common and it makes the music quite interesting!

What’s going to be your next project?

RF: I haven’t quite decided, but I think I’ll actually start to make a new album right away!

What are you go-to bits of kit in the studio? 

RF: My recording room and my microphones. I love recording things live and I’ve tweaked my gear a lot to be really fun to work with in that sense. Also, my grand piano and my marimba.

Vocals first or last?

RF: Vocals usually at about 60-70% of song completion. But sometimes the vocal requires a complete rewrite of everything! So I guess that makes it first for those tracks.

What are you like in the studio?

RF: I’m usually very efficient these days. I love my studio and making music as a job. I’m also quite disciplined. I feel very lucky doing what I do so I’m usually quite happy.

Favourite keyboard/synth?

RF: Grand piano and marimba as I mentioned before but those aside, probably my Fender Rhodes and Juno 60.

Drums?

RF: I got lots of percussion instruments in the studio which I like to play myself, but also when Thomas Eby comes in and brings his vintage conga kit. That’s also like Christmas for me!

DAW?

RF: Logic.

What’s the best advice you can give for budding producers?

RF: Work a lot. Not necessarily hard (in the sense of ’forced’) but steady and methodically. Don’t get side-tracked on tutorials and gear/plugin-purchases more than absolutely necessary. Set up goals, with deadlines and review them. Be very, very honest with yourself. Compare yourself to the best.

Define your perfect happy place.

RF: In my studio in a state of flow, which I define as doing something where challenge and skills are perfectly matched. Not too easy and not too difficult. Or any day with the kids when they’re in a good mood.

Long Winter nights or long summer nights. Why?

RF: My god, I’m such a sucker for summer. Every winter I suffer and think about moving somewhere. I am still in Sweden though, so guess our long summer nights must be pretty good after all.

What makes for a perfect night out for Rasmus? 

RF: Either I see many friends at the same time, or I play for a happy crowd!

Thank you for your time and generosity and we wish you all the success with the album.