Q&A: Beau Zwart gets deep in advance of 'Beyond Two Souls' EP release
The Rotterdam-based producer gives us a wonderful insight into his process and musical background
Beau looking cool. Photo by Zahra Reijs
Beau Zwart first came to our attention thanks to his 2018 'Shadows In My Mind' release on Yam Who's ISM Recordings. This was a bright and breezy collection with gentle pop sensibilities and included enough variety to leave us curious to hear more. After a little bit of an interlude, we were really happy to get hold of the promos of his forthcoming record, 'Beyond Two Souls'. The two-year wait was indeed worth it, as to us it seems that his already proficient sound has evolved and expanded during this window. The musicality, production, and vibe are all equally impressive, so we were thrilled when Beau agreed to tell us a little more about how he works, his influences, as well as what projects he has in the pipeline.
First a little digest of the new record. 'Beyond Two Souls' burst into life with it's jagged, broken rhythm and West London funk feel. The hooky vocal lifts the mood over the squelchy synth bass and purposeful chord stabs. This track comes complete with a terrific remix from seasoned deep housers, Fouk, who straighten up the beats, add a little weight, and strike the balance perfectly between freak and funk.
'Bustin' Out' is a starry-eyed mid-tempo jam which sits beautifully between cosmic disco and jazzy breaks, the instrumentation and arrangement are engaging and the freak-funk vibe intoxicates throughout. 'Illustrate My Mind' veers into neo-soul territory, its downtempo groove endowed with funk-flecked motifs and smoke-filled beats. 'Marble Book' dazzles with its combination of sparkling keys and chords, its juggernaut kick drum drives the groove as sinister synth drones roar in the distance.
Finally, our pick to play you here is 'Ixodus'. On this outstanding cut we find an intoxicating blend of jazzy licks and solid, dance-floor rhythms, the delicate keys weave in and out as chord progressions bust in over the deliciously deviant bassline. The track, as with the rest of the EP, has an exquisite blend of soul and virtuosity that helps it to stand out from the crowd. Shades of Floating Points on this one, and that can't be a bad thing.
This is really superb work and we're sure the release will do wonders to elevate Beau Zwart's name in and around the dance community. Once again, he leaves us wanting to hear more, and hopefully, we'll have to wait less than two years this time. But, until then, let's let the man himself tell us what's good.
Hey Beau, thanks for joining us. What are you up to today?
“At the moment I’m on Formentera, an island nearby Ibiza, with my girlfriend for a little break after a long period of working on new own material and music for films in the studio. “
We're very jealous and would prefer to be there. Now, we understand you're classically trained in music. What can you tell us about how your musical journey evolved, specifically how your tastes and interests progressed and your route into the studio?
“It started with classical piano lessons and composing music for small ensembles and piano. After that I got my inspiration from jazz and electronica and I discovered the possibilities of music production, club-driven tracks and the art of DJing. I have always been fascinated by the connections and arrangements that can be made in music. I realized that I want to create a bridge between jazz and dance music, where complex chord progressions and unexpected twists can express themselves in an accessible dance structure.
First, my productions were based on midi controllers, DAWs and me playing the piano, but lately I invested in more analogue gear and I really like the sound and the fact that it is intuitive.”
I think we can hear this in your music, there's certainly a level of sophistication that not all dance oriented music contains. Would you mind revealing what the first record you bought was?
“What immediately comes to mind is that I bought a compilation CD of piano concerts by Mozart. Maybe not that “badass”, but I was really obsessed by the way he composed music.”
Well, in his own way, Mozart was a badass! Can you tell us about any special artists who have influenced your music?
“Flying Lotus, because of his quirky way of combining musical worlds and creating his own path with his record label.
Prince, for being the most versatile artist ever. He had the guts to release music without always having a commercial point of view.
Miles Davis, for making music based on improvisation without concessions.
Underworld, they make almost organic sounding productions with electronic instruments.
Junkie XL, he evolved his career from being an electronic dance artist to becoming a Hollywood film composer in such an inspiring way.”
Beau looking cool 2. Photo by Zahra Reijs
That's a nice and varied list, hard to argue with some of those picks. Now, back to the studio, do you have any favourite kit or gizmos you want to tell us about?
“I really like to combine old drum machines with organic percussion and drum samples or recordings. In this process, I like to use the kits of Samples From Mars and my TR8s to re-trigger the samples and jam around with different selections. To make the sounds a bit more edgy and punchy, I like to record the drums through distortion pedals.
My productions are mainly constructed around me playing the piano. With MIDI, I’m able to play every instrument in the world. Since I invested in more analogue gear, I tend to send the MIDI to different synthesizers for a sound that is suitable for the production. This is really basic, but it becomes interesting when you also automate the MIDI parameters of the analogue gear. With this technique you are able to make musical gestures you never were able to make with human hands.”
And how about your process, do you tend to work fast or labour over projects?
“My process is mostly two-sided. In the first part - the beginning of the process - I really enjoy making musical structures fast and express my feelings in a direct way through music. It depends on the project if I start with a conceptual approach before I start to jam out. This can be really helpful to give a direction, but I really like to let the music evolve in a fluid and intuitive way as well. This keeps the music more human and lively.
The second part of the process is more the detailed production side. When the arrangements are done I go into the sounds and effects for the production and start to (pre-) mix the project. In this stage I give the selection of sounds a bit more time to develop in the project and play with effects as instruments to give the project more depth.”
We understand you also compose film scores, can you tell us a bit about how that works, for example are you sent film footage to work to, or just given a brief?
“In most of the projects I did, I was briefed before any footage was shot for the movie. The director then explains to me how he envisions the world he wants to create. The first music I make can therefore ensure that the director comes closer to this cinematic world and is mainly based on a certain sound/genre that fits the movie. After a while - when the movie gets more shape - I reconstruct the music to fit the image and look at sequence of the compositions within the entire film.”
Are there any of your scores you're particularly proud of or want to tell us about?
“Drama Girl, it is a score that is based on constructing old cinematic composition techniques with analogue synthesizers. It’s a really sound and emotion-driven score and it was a process that took almost two years.”
We understand you're based in Rotterdam. What can you tell us about the scene there/ in The Netherlands generally?
“The Netherlands is very open to dance music and also to the more underground styles of dance music. They are supporting it with big festivals and events like ADE.
In Rotterdam, there are smaller organizations that aim for an international audience and they try to connect Dutch artists with each other. For example Fluid Funk - the new Rotterdam-based label, which is releasing my ‘Beyond Two Souls EP’ - connects Dutch artists, but also connects them with big (international) remixers and with other (international) artists. Fluid Funk offers young artists a great base for their careers and lets them mostly be in charge of the substantive content.”
Intersting. We’re familiar with the Amsterdam Rush Hour scene, but less aware of what Rotterdam has to offer. Was the city locked down due to the Covid-19 outbreak, if so, how did you spend the lockdown?
“Rotterdam was in an “intelligent” lockdown. This means we were able to still hit the streets and meet other people. I was still able to go to the studio and collaborate with other artists from Rotterdam. In the beginning of the lockdown, I felt a bit sad due the cancellation of 22 gigs, but I tried to put this energy in an EP. This resulted in a collaboration EP with a good friend, a vocalist/producer named Sykes. We tried to reflect on the elusive times of the lockdown in an abstract way. The “Hold Tight EP” and its video have just been released and I’m working on the performance of a streaming concert in collaboration with online radio station Operator.”
That sounds cool man. And do you have any more releases on the horizon?
“The score of Drama Girl is going to be released on my own label. I have an EP release planned on the Bristol-based imprint Boogie Café and a single release on INI Movement. I will also start working on my debut artist album this summer. Furthermore, I am in talks with Fluid Funk about a follow-up EP planned for 2021.”
Great, we'll keep our eyes peeled for that. Is there anything else you want to tell us about at all?
“I really like how you guys picked the name for your radio shows: Baliaric. Especially, since I’m in a Balearic environment right now!”
Haha, well in fact we can’t take credit for that. The Balearic.fm brand belongs to the radio station, but we like it to and they're good friends of ours. Thanks so much for talking to us today, and we wish you the best with your excellent new record!
Beau Zwart ‘Beyond Two Souls’ EP is out Septmber 4 on Fluid Funk. You can listen and buy here
