Sebastian Mullaert & Patrick Siech Announce Part One of Their Genome Trilogy
Inspired in equal measure by analog synthesizer technology and the lush Swedish countryside, Genome marks the first collaboration between veteran techno producers Patrick Siech and Minilogue’s Sebastian Mullaert, with part one of the three-EP series appearing on Richie Hawtin’s Minus label. Recorded live to tape last spring, the four tracks that comprise Genome 1 make for a transformative dancefloor experience that morphs and swoops its way through soulful, sweaty analog techno with flourishes of 303-style acid.
Mullaert and Siech met in their hometown of Malmö, Sweden, back in 2000, when Mullaert was premiering his Minilogue project live with partner Marcus Henriksson. Siech opened that show with his very first public DJ set. The pair kept in touch over the years in the small but tightknit scene, and when it came time for Mullaert to set up his new studio in the small forest village of Röstånga, an hour outside of the city, he enlisted Siech’s help, which led to a week of intense experimentation and lengthy analog-synth jams. “That was the real door opener for us,” says Mullaert. “We didn’t have any concept or vision in mind for it, other than having fun together.”
Central to the Genome series is Siech’s modular synth, which he reassembled in Mullaert’s studio for the recording. “I credit all my tracks partly to the ghost that lives in this machine,” says Siech. “I can’t imagine making music without it. There are so many variables in it that create strange voltage fluctuations, so you can never be 100% sure what it will throw at you from the speakers.”
From that low-pressure recording environment emerged a number of epically mesmerizing live tracks, one take of which forms the basis for Genome 1’s 10-minute-long “Main Mix,” its burbling, arpeggiated synth lead almost breathing on its own, constantly shifting in and out of sync as the track’s propulsive drums gently come into focus.
“When you’re jamming live, you are actually there to really feel a track as it’s supposed to be heard,” says Siech. “If it’s a good track and you manage to hypnotize yourself during the recording process, it will normally end up long because that’s just what feels right. And you don’t want to wake people from their dream state too soon if you don’t have to.”
Both producers have a penchant for crafting long, drawn-out dancefloor compositions. “Honestly, a 10-minute track is pretty short for me,” Mullaert says with a laugh. The deep, meditative aspects of dance music are key to his slowly evolving soundscapes. “As a DJ, I love those long journeys where the dancer loses the concept of different tracks, and they all melt together into one.”
Inspired by the live take that became Genome 1’s “Main Mix,” Mullaert went back into the studio and crafted three more versions to complement the lead track. The “Sebastian Mullaert Dub” molds the original’s meandering structure and refocuses it for a deeper, darker dancefloor. His “Remake” maintains the tension while introducing new melodic elements half-way through, and his “Reshape” (under his Wa Wu We guise) is a subdued, spatial dub-techno suite that’s punctuated by rich analog sonics.
“Dance music has a very spiritual element to me,” Mullaert explains. “I dance because I it helps me to get in touch with my inner truth; it basically helps me to relax in being me, and appreciate and be thankful for what I am.” Moving his home and studio to the countryside also helped facilitate that introspection. “The national park begins just a few hundred meters from my studio,” he says. “Walks in the forest and meditation is part of my daily life, and also an important part of getting in touch with my creativity.”
In that respect, the name “Genome” takes on a double meaning: “The genome is the building brick and sequence of life,” informs Siech. “It’s about the creative process of making a record in the ancient forest surrounding Sebastian’s studio, and also the organic randomness of the analog equipment we’ve used throughout the process,” he says, considering the natural worlds both outside and inside the studio. “Lucky accidents happen all the time that make your track turn into something better than what you might’ve expected. It’s the machines having a life of their own.”
Expect two more Genome EPs in the future, along with a full-on analog live show, Sebastian Mullaert & Patrick Siech Present GENOME LIVE, in 2015.