10 Questions with: Monodogue

1. As an introduction to the EP “Tracks With Titles” would you like to tell us what inspired its mood and sound aesthetic?‍

Nothing, really. It’s mostly a collection of tracks I’ve done over the course of last year's spring/summer/fall. 

2. Does the series of words used for track titles stand for something? How is each title connected to what we’re listening to?

The clues are there, it can be up to the listener to craft their own story and meaning, if needed.
But, most of them are just nonsense.

3. How would you describe your creative process of composing music?

- Very often I spend a lot of time just making patches on my synths, and that can sometimes lead into the beginning of something. So it’s mostly just exploring some piece of gear that turns into happy accidents.

4. When producing music, do you use mostly hardware, or software, or a combination of both? Do you have any favorite gear at the moment?

- I use both. Sometimes only hardware, sometimes only software. Right now I’m having a lot of fun with Fors Opal, which is a fantastic piece of software for Max for Live.‍

5. How did your passion for electronic music start evolving for you? Any themes, interests or activities that inspired you?

I could write a short story about this, but I’ll keep it short. My first exposure for electronic music was through MTV at a very young age, probably 9 or something. I heard “U96 - Das Boot” and was totally blown away. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVxXbTk-zsQ - I always found dj’ing to be a interesting thing, so when I got old enough to go to the youth club (fritidsklubben) I always hung around the dj booth, either harassing the dj playing or playing myself. But things really exploded for me when I discovered the Global Underground series and the whole progressive house movement.

6. You have recently turned a father to not one but to two kids (twins), congratulations! And you also have one kid from before - How do you manage to find space for being creative and making music? 

I usually always have the laptop with a project open, and peak in every now and then, do a couple tweaks, add something, and when the evening comes and everyone is sleeping, I try to put in some good work.

7. The techno scene has changed a lot the past few years, as a producer and artist who have been in the game for a while - How have the scene changed through the year from when you started playing and now?

It definitely has gotten a lot bigger since the pandemic. Pre-pandemic it was a lot more underground, and the events were rather sparse. But I should note, that I’ve never been a “big” player in the scene, my gigs have been really few and my network has been tiny - mostly because I suck at networking and would much rather stay at home doing music instead of going out.

8. Do you have some favorite albums/vinyls that you feel have influenced you in some way?

Of course - a lot! I’ll boil it down to a very few, but there is more. A lot more.

Sasha & John Digweed - Northern Exposure 2 - these mixes really showed me how musical a dj set could be https://youtu.be/UEUbJo3cvKE

L.S.G. - Into Deep - This album really opened up the world of ambient and downtempo for me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYZqrStqZ9I

Pink Floyd - Echoes - I mean, come on! https://youtu.be/PGwPSPIhohk 

Lorn - Ask the Dust - I was really into bass music for a period, and this really peaked hard  https://youtu.be/tdKBNT641V8

Amon Tobin - Foley Room - If I can be just a fraction of a sound designer that Mr. Tobin is, I will be a happy man. https://youtu.be/j1q7OxVDauk 

Tool - Ænima - because of reasons. https://youtu.be/M1tIH55Bo8k

Adam Beyer - Stockholm Mix Sessions - This is the first mixtape I bought that was more strictly techno, back when Adam Beyer was still cool.

9. Where is your favorite place on earth to pick up some inspiration music vise?

Usually it’s as simple as at home in the morning with my first cup of coffee.

10. As of now, what do you look most forward to this year? Do you have any upcoming plans you would like to share with us?

Well, there’s this release on Flux. Other than that, my calendar is open and I’m ready for bookings. Also, I still have a bunch of unreleased stuff that’s waiting for labels to find.