What’s your story as an artist?
I started writing songs at a young age and then in my early twenties I started working as a backup singer for a lot of pop artist touring mostly Europe and the US.
At some point I started writing for myself again – first starting in a duo band called “Take Berlin” and then on a solo writing retreat in Hudson (upstate NYC) some time in 2017 I decided to release music under the name of Panteon (which came to me in a dream – it sounds odd but it’s the truth).
What inspired this last release?
After finishing my full length album ‘Open Fire’ in early 2020 it felt good to jump into new material – kind of a fresh start – and with the pandemic being in full circle I spent a lot of time at home listening to music. You could say I had a real Andy Shauf month listening to his songs back and forth and one morning I just grabbed my guitar and thought it would be nice to write a song about him. I wrote the song in a day and was done with recording and producing it in less than a week. Sometimes songs come to you in an easy way and that was definitely one of those moments.
What are some sources of inspiration for your storytelling?
Traveling and getting out of my usual routine are always a wonderful inspiration. I don’t necessarily love writing about myself or my own personal episodes on life but sometimes its necessary and a good outlet. I like telling stories about other people and I guess in some ways they become my stories as well.
Any funny anecdotes from the time you were recording or writing this?
Not sure if this is anywhere near to funny but I just bought a mellotron during that time and was eager to use it on any new material so when I finished writing the song I was like I’m gonna add mellotron wherever I can. I literally recorded tracks and tracks of this new ‘toy” and its sounds and then a few days later when I started editing and opened up the session again I thought: “ What was I thinking ? This songs sounds like a big fluffy brass blanket “. I had to erase some of the tracks. I guess I got too excited…and a little carried away but besides the guitar, drum machine and bass everything else is the mellotron in all its beauty.
Tell us about the music video and the idea behind it ?
I have been doing stop motion videos in the past and knew I wanted to incorporate it into the ‘Storyteller’ video. I was visiting an Andy Warhol exhibition at a Fotografiska in NYC in September and got inspired by the way he was making use of all these polaroid pictures having different colors but similar objects and placing them next to each other. I liked the idea of being in the video with a similar approach but having different outfits, facial expressions etc. to represent a variety of storytellers. I also included a figure of a more traditional storyteller who shows up in the video here and there – sneaking into the stop motion frames. The backdrop is additional old and new footage I shot in the last few weeks.
What’s a record that shaped your creativity?
For this release it was definitely the whole Andy Shauf collection with my favorite album being “The Party”.
Who is an artist or band you look up to today?
Many artists from old to new. My heart is rooted in a lot of analog sounding production – You could say I really love soulful music and with that I don’t necessarily mean the genre which I love as well but more artists/bands that sound soulful. Some of them are Joni Mitchell, Moses Sumney, Ariel Pink, Adrienne Lenker, Son Little, Aldous Harding, Kadhja Bonet, Paul Simon, Kelsey Lu, Tim Bernardes, Kate Bush, Alice Coltrane…..neverending list.
Any future projects?
I will be releasing two more singles in the new year and I am currently working with another songwriter/producer on some new songs with a little different feel to it which I’m excited about.
A lot of new music coming out in 2022.
What is your view on genres and music styles since you mix a lot of them in your music?
That is a good question. I never really cared about staying or being in one genre, even tho I know it is easier for a lot of people/listeners to give it a name or a genre. I think most people are wired that way – if it is music or any other form of art. However I always just wrote what feels right to me and I respect so many genres and what they offer so how could I possibly choose to stick with one ? Many of the artist I mentioned above shift between genres and I love that about them – you have to be bold to not get caught up in what might be the easiest to digest. Some times it takes a minute and some effort to stick with something to find even more beauty in it. Specially in these times when we have all the tools to make it as easy as possible ( ..and not being sure if that is really better in the end ).
What does music and art mean to you?
It might be one of the biggest reasons why I get up in the morning.
Nothing makes me as happy as creating or hearing, seeing or reading someone else’s ideas and work. It makes all the difference. It gives me a feeling of being “whole” somehow – when it moves me.
How would you describe your act in one word?
Transcendental.
