WE CAUGHT UP WITH AMATTEUUR ON LOCKDOWN IN BRAZIL
How Did you become interested in live music performance and can you talk us through your set up and creative process?
I’m guided by my body. A frustrated hyperactive dancer, who finds aesthetic answers in the “bodily jouissance” (Lacan Jaques, 1971). In other words: I feel the urge to move, to shuffle myself in subtleties, to shatter. I envision scenes as I compose, I bring insights from everyday life to my lyrics and sometimes I do some sort of wild choreography in the living room in order to feel the groove.
Since I’m not a great singer, I record screams and moans to use as creative material, which also helps to ease the language barrier. I’m a compulsive writer of a personal journal, so I feel as in a constant state of learning. Over time I learned that habit is what defines the creative process. Sitting down to write songs, rain or shine, knowing that some days will be better than others, with a humble attitude before the complexity that is “music-matter”.
Can you tell us a bit of a description of the mix you’ve sent us?
This is a curious situation, actually… I’d never done an official DJ-Mix before! But I am obsessed with developing narratives and that’s what inspired me to make this mix as sort of like an old cassette mixtape. It’s 20 minutes “per side”, just like the ones I usually make and send to friends so they can listen while cooking or relaxing. On the A side I tried to present some tracks that have inspired me, with music from labels such as Minus, Gigolo, Infiné, etc. On the B side I decided to highlight tracks from the label Nein, of which I am now honored to be a part of.
Great stuff Amatteuur, now for the mission to Mars!
Let's pretend and fast forward to the year 2033, and NASA announces they are selecting an elite few to be the first of mankind to touch down on Mars. Based on your resounding intelligence, witty humor, skills, and good looks - You have been chosen! Question is, would you accept a one-way ticket?
I certainly would! Everything that has to do with science interests me: bionic implants, artificial intelligence, space travel, multiverses... and especially when science gravitates towards mystical aspects and points to new paths in human evolution. Maybe because of my “feral” childhood I dream of possessing an enormous tail, feline claws and reptilian skin. And I would give anything to take part in in-loco experiments. My new song, “Fake Alenia”, is inspired on my actual (funny) attempts of enrolling as a volunteer in the Thales Alenia Space Group in Torino, Italy.
Your luck is in! You are the chosen Commander! There's a big old space ship waiting to be named….. What are you going to call her?
That’s an easy one: Somesthesia! It’s a beautiful name that has been chasing me for years. And it stands for the ability that human beings and animals have of receiving information of the different parts of their bodies, some of which we are never conscious of.
Tricky one but you have to make the decision… If you can take anyone – past or present – fact or fiction - What 3 space cadets are you going to take with you on your adventure of a lifetime?
As the adage says, “you truly get to know people when you travel with them”. And I have many amazing friends that I would like to get to know better:
Marise Cardoso: singer, poet, yogi, cook, masseuse, cultural promoter, and mystical.
Paulo Weisberg: architect, tinkerer, scientist, mathematician, and philosopher.
Cybernetic Control Entity: I believe our ship will require a character-based in machine learning, like William from the Netflix series “Another Life”. Essential.
Crew and spaceship ready, the final countdown has begun. Now you have just one day left on Earth ……..what would you do?
Wow. Big day. Everyone will be watching from the TV the drone show that will be broadcast live by strategically positioned satellites. I want to cover Earth’s surface with drones equipped with mirrors that will emit lasers, drawing spiraling light rays while also emitting a synchronized sound and moving in unison like a 360 orchestra. The audience will have an inside-out and outside-in experience.
It takes 7 months for you and your team's quest to Mars. 7 months! You are allowed a choice of 5 records to play on the Inflight Space Entertainment system– which belters do you take with you?
Dopplereffekt – Linear Accelerator
Antonymes - 301210
Uakti - I Ching
System of a Down - Toxicity
Kraftwerk - Computer World
You’ve made it! Now time to make things like home… What Netflix series would you choose to watch?
Considering that the original “Twilight Zone” series are not available on Netflix, it would be an understatement to say that I’m a fan of “Black Mirror”, “Love&Robots” and “Midnight Gospel”. But I also enjoyed “We are the Waves”, “Wild Wild Contry” and “The Losers” (the latter is a docuseries on talented athletes and sportspeople who were neglected from history because they were defeated or came in second).
A new planet needs new rules and regulations. You can write one law on planet Mars that everyone has to obey by, what law would you put in place, and why?
Laws should be put in perspective relative to time, they require dialogue. There would be no need for a government, only a weekly council meeting, to oversee matters with multiple points-of-view. Anarchist, humanist and dataist fundaments guide the council in general. But attention is required in regards to social hierarchies and labor relations, which are the Achilles Heels of many laws. In 2017 I wrote (informally) a manifest called “The Blank Page Society” that envisions a network of friends who cooperate among themselves: each person would receive a “salary” to spend on their own personal research (be it carpentry, engineering, arts, etc…) and once a month they must disclose how have they been conducting their own life and present the process. The presentations take into consideration each person’s personal commitment with their deepest ideals and objectives; in other words: one receives a salary to be free.
Things have got a little hairy, you are in a sticky situation and stood face to face with a 3 eyed,15ft neon green Alien and about to get into a bust-up! What song comes on as your chosen kick-ass soundtrack?
If there is something that I miss in the human condition, it’s the FIGHT! To show ones teeth, fueled by adrenaline and the impulse to fight till the end, even if your own. I would love to fight such an alien, especially if I could have Ultraman-type powers.
Natan Fake / Vassels - The Sky Was Pink
Finally, you are allowed one phone call back to Earth, who do you call?
I immediately call Henrique Roscoe.
OKAY GUY, NOW TDDUD WANTS TO FIND OUT A LITTLE MORE ABOUT YOU.
Describe a heartwarming, skin tingling, goosey memorable moment from your musical journey so far?
The first real performance, “Amateuur - The Social Robot”, was done without any rehearsals and everything was ready only 15 minutes before the theater opened. I didn’t know what was going to happen myself, I had a vague idea of a script in my mind. At the end of the performance, the lighting technician left a gloom of indecision and I decided to escape the cage, improvising an act 3 where I ran across the audience wearing blood-covered spandex, scaring people and running out the main exit. Everyone (my crew included) stood waiting for an ending that never was. It was hilarious and very difficult to repeat afterward.
If you can name anything, what is your best ever / worse ever musical purchase?
I live in symbiosis with my Electribe SX1, that old red valved model.
Tell us something we don't know…
In 2006, at the beach in Barcelona, I made some excellent ball passes while playing on Gigolo’s beach soccer team. James Murphy and Tiga were the guy scoring, Hell was a midfielder, I was a forward and each “2manydjs” brother were on the sides. Excellent team! We won by a landslide.
Oops. I need to hide a body. Any ideas?
Sure! My wife Sabrina is handicapped and at home, we have a domestic, bunker-type, elevator with a shaft. It would fit there perfectly, no one would ever find out.
Would you rather go to a super Club, House party. Local boozer or small get together with 4 or 5 close friends over dinner at home?
I already have a very indoor lifestyle and I live in a small city. My house becomes a meeting point every Saturday, starting right after lunchtime, going through dinner and ending at jam sessions on the synthesizers in the studio. But I never miss the chance to dance at the clubs, close to the wall… or outdoors in unusual places during some parties hosted by Belo Horizonte’s amazing collectives such as Masterplano and 1010.
Lastly, we all like a good affirmation at TDDUD HQ……. What is your life’s Mantra?
I have an adage that says “Love and Liberty for All” (old post on Instagram).
