Introducing: Rubén Farzati

by | Electro, indieBerlin, Introducing, Lockdown Life, New Music

The first time I met Rubén was at a random bar in Berlin, when I was at a bar-crawl on a “boring” Tuesday with a good friend of mine. He was bartending, and actually just called last-called as me and my friend entered the bar. All of a sudden, this boring Tuesday got more interesting!
He was so nice and open, and actually let us stay and drink some beers and have conversations with him while he was closing the bar.
We connected online, and have stayed in touch!
He said yes to do and interview, and lucky us!
Rubén’s music is dreamy and easy to get completely hypnotised by.
So go make yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea, turn up his music and enjoy our chat with Rubén Farzati!

Rubén Farzati

Rubén Farzati

indieberlin: Tell us a little bit about your musical background

Rubén: I studied electroacoustic music composition at the University in Buenos Aires, Argentina (the city where I was born). But I grew up learning music and composition with my father, who is also a musician. Then I acquired other experiences and apprenticeships making music with members of former bands of which I was a part and by my own. I always had the concern to move between different styles such as electronic, pop, psychedelic rock, ambient, experimental and classical music. I think all of that was unconscious training while practicing it.

 

indieberlin: Tell us how you ended up in Berlin

Rubén: In 2015 and after my ex-band –Indica– dissolved, I felt quite stuck in Buenos Aires. One of several reasons why I chose to move to Berlin. I had been visiting the city since 2013, every year I came to live here for a few months and returned to my country. In 2017 I made the decision to move permanently. Also much of my decision was because of an intense love relationship that ended shortly after I moved.

indieberlin: How does the songwriting process work for you?

Rubén: Generally it is like making a collage or trying to reflect certain mental images that I have in my head, in most cases it is like a landscape that I cannot see well but I know the colours and shapes that are on it. Once I can turn this into music, the story I want to tell speaks for itself in the song and the lyrics are spoken by the music. I have an obsession talking about the possible truths behind the emotions we experience as human beings. On the other hand, I usually compose all the instruments, record and produce them, and then search among friends and fellow musicians that I would like to have those sounds performed.

 

indieberlin: you just released the most dreamy video Caen Atomos can you tell us a little bit about it?

Rubén: Thanks for the dreamy concept! 🙂

 I had the single ready to be released but I wanted to publish it with a video, and I didn’t have much time to do it or budget. So I decided to borrow a couple of video cameras and my phone and do it on my own. The video was mostly filmed in Plänterwald, Tempelhofer Feld and HasenHeide. The idea came from seeing my flatmate Mirko being hypnotised reflecting the light of a prism on his face. Then I resolved that the lyrics of the song and the images had to be linked to leaving the past behind and somehow being purified by the present and the loneliness we sometimes go through. The video was recorded and edited on my own, being advised by a friend, film director Kevin Perelman and some camera assistants from Walter Von Specht.

indieberlin: If your music was a movie, which genre would it be in?

Rubén: I’m not completely sure, but I think it would be a mix between Paul Thomas Anderson and Michael Gondry. Something like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless mind mixing with Punch Drunk Love and some Woodstock documentary. So maybe Drama! 🙂

 

indieberlin: Where do you get your inspiration from?

Rubén: This is all like my healing process for situations that are beyond me, or situations that move me toward trying to evolve in pure and honest states with myself and others. I don’t know what I’m doing and I know it’s much easier to be honest than to lie, and I know that a lot of my inspiration when writing songs comes from that feeling.

indieberlin: how are you handling the corona lockdown? Have you been able to stay productive?

Rubén: It is a great time to reflect on many things about ourselves, give space to those things that are always pending even though we know we must work on them. Stop the carrousel of distractions and really look inwards instead of outwards. I keep myself busy, finishing my album, thinking about the next one, painting and enjoying the hot sun on my face. Staying positive is a great chance to expand creativity and gain more empathy at these times when we all need to really be united.

 

indieberlin: Do you see your songs in colour or in black and white?

Rubén: Definitely in colours!

 

indieberlin: What language do you prefer to sing in and why?

Rubén: I think in Spanish as it is my native language, but since I would really like my songs to reach a larger audience, I am working on my next songs or album in English. Although I think some songs will always be in Spanish 😉

 

indieberlin: Do you have any lockdown tips/tricks/hobbies to recommend?

Rubén: Making handmade or digital collages can lead to a very creative hobby if you are not a musician. Or even if you are, you can unlock other levels of music composition.

 

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