Scalk Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?
Scalk is an abstract project, I like to keep it with endless interpretations. My goal is for the listener to make his own.
For me, it's something I do out of necessity, I don’t care if I get something back or if the result is “good” or “bad”. I like the feeling of ending the day and knowing that I've created something. I would say it is a ritual and a way of expressing myself.

2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recordings?
Textures, soundscapes and a particular taste for dissonance. But I don’t mean to limit my sound in any way. It’s not supposed to have any creative boundaries.

3.So far all of your music has been instrumental, are you open to using any vocals in the future?
Maybe in a future release. I have no problem with vocals or any other instruments. If I ever decide to record and see that it fits, I don’t see why not. I just haven’t tried it yet or felt the need.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Scalk'?
Now, when I think in the word “Scalk”, I associate with all the work I have done in this project. It was not chosen because it had a meaning but rather to create one. The same goes for some of the names of songs and albums.
I like the idea of creating words from other words, it's almost like using samples in music. When I invent them they have a meaning, but over time I forget it and they end up with another.

5.With this project you record everything by yourself, are you open to working with other musicians?
Yes, of course. It's good to do things our own way, but sometimes I miss working with other musicians. It's always interesting to see the direction things take when you don’t do things all by yourself.

6.In less than a year you have put out 7 releases, do you spend a great amount of time writing and creating music?
Unfortunately not as much as I wanted. I would say that the trick is to work quickly, not fall into the trap of perfection and not to rethink things too much. I have found that doing things this way can be more productive and captures best what I want.

7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interests?
So far I have had no contact with labels. There are some that I follow and admire. Of course I would be happy to see some of my future work in their catalogs.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of ambient, drone, and noise?
Honestly I have no idea how people see this project. I don’t really like social networks and personally I don’t know anyone who listen to this kind of music, so it's hard to get feedback. It is gratifying to know that someone hears your music, but I have to admit that I don’t go out much of my world to find out.

9.Are you also involved with any other musical projects?
Not currently. However I've made part of some bands where I played guitar, bass and some machines like synths, samplers, etc. I kind of miss those days.

10.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?
I know this is not a style with a lot of reception, so I like to have low expectations. I will continue to record and publish some stuff. I'd like to try doing some live performances and maybe try to release something with a label.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
I grew up listening to rock, metal and punk bands, but I never got caught up in a music style. I’m always finding new music. It turns out that listening to albums that have elements of styles that are stranger to me, causes me to start searching for those type of sounds, and I find myself in a new world. This is how I got to more extreme music such as noise, ambient, black metal, etc.
Some stuff I hear today: the catalog of Lurkerbias and Grey Matter Productions, Mutter, Abkehr, The Body, LEICHEN, Skáphe, Wiegedood…

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
I like to read, watch movies, documentaries and some series. I always sucked at school, but these days it pleases me more and more to learn new things. Lately I’m a lot into philosophy/religion and some politics.
13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
I just wanted to say thanks for the interest and for the blog(s). Much of the music I listen to I discover on sites like "DarkUndergroundMusicZine". It's important to have places like this.

 https://scalk.bandcamp.com