At first glance, the launch of new project called Tyoma by prominent producer and musician Artem Kharchenko is the simple and obvious decision to make one more moniker for situational productions, but further exploration reveals a far more interesting story. Rapidly changing and expanding the frames of his own sound, Artem stays constant in making quality music. This gives him the freedom to maneuver without the baggage of past achievements weighing him down.
Seeking to showcase the sound that best represents him in 2015, we dialed up the Prime Minister of Kazantip to find out more about what he has planned for the future. Here’s how we got on.
Let’s start from subtotal. After your single ‘Voiceless’ became very successful in the second half of 2000s, we got used to the presence of your name in media. You were writing a lot of music, had regular gigs, your project R-Tem was making waves internationally and you recorded two full-length albums as part of Kooqla. Then you disappeared. What was the reason for this pause?
Yeah, that’s the way it was! We recorded the second album with Kooqla, went on tour and realized that we need to rest a little bit from each other. Each member of the project had their own goals and ambitions by that time, which they have successfully brought to life since. Additionally it must be said that whilst we put the project on hold, we’ve retained the ability to revisit it. It had also become clear that Kooqla has considerably outstripped its time.
Then in 2010 Kazantip appeared in my life again. I plunged myself into the festival and as a result didn’t have as much time for Kooqla. I never gave up music though. I’d been writing quite a lot, including soundtracks for videos and instrumental sketches. I’d also been working on sound design.
At some point, having accumulated a lot of new material, the question ‘What to do next?’ arose and with this new music being very different to the sound of R-Tem or Kooqla, I came to an internal understanding of what the ideal electronic live show should be and how I should go about delivering it. So, gradually, I began composing something completely different. A whole layer of music crystallized from the saved-up material, with which I completely identify myself at the moment.
It seems that creativity comes quite easily to you.
No, it’s never easy. Though, everything happens. Sometimes everything goes with ease. As a rule, I don’t suffer in the studio, but if something doesn’t work for a long time, I just switch to another thing. I’m not looking for inspiration; it comes naturally from everyday life – events and people who surround me. Recently I’ve done a full upgrade of my studio in Moscow and replaced all “digital” instruments with analog ones. New instruments inspire me like nothing else, it feels like someone has added a pack of new letters to the alphabet.
Now is an interesting, active and very important time for me. First of all, because I’ve come to an understanding of what music I want to be associated with my name rather than a project name.
Does this mean we’ve seen the end of R-Tem and Kooqla?
I don’t think that these are mutually exclusive things. Of course, today I’m more interested in working on Tyoma but I’m not inclined to close previous projects. They can get a sequel. Kooqla was collaboration. The first album was recorded with Nata Zhyzhchenko, frontwoman of Onuka, the vocalist of Tomato Jaws at that time and the second one with Nata Smirina from Pur:Pur.
Lets talk about Tyoma. After the release of ‘Unclose’ as the Kazantip ‘intro’ many had assumed that the Tyoma moniker would only be used for that EP. When did you realize that Tyoma had turned into something bigger?
I can’t deny that I had certain preferences at ‘intro’ choosing for Kazantip but I never cared about the mission of writing the ‘intro’ for the new chapter of Republic’s life to be mine every time. Regarding ‘Unclose’, the same story has happened to this track as to ‘Voiceless’. Nikita (Marshunok, the president of the Republic – auth.) had heard a demo-version of the track and at once suggested to take it for a winter teaser of Z22. As a result it spread on the web so rapidly, so that people dubbed it the new “intro”. Perhaps more surprisingly – to me at least – is just how popular acoustic piano version of ‘Unclose’ became.
You asked about awareness. I can tell that I remember exactly when it was. Understanding that Tyoma is “something bigger” came when I ordered designer a logo for the project. It was then I clearly realized exactly what I wanted and how it would look like. It was then than I got the feeling that this is the beginning of a new stage of my career.
There’s not too much information about your new project on the web but there’s a feeling that you’re preparing for something big. It’s quite difficult to hide big hit potential of your single ‘1st’ under external asceticism. It seems that the track’s just waiting in the wings?
Partly it is. Currently only two tracks are released – ‘Unclose’ and ‘1st’. It was important for me to understand the reaction audiences would have to them to make the correct conclusions and to answer the question: is this the right path? Then, of course, the debut album will be released. It will include both these tracks which will be the first two singles. ‘Unclose’ is a pilot one wheras ‘1st’ will come arrive as an EP complete with remixes. All this will happen this Autumn.
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Can we expect this album to arrive this year?
I think yes. Now I’m ready to talk about my forthcoming album. It’s almost ready. Some technical moments remain, to work on which I’ve already booked studio in Berlin. After that it will be possible to announce a specific release date.
A general theme in the album is my sincere belief that you don’t have to be obsessed with your studio and your setup. New ideas come through communication and meeting new people. Accordingly, recording and selection of material are the first stages of the work for me. Then comes the turn of mixing and mastering.
I don’t want to send my material somewhere and just wait for someone to make my sound cool. It’s much more interesting to go to colleagues and exchange experiences. In different studios, with different analog processing, the difference in sound of the tracks can be striking. And then the most difficult and responsible moment comes – searching for your ideal sound. Each component, including quality of sound is important. Your music can only become really catchy if you take into consideration each and every moment.
How would you characterize the sound of the album?
I can say that this album is definitely not standard 4 /4 people dance to in clubs usually. This is more like mix of down tempo, forward-thinking electronica and saturated analog sound. This music demands a lot of space.
Talk us through your plans for a live show.
We’re working with guys from Cyber Tiger, thinking of interactive installation and trying to solve several technical and creative problems at the same time. We’re looking for a shape, which would allow us to do the show on different stages: be it a club or museum, or art gallery or rooftop, planetarium, or field. The most important is right atmosphere that helps audience to feel Tyoma’s music.
Sounds intriguing! Whose expertise you rely on in the development of such innovative project?
We were initially aimed to create something special, something new. But, of course, we can’t manage without inspiration sources. We are closely watching everything that is going on and have already studied live shows of Björk, Richie Hawtin, Moderat and many other artists well.
I hope that as a result the show will have absorbed all that we have seen and our own experience in organizing large-scale projects. I say ‘we’ and ‘us’ because a large number of people are involved to this live-show preparation. In any case, you don’t have a long time to wait. I think the premiere will take place in the beginning of next year, and we’ll see how that turns out.
An enduring theme that runs throughout your music is its cinematic nature. Even knowing that you’re preparing a special show, I still think that this doesn’t exhaust the flow of visual images that inspire such tracks as ‘1st’ and ‘Unclose’. What about music videos? Are there any ideas in this direction?
Thank you. I take this question as a complement, because it isn’t easy to write music in cinematically. Perhaps, my previous experience with music for various videos has affected mehere but, as we’ve already managed to understand, Tyoma is equally both musical and visual project. It is a symbiosis of two closely connected types of art. We have some ideas for several videos. We plan to shoot them in Moscow and Kiev.
Will Tyoma always be strictly solo project or will we see you collaborating with other artists?
I’m always down for collaboration! I’m always excited to work with Nata Zhyzhchenko, with whom we started with club tracks, and then moved on to more complex compositions for Kooqla. Of course, when Nata released his first track as Onuka I immediately said: “Give me the a capella and I’ll remix it!”.
This eventually came out and as far as I know Nata liked it. I’m good friends with her and her producer Eugene Filatov. I have several joint tracks with Nata but it isn’t clear yet whether or not they will be included in the debut album of Tyoma or will be released as a separate singles.
Are there any producers from abroad who could take part in the work on your new album?
I can recall a few sound engineers with whom I met while working on the album and these people offered up a completely different approach. Of course, I have many artist friends who periodically offer their participation. Several of them want to create tracks together so there’s of communication going on.
There is also a stunningly talented Berlin pianist Uri Gincel, a former member of the band Bonaparte, whom I once booked to play Live on Mars. He offered to help me record a piano version of “Unclose”. He played it on the piano in his studio in Berlin and, of course, I released this version. He’s coming to stay with me on a musical vacation soon and I’m sure that we’ll make something new together.