Coffee break with Sandrino
Mention the name, and you’ll instantly know who we’re talking about. From humble beginnings tackling the early nights, the late mornings and every other moment in between at Butan Club in Wuppertal, Sandrino has been half of one of the most forward-thinking and versatile DJing and production duos since his chance meeting in 2010 with Frankey.
Having just finished an exclusive mix for us at Melodic Diggers, we had the pleasure to catch a coffee break with him to find out more about him, his inspirations, how he digs for music, and of course, what hat he’s currently sporting.
Hey there, Sandrino, great to have you pop by! Please enlighten us on what an average day is for you?
Hello there. thank you very much, likewise.
A normal day at home starts very early as our little one goes to kindergarten. Right after dropping her off, I go to the gym or I use my journey time home to get some work done, including emails, continuous music searching, phone calls with Frank & Kompakt. In the afternoon I try to dedicate my time to my family - I try to live a normal life.
How are you taking your coffee right now?
Short, classic espresso! Not the fancymancy new fruity-sour kind of roast but classical neapolitan espresso!
You've just finished a mix for us at Melodic Diggers. We're really digging it! It goes through quite a wave of different emotions and sounds; it has a lot of futuristic elements mixed with plenty of smooth cinematic sounds, break-beats and with a quite a retro and escapist feel at times.
What scene are you trying to conjure up from the mix? Did you have a particular process when producing it?
A mix is something very personal for me as it catches a snapshot in time of how I feel. I stopped trying to fit in all genres of the music I love as it seems to be impossible (I love too many) within one hour, so I rather prefer to conjure a specific feeling I have at that very moment, which could be melancholic, happiness, sadness, or even everything at once - but with the right amount of hope at the end.
The process of starting a mix is always the same: there is the general idea in my head of how it should sound, so I begin to search for the right notes/songs to get it out of my head and put it all together into a flawless mix.
It's a long process until I find the songs I feel are right and I agree with.
You must know that I always approach 99% of what I have in mind track wise, but also mixing. I deeply hope it’ll always be like this, as the other 1%, which although often drives me crazy, is what it’s all about.
It keeps me searching, learning and being focused. The mix itself is the less time-consuming part, so when you finally have the songs it oftens goes smoothly by itself.
You've named the mix 'Symphony Tenebrarum', in which 'Tenebrarum', a Latin word, translates into English as 'darkness'. Would you say your style in this mix is a darker side to your music, infused with symphonic elements, or is there another underlying reason behind the name and the combination of an English and Latin word?
Regardless of how dark it is, there is always light around. For humans, even though to us there’s an invisible spectrum of light, such as ultraviolet, there’s also infrared simultaneously present.
I like this Idea.
Therefore the music is like the constant invisible presence of light, whilst leading me like a symphony through the darkest of night.
Would you class yourself as more of a day or night kind of person?
Absolutely both.
2003 seemed to be the real turning point for you and your career: you began your residency at Burton Club in Germany. How did this come about and how did it change you, your DJing and your perspective on music in general?
My residency at Butan was a very important part in my development. I learnt a lot about DJing, but I also met Frankey there.
It was a club dominated by the harder Techno and Psytance sound, and it was here where I worked with Tobias (the owner on some of the more ‘lighter’ bookings).
As a resident I was placed in different situations, such as opening the night, playing peak time, closing, and sometimes all night long so I learnt to play differently and to respect what was being played before, what was about to come and what it was about now.
But my favourite spot was to play the second room from 6am in the morning. It closed between 6 and 7am, and everybody came into this space for the final dance. I remember how intense those morning hours were - people went completely nuts and we often closed just after midday.
I loved that as I could play everything I wanted.
Since 2016, you've been running your record label, Sum Over Histories, with your DJ and production partner, Frankey. When starting up the label, what was the vision in mind, and is it still the same today?
Music first I’d say.
I have the impression that music is becoming more and more edged out if its not functional and the visual aspects, like a very frequent and interactive Instagram, are more important than the music itself nowadays.
With Sum Over Histories we focus clearly on music we like, regardless of the genre or the artist of that music.
On the label, 'Path Integral I' (2016) and 'Path Integral II' (2019) have a three year gap between them, with a small cluster of releases in between those years. Bearing this in mind, would you say you are quite select in what you chose? What do you look out for in a release, if anything at all?
We’re a small label and we do everything by ourselves.
Often the lack of knowledge of “how to run a label professionally” makes things slower, or simply just because we’re touring a lot.
We receive a lot of good music and demos which we may like to play out but might not necessarily want to release. If we both feel that the music we were sent has something we both deeply like, we try to release it. Simple as that.
When it comes to your music and DJing, what’s the process you go through finding music to play and how do you gain inspiration which is new and pushes your boundaries further?
I’m constantly searching and looking for new music and going through promos, but also digging on platforms like Bandcamp or Beatport, as well having a handful of trustworthy friends I can talk to about new discoveries and so forth.
And how to push boundaries? From the beginning I try not to have boundaries at all so I keep my mind and ear sharp for the new, the fresh or the particular.
Having released music on several different labels, including Kompakt, Exploited, Innervisions and Diynamic (just to name a few!), do you ever feel pressure to adjust your tracks to the feel of that particular label? What would you say is the one prominent element you keep alive in all productions, regardless of the label?
No - the creative process in the studio should be a self-contained and independent creative process which completely reflects your inner self. If you try to fit in, you’re just a service provider working on an ordered product and I definitely don’t want to be that.
Of course you develop your own signature sound, and after a while these sounds will be more audibly prominent throughout your productions. It’s not because you are stuck on something, but more so because it belongs to you.
Best dancefloor moment?
Every moment when the crowd and DJ are on the same page and are fully committed to each other and the music.
Your favourite hat to wear?
Haha, I have around 40 and I like them all.
At the moment I’m regularly wearing a new one I bought recently - a red cord flat cap by Stetson.
Any life ethos you live by?
Don’t take everything too seriously.
Interview by Joanne Philpott.
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