Coffee Break with Skatman
For our latest Coffee Break, we caught some time with head of Scatcity Records, Skatman, who has been on a constant uphill achievement recently, thanks to his releases on TAU, Sum Over Histories and the success of his own label to add into the mix. Whilst only going from strength to strength within a short period, the Tunisian born and Berlin-based producer is showing no sign of slowing down just yet: his solid sound is continuing to ‘lead’ him in the right direction and make him one to keep an eye out for. The Skatman sound? Well, we like to define it as ‘appealing melody sequences laces with groovy basslines’ and is one we wanted to know lots more about, so spent time finding out about his musical upbringing and what inspired his new ‘Lead Master’ EP along the way.
Hey Skatman, thanks for taking out with us for this interview: how are you and how has your pandemic year differed to a ‘normal’ one? what is planned for this year in terms of music and general life?
Hi, thank you for having me. Compared to a normal year, during the pandemic I spent much more time at home and in the studio, I also had a lot less social interactions and travelling. On the positive side, I tried to make use of my time as productively as possible and was able to produce a lot of new music. On the personal side of things, I just found out the big news that I’m becoming a father by the end of the year, so as you can imagine it is a rollercoaster of emotions for me at the moment.
Music can be something we grow into as the years go by - or vice versa. What are your first recollections of music as a child? Did you always have the intention of becoming a professional producer and DJ?
Actually music was there in different forms throughout my life and from a very young age. My first memory of music as a child was when my older brother, who is 12 years older than me, taught me how to play some Tunisian traditional songs with the guitar when I was six. At the age of 12, I received an oriental keyboard from Casio as a birthday gift. That keyboard had a large variety of sounds and percussions, and you can make it play rhythms whilst playing melodies. I spent a lot of time with it whenever I could after school. I learnt how to play some random music, from oriental, pop, to classic and even movie and game soundtracks.
As a teenager I got into rock music and guitars, so I got an electric guitar, an amplifier and a distortion pedal and tried to cover some rock and metal bands. At some point I decided to join a Conservatory to finally learn music theory properly, but unfortunately I dropped out after six months because I found the lessons “boring” at the time. Instead of learning music theory I tried to compose my own music with the guitar and just played what sounded good to me - even though it could have been wrong, it was fun. Although only able to play simple riffs and basic chords, nonetheless I could play and compose a lot of songs. I was fascinated by the fact of how many songs you can do with the same chords but with different progressions.
To answer your question if I always had the intention to become a producer and DJ: unlike some other people who have different interests throughout their lives (and maybe only find what they really want to do later on in their lives), for me the two things that I am doing professionally at the moment (music and programming) are the same things that I did since being a kid - so it was a pretty clear path. I always knew that I wanted to do something with music but I wasn’t sure what it is. At some point it got clearer and I took the conscious decision that being a producer/DJ is what I want to do.
Your track ’Neo’ on TAU’s compilation saw you placed along some heavyweights in the melodic scene (which in my view pushed your music career to new profound heights). How did it feel to have you next to the likes of Echonomist, Biesmans and Underpresche? What did you like most about that collaboration and release?
The release of ‘Neo’ on the ‘Spektrum’ compilation came very naturally. After releasing my first album on Connected and two EPs on Scatcity, some labels in the scene showed big interest in my music: Adana Twins’ TAU being one of them. When I sent some demos, they really liked them and decided to release that track. I’m very happy that they chose ‘Neo’ as it’s one of my favourites. I also love the cassette tape that they did for the release, such a nice and original idea!
It takes consistency, hard work and patience to get where you are now. September 2018 saw Dixon play your track at Lost Village Festival - how did this feel at this moment in time? Was this a major turning point in your music career and did you always have such expectations of making it this big?
Seeing the people who inspired me since the very beginning playing my music is always a highlight. It is a very satisfying and surreal feeling - but it is not enough to “make it big”, and I wouldn’t say I’ve made it yet. As you said, it takes consistency, hard work and a lot of patience to make it, but it also takes continuity and improving and reinventing yourself with every track. That moment has definitely pushed my career forward and motivated me to work even more, but at the end of the day it was just a boost and a confirmation I am going in a good direction.
Your label, Scatcity Records, has gone from strength to strength with the likes of Nandu and Ivory releasing on it. What are your long term goals for it and how would you describe the journey so far? How are you finding the feedback from your fans and fellow producers?
I started my label in 2016 with the goal of bringing a breeze of fresh air to a saturated melodic scene. after the popularisation of the melodic electronic music as a genre, as many producers and labels were copying a certain sound rather than bringing the melodic sound and genre forward. The result of that was in my opinion a lot of average quality and meaningless records being released. My vision with the label was (and still is) to bring back integrity and innovation to the sound I love, taking it to a new level and triggering a change of direction - hopefully a healthier one - within our scene. The idea to achieve this was to release a maximum of three well picked records every year from artists who I think fit this vision. Luckily I found amazing producers that believed in my project and wanted to collaborate. When it comes to the artists that release on my label I believe in relationships on a personal level. We usually work on the EPs together in the sense of giving honest feedback to each other, and choosing the tracks. This relationship usually develops into a friendship, and we become more than just music contacts.
We were wondering about your artist name: did the song 'Scatman (ski-ba-bop-ba-dop-bop)' have any influence on you choosing to be named as the new reformed 'Skatman'?
In the time when I decided to start a new project and find a name, I was living with Australians who used the word “Scat” very often. It means odd or bizarre in their slang. They would use it to describe people coming out of the clubs after very long raves, to describe Berlin in general, or even to describe me. I found the word funny and somehow catchy. I was thinking I might use it in my artist name. When I searched its meaning the first thing that came up was scat singing which is singing syllables that don’t make sense to imitate melodies and rhythms. This is kind of what I do when an idea come to my mind. I often even record these to “save” ideas later for the studio. So I decided to go with the name even though I knew that there is an artist who used the same name before. If my artist name is named after Scatman John is a question that it will probably haunt me my whole career, but I don’t mind it as I actually liked his songs as a child. Maybe one day I will play “Scatman (ski-ba-bop-ba-dop-bop” from him as my closing track, can you imagine the faces in the crowd? (laughs)
You Just released the ‘Lead Master’ EP on TAU. Can you tell us what this release means for you personally and how your relationship in the TAU family has evolved since ‘Neo’?
Since releasing ‘Neo’ on TAU, I kept in touch with Benni from Adana Twins, periodically sending him demos, until I sent my ‘Lead Master’ EP which he really liked and decided to sign. The EP was done in the first lockdown where this whole pandemic situation was new, and I - like everyone else - was in a state of doubt about everything and wasn’t sure what the future held. This EP is directly attached to the emotions I had in that period. Instead of worrying about the future I put all my energy and focus in producing this EP. I wanted to come out of the pandemic with an achievement.
Can you speak us through your process of track selection for the ep and in terms of time and perfecting your sound, how long did it take to record? Any favourite piece of recording equipment that really defines the Skatman sound?
As mentioned in the previous answer, I produced my ‘Lead Master’ EP in the beginning of the first lockdown, I spent a lot of time at home and I wanted to make good use of it. I bought a new synth - the Nord Lead 2x - I totally loved the sounds that came out when I played it at home. I was so excited and it didn’t take long until I knew I could do something special. I decided to do one track with the synth and the first result was ‘Lead Master’. I made it within an afternoon, not much longer than three hours. It just worked, all the elements worked together magically and effortlessly. Usually when I have a period of high inspiration like this, I try not to interrupt it, and try to do as much music as I can. I continued working the following days and made a track every second day or so until I finished the EP.
We premiered ‘Lead Master’ on our channel recently. It’s a track with an incredibly groovy baseline alongside some really melancholic melodies: the balance between the various synth and baselines are simply splendid to listen to. What did you like most about this track and why did you choose it as the title of the EP?
I chose it as the title of the EP simply because it is the first track that I made, and it inspired the process behind the following tracks. Something I especially like about ‘Lead Master’ is that it has most of the key elements that I consider define the Skatman sound: minimalism/simplicity, intensity, deepness, interesting melody sequences and a groovy baseline.
what’s Your favourite track from the release?
If you asked me a year ago when I did the EP I would definitely say it is ‘Lead Master’. But now my taste has changed a bit and I would say it is ‘Impulsiveness’ as it also fits more the artistic direction that I want to go to with Skatman in the future.
There’s a feeling that the tracks in the release convey themes of power, ranking and strength - can you talk through about the meanings of them all? How did you think of the names and what do they mean to you personally?
Even though the names might look like they have a common theme, I actually haven’t really thought about that when I named them. Every track title has a little meaning, let me go through them:
Lead Master: This comes from the fact that it was the first track I made only using the Nord Lead synth - my goal was to ‘master’ it thus, the name ‘Lead Master’.
Circus Fantasia: When I was making this track I was imagining a story about the life of people working in a circus and travelling from one place to another doing shows. I added the word ‘Fantasia’ because the track somehow reminded me of a fantasy world too.
It Reigns Supreme: This was only a reference to the bass riff that comes in the drop and how it reigns supreme in the mix.
Impulsiveness: This is due to the fact that being impulsive is one of my main personal traits - the impulsiveness of the melody sequence made me think of that.
Talisman: Talisman is an object that has some magical powers and brings luck. I’m not sure why, but I thought of this after finishing the track.
Collaboration are great ways in which to work with various artists. at the end of the 2020 you worked with Yamil for ‘Running Over Me’. How much do you enjoy such collaborations, and to what degree do you believe everyone should help each other when creating together?
The release of Yamil happened after he sent me the demo of ‘Running over me’. I liked the vocals but thought I could do something different with them, so the idea of the remix came to my mind. (this is also the idea behind all my ‘Skatman Reconstructions’ on my label, where I receive a demo I like and it features an element I really dig but can imagine it differently: I take this element and reconstruct everything else to something completely different). I’m pretty happy with the end result, the release has got a lot of good feedback from the scene’s biggest artists. Although it was fun to remix that track, for the time being I am trying to focus on my original productions and not to take any more remix requests.
You’ve now released for various external labels such as Innervisions, TAU and Sum Over Histories. How has your relationship grown within the melodic scenes and are there any other specific labels or artists that you will be releasing under or with soon?
It is always nice to see that I have released on these great labels already. It means I have reached a standard that I can’t fall below and pushes me to keep developing myself both musically and personally. My releases with them have also helped my music to reach more listeners I wanted, that for which I am thankful. There are some other great labels out there I would love to work with in the future, but there is nothing planned about that yet.
Any Future projects you would like to share with us?
I have an album which includes a very long awaited track coming out on my label this month, as well as an EP coming out around summertime on Sum Over Histories. I’m also doing a stream around mid march from Muting The Noise with 100% of my own productions - make sure not to miss that one as I will be playing plenty of my unreleased stuff!
Aside from music, what else inspires you? How much has your upbringing and family had an effect of who you are today?
As already mentioned in the first question, my childhood had a big impact on my life path and inspirations. Another big source of inspiration for me is clubbing. I like clubbing to not only to similar music which I produce, but also to completely different genres, this experience for me is much more than dancing to some beats, it is a learning process and a huge inspiration.
Aside from music, do you have a favourite sport/club you follow or support?
I have been always a Liverpool fan! Even though I am not watching football as often anymore, I make sure to keep informed about the matches. YNWA!
Last but not least: How do you like your coffee?
Espresso Macchiato or Flat White when I need a punch in the face to wake up!