Fast Five: KU

When did you begin making music, and did you ever ponder a different career?

I began working with sound initially as a progression of my artistic process that would distract me from my indulgence in the visual arts field. Music has always been the main reference in any creative endeavors I had up to then, also, I always had bands as a teenager, but it wasn’t until I went to service in the Greek Army that I started making my own stuff, taking baby steps. I was in an office, so I had a PC that I could use. I also was mostly stoned and miserable for a large period of time,I installed Fruity Loops and started experimenting with grinch-worthy results most of the times. I was very much into stuff like Drexciya and Somatic Responses back then which led to an interest in complex sound forms and rhythms. One thing led to another through a lot of experimentation and improvisation, and I have three projects that I now run, simultaneously and equally active. Looking back to these times it seems like the best decision I ever took.Making my own music changed my life as I became a creator of my own artistic influences.

How would you describe your music?

The main concern in my work is an apposition of disparate elements that assume a re-appropriation of historically applied methodologies while questioning forms of empowering them.The biggest body of my work reflects issues as copyright, spirituality and originality, undergoing a constant state of transfiguration of its outsourcing.

What have you been up to so far and what can we expect over the coming months?

It’s been quite an active 2-3 years for my projects and I have been blessed to collaborate with people and labels that I share a concurring and mutual admiration and understanding with, that has lead to an ever evolving progress of the work. At the moment I am rehearsing with my – extremely talented – band for some KU gigs that will take place from Spring to Fall around Greece. My sophomore album with this project is just out via Inner Ear and I couldn’t be more excited Also I have just finished production of an album for my Jay Glass Dubs project that is a collaboration with one of my musical heroes to be released via Bokeh Versions. On top of that I have a Jay Glass Dubs tape coming out in May via Barcelona based anòmia,a Duppy Gun (Sun Araw and M Geddes Gengras’ label) collab, then it’s a JGD collab with Blackest Ever Black, a couple of The Hydra tapes for Feral tapes and Speaker Footage, and a lot of JGD gigs starting from April to November in Greece and around Europe . I am also invited as a guest composer at EMS Studios in Stockholm mid November. So I am pretty full schedule wise. I might need some holiday (or maybe not).

If you could duet with anybody who would it be and why?

I will have to answer this solely for KU, which is a project that would justify a duet as for Jay Glass Dubs I answered in previous question. The Hydra is a much more ”lone wolf” project. Just me and my gear….
So it would have to be someone like Annette Peacock, or Linda Perhacs as their music have an ever-growing impact on my work in terms of combining disparate sonic references, the physicality of their songwriting, and their very inspiring approach into what an artist is especially in times that are not really inviting for pieces of work as theirs. Plus I think our voices would sound good together.

What’s your desert island disc and why would you take this one album?

It’s definitely not ONE album, more like a crate, but if I should really chose one it would be Spiritualized’s Ladies And Gentlemen We’re Floating In Space as it opened up a door for me into a very large spectrum of musical references, techniques, ideas and aspirations.

https://www.facebook.com/thekusound/?fref=ts
http://iamku.net/KU