EN
DUALUS RELEASES ‘À LUZ DO FAROL’
’New debut album by the artist through Slow Habits’
June 3rd, 2022
À Luz Do Farol is the debut album by Dualus, through Slow Habits.
A work of a very specific nature in which the artist makes clear the evidence of a natural and distinct dexterity for rhythm and its arrhythmias, an album that is derived from an incessant and patient exploration, presents the result of a creative and spontaneous mentality.
Introduce yourself briefly. Who is Dualus?
He is a person who just feels an almost primal need to know, and to share knowledge. Duality arises from the possible normality, between being, only, and being human; the expression through the artistic vehicle begins and ends in the attempt and urge to express something more concrete than just symbols linked in a coherent, familiar way, but emotions, ideas, mental landscapes that show us less conventional ways of perceiving the world, so I can continually expand and cast myself to it, from the inside out.
Tell me a little about the album: What was the starting theme for the conception of this project. Why did you choose the title?
At the starting point, as I explained, there was no particularly established theme. Over time I became aware of the natural lineage of the tracks I was creating, and the ideas that were flowing. Honestly, it wasn't until all the tracks were finished that I could make any sense of how the tracks reflect me. The title comes exactly from that, from a realization that I am totally a product of what precedes me, and what happens to me, taking into account that the lighthouse is, literally and figuratively, a pillar that emanates light, which give us clarity, on a path to the coast, overnight, at sea.
Tell me about the cover elements. Is there any symbolism in relation to the elements arranged in Artwork? What is the symbology of the entire visual component of the project?
If I spoke directly, I think I would be spoiling the listener's experience by giving rise to his own interpretation, which can sometimes be quite different from the creator's original intention. But I can say that the cover is closely linked to the concept itself, all the pieces serve to add detail to the story, of a perception that can be in the light of the lighthouse. The high seas are rough and we explore endlessly. But our place is on the coast and we have to come back eventually. Light is a guide to help us return. And in the path of light, materialism burns. And I won't say more!
What was the technical approach in producing these themes, what software or hardware have you used?
In terms of software, I only use one DAW, FL Studio, along with various VST's that this implies. In terms of hardware, I have an MPK mini to be able to have some MIDI controls, although I want to expand, some instruments that I have and acquire over time, guitars and various random percussions. Then I have several recording equipment, a microphone, to capture sounds with good fidelity, and an audio record from tascam to capture all kinds of environments and unusual objects, takes with instruments when I want a polished sound, among other less sound bites that can later be useful, basically I am carrying the tape recorder with me everywhere I go because I never know where I'm going to find new textures.
There is something quite evident in your production, it has a very unique and distinct character. Briefly, how would you describe your production style? What are your elemental influences that somehow made you reach this current point and explore this type of sounds?
I would define my style of production very much on an improvisational basis. Most of the time I start with a basic idea, melodic or rhythmic, and when it comes up, I progressively experiment, in a process of deconstructing the original idea, trying to impose other directions, sometimes spending hours on noodling only, which is also good for me because it is an experience from which I derive great pleasure, being able to have this brief intimacy with an idea as rudimentary as three notes and talk to it, extracting information from that conversation to develop the composition. Without any kind of preconceived ideas, and just chasing a specific sound whenever I can't get it out of my head.
In terms of influences, my parents undoubtedly played a huge role in shaping my ear, first of all, as I am first and foremost an incessant listener of music. Since I was little, my parents insisted on passing on their cultural heritage to me, and we always had music blasting from the car speakers, at home, on the beach, always such a varied selection and always so located in the nostalgia of their era. This was the vehicle that, without a doubt, allowed me to travel the journey that desolated me as a teenager, where also out of curiosity, I went to experience everything I hadn't seen before. And it continues to this day. I feel like I can't go a day without hearing something I've never heard before. And this practice was instilled in me from afar, the love for sound then spreads naturally from the moment I feel I have to express something, and it is at this crossroads that things like this project happen.
At this moment, the sound that I intend to explore, also in this project, comes from the need to express a soundscape as an organism, fluid, close to us, and at the same time, sometimes distant futures. Hence settling and persisting so much in recording entire takes instead of recording patterns and repeating them for n bars, even out of need to evoke a sense of impermanence, even in the lull. No doubt I want to continue in an increasingly organic direction in my production or composition, using more and more real tools, instruments, and focusing on the emotion that can be achieved from a complete take, rather than working section by section. If I can sometimes rise at the feet of giants, I will not repeat their steps. I will always go my way. Of course, these methods are situational, and depending on what I'm doing, my perspective might be more flexible.
Do you want to present the idea and concept of the poem?
Once again, without going too far, the poem reflects the perspective of someone who is on the coast, next to the lighthouse, as he was guided by it. However, you realize that everything is back to the same. In a circular motion, we will always return to the darkness, and we will need the light to guide us. Much of the concept is based on this duality, and specifically on the decay of the values of human interaction with information overload. In the end we simply move between states over and over again, in an eternal return, so to speak... The idea is that, ultimately, maybe we can go beyond our sense and not perpetuate this cycle, in our routine. The rest is with what each one takes from the project.
Prospects for the future.
Keep working, above all. Hunger is not lacking, honestly, and I increasingly enjoy the flow of ideas that the act of creation allows me to. There will always be stories to tell!
Besides that, I always want to expand sounds and explore different territories, I feel that I work better under pressure, which is why I unconsciously put so much pressure on myself, but it brings results so that will be the motto for the next few years.
Live performances, are you thinking of presenting this project live?
Definitely. It would be a first, but I definitely think about it almost every day. You never know, but I already have some ideas for an immersive experience of the tracks, and the concept itself.
Curiosities about you and this new project.
A reality that I am currently facing is that this entire project, as well as other past and possibly future projects, are all done, almost exclusively, in my room while I am teleworking in a role that does not elevate me at all, all while I still manage as much time as possible with the studies I am finishing.
Regarding this project, it is also curious that all these tracks started outside the concept of the project itself, but rather as an attempt to materialize the inspiration that a particular photo, of my girlfriend, to a lighthouse in Foz do Douro, gave it to me. So many attempts went from matching the idea I had in my head to the material that was being translated, that after a while, I realized that photo was uniquely contributing as a muse, and that, in just one frame, I managed to remove several different states of mind, because It evoked several reactions in me. The photo ends up being concentrated in the central part of the cover, since the lighthouse that is there is the lighthouse in the photo that originated all this.
DUALUS - À LUZ DO FAROL [DIGITAL PURCHASE]
STREAM / BUY
