A Sit Down With Shakambo
We had the chance to sit down with Shakambo, an artist & producer putting his own twist on the Lofi sound. Learn more about the inspiration behind his newest track "Indian Summer" released via lofi label & leading independent curator on Spotify, Esydia.
Esydia and Shakambo's connection is historic: it marks the first signing through Playlister Club, a music discovery site that provides A&R and discovery tools to curators like Esydia, and facilitates connections like this one with Shakambo.
The innovative and tech-driven backstory behind this organic connection really stands out, and is the perfect pairing for Shakambo's forward-thinking sounds.
Read the interview & listen to "Indian Summer" below! The full EP will be out on July 8th via Esydia.
Who is ? Tell us how this project came about.Shakambo
"Miguel Da Costa aka shakambo is a french musician based in Paris. Even though I used to play a lot in bands, jam sessions and project as a sideman, this is the first time that I do a musical project on my own.
At the beginning it was a new way for me to make music, that’s why I used a pseudonym ! The project started in March 2019 and my debut EP « Lavalamp » released on June 26th 2019.
The idea behind it was to release music that I made on my bedroom during my free time and challenge myself to create something all alone. It came at a point in my life where I needed to be alone with music"
Can you give us some background on the songwriting behind "Indian Summer"? What inspired the song?
"Remember what I said earlier ? I’ve been playing with a lot of very talented musicians. Some of them became good friends. I needed my space to create, though. In the end I wanted to share what I learnt alone with my friends and compose music together.
In October 2019, I locked down at home for a week making music each day with a different friend. The idea was to make the general structure and shape of the song in one day.
5 songs came out of this journey, Indian summer is one of them!
The song was composed with my friend Alexandre Butlen, who is an incredible guitar player. We were inspired by the movie « La Plage » alongside video games sunny/summer song. For the arrangement I was inspired by « Ji-Eun Sunset » by City Girl. I wanted to catch the feeling of that song."
The slide guitar you used is captivating, why did you choose to use this unique instrument?
"We first came up with this chord progression which is very unusual to me since I don’t often use this kind of harmonies. We picked up the slide guitar to empathize the feeling of summer, beach and nostalgia. I think it was a great aesthetic choice and it gave the song a soul."
Do you see "Indian Summer" as a step in a new direction for your project?
"Yes, definitely ! I want to collaborate more with people so I chose to take that path for the next releases. This song alongside others are pushing my desire to record more live instruments and live musicians."
What's next for ?shakambo
"I’ve got an EP coming on July 8th called « Rede e Nêspera » releasing with the label Esydia. Indian Summer is the first single of the EP !For future projects, I’d love to put an album blending genres, with vocal and instrumental tracks. I’m figuring out a way to play my music live too with a band so maybe in a few months I’ll be able to do so!"
Name 5 artists you are currently loving right now.
"Taylor McFerrin, Thundercat, D’Angelo, Herbie Hancock, Milton Nascimento."
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