[NEW MUSIC] SATORI 'LALAI' CROSSTOWN REBELS

Dutch electronic live performer Satori returns to Crosstown Rebels with his new track ‘Lalai’.

Interview by Leila Antakly

‘Lalai’ transports the listener to a golden, dance-floor sunrise, where an enchanting female vocal melts into swaying, tribal drumbeats and enticing synths.

“The song is sung by Iranian opera singer Ariana Vafadari and initially, she wrote the lyrics for her son, for when she takes him to bed, but eventually, we gave it a broader meaning. It became more of a ‘goodbye’ song, that represents the ‘letting go’ of a person or the ‘letting go’ of the day into night. The two extremes of the track were my inspiration. On one side you have Ariana, the lullaby, which is very delicate and romantic. On the other hand, you have the heavy electronic sounds of beats and synths. It was a big challenge to bring these worlds together but I am very happy with the result.” Satori

Who are your greatest inspirations or influences?

• Picasso - he shows me the art of remixing. Matisse and Raffaello - they teach me to be colorful. 

• Tinariwen - it's all about the polyrhythms and layers of grooves. Also, their vocal performance is very storytelling and stays close to their speaking voice, that's the way I like to sing as well.

• Also, Rick Rubin - it's almost a cliche to name him but it's a cliche for a reason, I love how he allows creativity to flow.

Can you tell us about your creative process, and how that's been or changed during the pandemic?

I like to live life, write down notes of inspirations, feed myself with this life energy and then go to the studio and change it into music. I don't want to wait until inspiration comes to me. I look for it myself, it can be anywhere, you just need to dig.

Can you shed any light on your Coachella performances this summer?

I am super excited to do both weekends of Coachella on such a great stage. I feel very free on festivals like that because the crowd is there to experience an original music show. So it gives me the freedom to improvise and go on an experimental journey with the crowd. I am not going to prepare that show and for a reason - I want to feel the Coachella crowd and let the music flow how it feels best at that moment.

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