STRFLL is easily one of the most exciting new (witch) wave producers out there right now. Watching his progress from the 2022 "Insanity Era" tapes to his totally radical (and ongoing) "Was It All Worth It" series has been rewarding as hell, so it's an absolute pleasure to interview him for Mutant Zones. We dive deep into his creative upbringing and current influences, as well as discuss the upcoming album and plans for the future. On top of all that, STRFLL has made us an exclusive mixtape entitled "Southern /Dis/comfort", it will melt your face, it's that good! You can stream it below and download it directly from our new Soundcloud page. Strap in and enjoy!
Mutant Zones: It’s been quite a journey to hear your artistic growth over the last two years. From the eclectic compilation “Insanity Era 2K21-2K22” that felt like it was dabbing at a number of various, often contrasting genres, to your more recent productions that drift towards ambient, drone and 2010-era witch house sound. When did you start making music and what inspired you to start?
STRFLL: I started working on music in late 2020 / early 2021. Main reason I started producing was that visual arts, which I had been working on, became stale for me and I wanted a different outlet for my ideas. Listening to a lot of early Witch House such as Crystal Castles and CRIM3S definitely planted some ideas in the back of my mind as well. Growing up in a household where music had an important role was also something that inspired me to start producing. It’s in my blood, my father’s a musician, my mother’s a visual artist so the career path makes sense.Tell me more about your parents, because that sounds interesting. What type of music does your father create / what instrument does he play? What type of art does your mum make?
My father has been a musician for decades at this point. When I was a kid, he played in a band I could best describe as doomer emo post-punk punk rock. He mainly plays guitar but he also plays bass and drums. Growing up with the music he played and loved to listen to has definitely inspired me to pursue music as a career.My mom mainly works on different types of visual art, such as painting, drawing, but also a lot of hands on DIY stuff like pottery, origami, knitting etc. She has supported my artistic side a lot throughout my life and has motivated me to pursue visual arts too. The music she loves has also impacted me a lot, thru her I found a lot of music that inspires me.
Do you play any instruments?
I play piano and guitar, albeit not well. I don’t have any formal musical education but I’m always learning new things thru writing music and just jamming with my instruments.What’s your creative process? Does the melody come first and you build the track around it? Or do you start with drums and then build on that?
Usually I start with more basic melodic elements such as basslines and then I build rough drums over it. After I’ve got the structure down, I start working on more complex melodies and variants of the drum grooves and more “ear candy” elements. In all honesty, more than half of the time spent on making my songs is spent on mixing and mastering. I usually take breaks between songs and return to mixing with a blank mind and thru that I notice details I wouldn’t have noticed otherwise. A big part of my process is based on listening to music that inspires me. Most of the time I walk around with my headphones on and listen to music with what I would call a musician’s ear - I listen for instruments, melodies or other elements that I would love to experiment with and eventually I mix those influences with my own personal style.Speaking of inspirations, you mentioned Crim3s, Salem and CC. Who else shaped your taste, and who do you admire today?
I grew up with lots of electronic music, metal, rap and other stuff. Main inspirations from my childhood who shaped my current tastes are The Prodigy, Daft Punk, System Of A Down, Linkin Park, Depeche Mode, Metallica from my mom’s side and lots of post punk and alt-rock such as Joy Division, Dinosaur Jr, TOOL and so on from my dad’s side. The underground soundcloud scene also really inspires me. Recently, a lot of inspiration has come from different DSBM bands like Lifelover, Sorry.. and Sadness to name a few.Been listening to a lot of witch house too recently, mainly the new White Ring record but also a lot of DEPRESSED040 and others. DEPRESSED040 is a band I really admire right now, their intense in your face, but honest energy is something so refreshing for me. Hope they return with new material soon, although that feels unlikely as the members have all moved onto new projects. One can hope. Stay Healthy is another one I really enjoy and support, either thru buying their tape, remixing their tracks or any other way. Their sound is both reminiscent of old and new SALEM, but it also has its own identity that shines like a beacon in the current DIY scene. Hoping for more from them, if I remember correctly they’re working on something more shoegazy right now so I’m very excited for that. New DIRTR4T would also be a treat :)
Is STRFLL a direct reference to Salem’s “Starfall”? What made you choose that name?
When I started releasing my music online, I had a pretty rough identity crisis in terms of who I wanted to be. After multiple name changes, STRFLL (STARFALL) ended up being the one i liked most. I named myself after the SALEM track because I absolutely adore it and the whole album, which coincidentally was released on my birthday. It also has a nice ring to it in my opinion and the word itself looks very nice in a way.If I’m not mistaken you debuted on All Blurred Out compilations, how did you link up with that crew?
A couple months after the release of Fires In Heaven I found the SALEM Discord server, where I quickly made a lot of friends because of mutual tastes in music and art. Thru that, a couple of us had the idea for an art collective.Thru the collaborative mixtapes, I’ve met a lot of the friends I work with right now (CHARLATAN, PHARMACIST, THREE WISHES, MONTOYA, etc.).On top of those comps, you’ve released heaps of DJ mixes, a handful of EPs and two collections of tracks that feel like compilation mixtapes rather than albums. When can we expect a proper full length, and do you have any plans about it in terms of style?
Both of the Insanity Era albums are indeed compilations of unreleased material. The second instalment is what I would consider the closest to a full length right now as it’s compiled of tracks from a cancelled EP of mine. I’m currently working on a full length album right now, planning for a 2024 release. In terms of sound, it’s a blend of DSBM, old-school Witch House, grunge and other adjacent styles. Most of the tracks on the new mixtape “was it all worth it” are heavily dragged out demos from the planned album.Will you have any guests?
I’m currently in the process of working with some friends to bring this album together, in terms of both production and vocals. I’m also attempting to find my own voice for this album.You mean singing and/or rapping?
Going to attempt all kinds of stuff on the album, some more lowkey singing, some screaming, some slow and dark rap stuff. All depends on whether I can motivate myself to hit the studio. Been really inspired by different black metal and other adjacent stuff so I’ll try working those influences into the album.
How do you find new music these days?
One very obvious source of new music is the Witch House Forum and also this blog here. Oftentimes I find new stuff through Youtube or recommendations on Soundcloud or Spotify. When preparing for DJ gigs, I download huge collections from Soulseek that I often find good stuff from.You live in Estonia, tell me more about the place you’re from and the music scene there. Are there many people who make similar stuff to you?
Life in Estonia is pretty mediocre, if not a tad bit depressing. It’s just kind of gray and lifeless most of the time. I really love the nature though, the scenery around my home is incredibly inspiring for me. The Witch House scene never was that big over here, we had K1LLRGVP and some other DIY witch stuff but it didn’t really take off. Some Witch House legends like RITUALZ and White Ring have performed over here but sadly I haven’t been able to see them :...( Not a lot of people produce Witch House / Drag / whatever you wanna call it over here, it’s mainly me, my friend Delusional and maybe some others. Definitely a smaller scene than in Russia or the USA.On your Instagram it says you’re part of Dysaster Collective - can you tell me more about it?
It’s a local collective mostly led by Dyvour. We mainly focus on different forms of experimental alternative music such as rap, noise rock or shoegaze. It’s all kind of on a hiatus as everyone is working on their own stuff right now but there are planned collaborations / projects for the future.Your Discogs page lists a split cassette you did with Tarmo Linnas for an event called Kauplus Ambient Live. Can you share more info about how this came about, the event itself, your performance and reception?
That show was the result of a string of very interesting coincidences. The show took place in a record store in my hometown named Ambient, which lives up to its name with the music it sells. It’s very largely based on experimental electronic music so it’s become almost like a home to me. I originally bonded with the store owner over similar music tastes, such as Burial, Aphex Twin and most interestingly, SALEM. We quite quickly struck a friendship and eventually He offered me a gig. It was all very DIY, I was playing on the floor of the back room of the record store with a borrowed laptop and a synth of mine. The room, as small as it was, was quite packed with around 10 or so people sitting on the floor and so on. It was incredibly fun and the audience really helped me get over the anxiety of playing my material live. At first I felt my set might’ve been too energetic and upbeat for what essentially was a show about ambient music, but it all went well so it really inspired me to work more on playing live.Have you played anywhere else?
I played “Ethereal Noise” in October of last year as a kind of birthday party for myself. Me and Dyvour played at a local venue that I personally really love. The show went well, the audience enjoyed the night and we even sold some merch which was nice. In late March I played at a drag show which was hosted by friends of mine. The show, as per usual, went well and I made some new connections thru that. 2024 is going to be pretty packed with shows as I've got offers to play at different events and indie DIY festivals.
Spaking of Dyvour, you did an amazing remix of “@@@” by Stay Healthy, with him dropping some bars there. Have you considered making more songs with rappers or singers?
I’m definitely planning to collaborate more with vocalists in the future. Some tracks on the upcoming album are gonna have some guest vocals and production from some very familiar names. I sometimes put out some instrumentals on my side project HATER4E which I might share with some vocalists too.How would you describe the difference between HATER4E and STRFLL?
While STRFLL is mainly focused on more darker and serious sounds and styles such as Witch House or Ambient, HATER4E is less serious and focuses more on upbeat “Drain'' beats or silly remixes. HATER4E is kind of a palate cleanser for myself for when I’ve grown too tired of Witch House. A while back I had an identity crisis in the Witch House Forums regarding my direction as an artist and I feel like creating side projects for myself has helped with channelling different inspirations.What are your plans for the future?
Some ideas / goals for the foreseeable future:Working on finishing the album. Trying to get it done as soon as possible so I don’t grow apart from the current material too much.
Planning to collaborate more on music and art, got some plans for future collaborations.
Going to attempt to make some DIY merch to sell online, the merch I’ve done so far is all hand painted and live show exclusive. Planning to try and raise funds for some silkscreen print equipment so I could streamline the process a little and make it cheaper for fans too.
Doing more live shows. 2023 was a pretty decent start but in 2024 I’m planning to play way more shows. So far I’ve got plans for at least 2-3 shows, though that might change.
Branching out is something I’ve been working on lately. Been writing material for different side projects and will try to evolve those projects to work out well for me.
Any shout-outs?
Shouts out to the friends I've met in the community (CHARLATAN, PHARMACIST, CR33KY, MONTOYA, MAGIC SPELLS, THE ABO CREW). Shouts out to those who want me dead, y’all just motivate me to be better than y’all :)Current Obsessions:
Have A Nice Life - The Unnatural World Slowdive - S/T Lifelover - Dekadens Black Wing - No Moon DSBM BDSM Nature Long train rides SALEM unreleased tracks Fallout Spirituality Finishing a demo tape of bedroom metalMake sure to follow STRFLL on Instagram @strfll999, Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/strfll and Bandcamp: strfll.bandcamp.com