True Cuckoo<\/a>.<\/p>\nThere is something distinctly freeing about Cuckoo’s work. The Swedish-born, Norway-based synthesist is a multidisciplinary creative that sheds normal conventions to build something wholly his own. Unbound by genre and open to experimentation no matter the platform, this is an artist creating on their own terms.<\/p>\n
Let’s get to our conversation with Cuckoo.<\/p>\n
Cuckoo, how did you get into making music? What specifically led you to synthesizers?<\/strong><\/span>
\nMusic has always been something that I\u2019ve cared about. It\u2019s rooted at a very deep level within me. I think if you\u2019re into music and it\u2019s something that deeply resonates with you, it\u2019s hard to explain why you get excited about it. There\u2019s just something there inside of you and music is very high up on the list of what\u2019s important to you. I think I am one of those people. If there\u2019s music, I\u2019m excited and I want to be there.<\/p>\nWhen I grew up I was singing a lot, I was always plinking and plonking on different pianos that I found. Some friends of mine had a keyboard, we had an electric organ that I enjoyed playing and creating melodies on. When video games came along, I became sucked into the video game music world and tried to catch the tunes and recreate them on whatever I had. It even became like a little game I had with a friend of mine. When school was done and we were waiting on the tram to get home, we\u2019d try to mimic music or sounds from video games and say, \u201cOK, guess what this is [Makes sword swiping noise],\u201d and make some weird noise. \u201cOh yeah, that\u2019s this funky little bastard in Metroid<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\nI think video games in general had a very fundamental influence on me when it comes to steering towards synthesizers. I still draw from that when creating music today. That influence is right there, just a half arm’s length away, even though it was 30 years ago.<\/p>\n
What was the first piece of synth gear that you searched out on your own and brought home to play?<\/strong><\/span>
\nI think there was a middle ground where I got my first computer and got music software. I used a platform called Amiga and software called ProTracker and that was my first little step towards electronic music production with this Tracker workflow.<\/p>\nIn terms of synthesizers, I believe it was the Korg M1 that was my first one. I thought about it long and hard and I went to the music store after school every day. I tried all the synthesizers out there and always ended up on the Korg M1. It had some really nice orchestral sounds, what I thought were nice orchestral sounds, an 8-track sequencer and I started to create my video game inspired adventurous soundtracks in the music store.<\/p>\n
Later on, I decided for my school work that I was going to write a violin quartet as my examination project. I did that but with the help of the synthesizer. I used it to make my sketches and write out all the sheets for the musicians. It was my first real tool that I sought out and really used for a long time.<\/p>\n
How do you define creativity?<\/strong><\/span>
\nI think keeping an open mind, and keeping doors open is part of creativity. To follow up on the little sparks of curiosity, and see where they lead. You wanna express something through music, right? Even if it\u2019s unclear, and hard to put into words, you want to connect. In my background as an animator, and animation director, I had a rule of thumb, that I have brought over to my music creativity; \u201cIf it communicates, it\u2019s good enough.\u201d<\/p>\nWhat informed your creative approach to making music?<\/strong><\/span>
\nIn music making, I\u2019d say that I\u2019m mostly self taught, apart from music theory which was part of the curriculum at my school at age 10-15. We had music classes once a day at my school. My many hours by the pianos and synths in life I\u2019ve spent exploring, making melodies, inventing sounds, creating little performances. I just love doing that. Perhaps with the roots in video game music, it\u2019s easier to feel free, creative and playful. There are some really fun game soundtracks out there. Kirby<\/em> on the 8-bit Nintendo comes to mind. What fun and crazy tracks! Stuff like that has formed me more than I would like to admit, probably.<\/p>\n