Interview to Mebitek (2020)
https://www.instagram.com/mebitek/
https://soundcloud.com/mebitek
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyDARDK824sFtVpftfLpcdw
https://www.facebook.com/mebitek/
First say welcome to this written interview for Cian Orbe blog. Today in our blog we discover the thoughts and main inspirations of the dark ambient italian composer Mebitek.
- What is the meaning of Mebitek name?
Mebitek is the union of my native language surname “mebi” and the word teknology. It is with me since 2002.
- Do you release music only under Mebitek name? do you have other active or past music projects or monikers?
Yes, since last year I have a side project called “Where Orchids Goes To Die”. It’s an electro music duo with the female voice of the Mapuche artist Mariana Millapan.
- Which are the concept behind your music, how you categorize your own work?
Mebitek’s music concept is inspired on cinematic art experimentation. Over all, darkness inconsicous philosophy, driving the music and visual structure in conjunction with some kind of old victorian romanticism and melancholy with the purpose of transform electronic music into a cinematic orchestra.
- Favorite music genres?
I haven’t a favorite music genre really, but I like to listen a lot of dark music from ambient to various electronic genres. Apart hip-hop, electro swing, trip-hop, dark ambient and also black metal. And horror soundtracks too. I also like so much some kind of folk music from around the world, specially from those oppressed people who fight for independence.
- How you see the concept of the darkness, why you make dark ambient and not ambient or space drone music?
Darkness concept is something primordial in my productions, from music to videos. I think that from the inner depth of humanity, we can find some darkness that rules the whole game of life. If you go deeply into that darkness you will find the real essence of yourself.
- In what year did you start making music? which was your first band/project?
I started making music in 1996. First with a computer (an intel i486), with a project called “Count Mebi.” Was influenced by black metal (with screams included) mixed with electronic music. Later in the year 2000, i moved from my land Sardinia to Bologne (Italy). I met the undeground electronic scene of the tekno and the teknival culture with a whole of new music arsenal.
- Which inspiration you have from the place where you live? There's some inspiration from your country in your music?
Sardinia is my land and it is a place with glorious nature landscapes. It’s also very savage with hard winds violently blowing the island. Sardinia has an ancient culture that mixes some magical rituals that active nowadays. Facing nature and the natural connection between Sardinia ancient culture I find both physically and visually inspirations.
- Which are your favorite music projects and visual/plastic artists who inspire your work?
The first name that comes in my mind is the norwegian band “Ulver”. Lot of creativity and music fluid project. I also love so much Atrium Carceri with his dark ambient atmospheres.
About visual artists that I love are for example: Mothmeister, Stefan Gesell , Darla Teagarden and Anton Semanov. Also I absolutely have to mention the director David Lynch: he is my main inspiration in some particular visual concepts.
- How do you see the current Dark Ambient / Drone Noise music scene?
There are lot of dark ambient artists actually in the scene that create lot of original music. But happens in a lot of genres - not only for dark ambient, there is some kind of saturation and not all the productions are good.
- Favorite dark ambient and electronic composers?
Atrium Carceri, Wordclock, Phonotek, Flowers of Bodysnatchers.
- Do you make live performances?
- yes I perform live since 2002. My latest live was postponed due pandemic, originally for august with my side project “Where Orchids Goes To Die.”
- We have seen that you produce Videoclips for your music, tell us about the process and creation of it?
I’m a video producer too. I start making my own videos like 5 years ago, when decided add some cinematic aspects to my work. I started making only video clips but nowadays. I produce also shortfilms that got some awards. My latest one “A story of Silence” won the Rome Art Week 2020 and it was projected in the Miami New Media Festival and will be projected in 13 countries around the world too.
I want to mention “The Unconscous” track and also the videoclip. Because it’s the first of my new artistic life (after over 10 years making tekno) and it’s the first track of my triology based on Carl Jung inconsious theories. It was the first time that I make a videoclip for a track, so I like so much the creativity process involced into it.
https://mebitek.bandcamp.com/track/the-unconscious-cinematic-movement
https://mangoestrecords.bandcamp.com/album/the-mourning-path
The Mourning Path borns was a short film, made in collaboration with my friend Jele Raus. It tells about the story of the death of girl facing all her life monsters in the last times before she dies.
The soundtrack has be written after the shortfilm story so it tries to reflect all the short film feelings and situations. It has been produced all with my maschine and in part with my modular synthetizer.
- Tell us about the underground music scene in Italy or in your zone, and which are your favorite artists from your country?
Italy and in specially Sardinia is not so much related with dark music, so I don't know artsists involved in that kind of sound and neither in their sub-genres. But, however Sardinia has a great variety of artists that make various qualitative music genres like Jazz, Rock, Folk, Electronic and hip hop.
- Any anecdote that you want to share with us in the creation of some track?
Music creation is a strange process talking very personally. I feel it with pain and alienation. So i can tell you that each track comes different and in special ways, from instumentation to the final result.
- Any news for 2021 in your music project or future collaborations?
In 2021 i just wanna release my new mebitek album that was forced to be postponed due to the pandemic. Also I’m preparing some video too for it. Totally apart i’m planning to release some new material for my side proejct “Where Orchids Goes To Die” and I’m actually working with Jele Raus at a web series called “A Story of Silence”. I hope 2021 will be full of news from my side.
- Any other thing that you want to say to your listeners?
thanks all that support indipendent musicians!
Mebitek's compilation appearances in Cian Orbe:
https://archive.org/search.php?query=mebitek+cian+orbe
