Emigrating to the US from his war-torn Serbia hometown in the early 00s, Kryptogram has been brought up in a musically fruitful household, shaping him as the artist he is now. DMCWORLD grab a world exclusive on the eve of his upcoming mixtape style project krypt. vol2. – in the making of this release he reflects on his multi-cultural upbringing where he would sing Serbian folk music on the weekends and produce garage tunes in the week! The new 9 track project is named after the word “crypt”, initially meaning an underground vault of the remains of a person, but in this case it means Kryptogram‘s musical vault of fresh tracks taking influence from old school UKG, Chicago house and disco, reimagined into his own sound for today…
EP fanlink : https://create.ffm.to/kryptvol2
Hey Kryptogram! Thanks for joining us today, where are you based right now?
Hey! I’m in Chicago right now, just got back from a few weeks out on the west coast.
You are releasing your second instalment on your krypt EP series krypt. vol2, what was the creative process behind it, how does it follow on from krypt. vol1 and where / how did you produce it?
A few of the tracks on vol2 were demo ideas that I had from last summer, and the rest are all new that I’ve made as the year went along. When I released vol1, I knew I wanted to do more volumes but I didn’t really wanna rush into it immediately — so I let the inspiration guide me. I moved into my new studio in December, this is the first longer project I made there. It was a great experience getting to know the room and working at all different times of the day.
What music did you grow up listening to and how does it influence the music you make now?
I grew up listening to a lot of Serbian music, being from there. I was also heavy into downloading all sorts of music when I was like 8,9 years old. I’d be on the computer all the time downloading songs that I’d heard on the radio or on TV. And then I’d compile them on CDs and bring them to school so we could listen whenever there was time. I guess I was always influenced by dance tracks because Bee Gees – Stayin Alive was on every single mixtape I made haha.
What motivates you to create new music?
Honestly, I couldn’t imagine my life without creating music. It’s so deeply rooted into who I am as a person, it’s like a permanent form of communication for me.
Why are you drawn more towards EP and LP projects rather than singles both as the creator and the listener?
Maybe it has something to do with how I grew up listening to music; my brother and I would always ask our parents to buy us CDs of our favorite artists and we’d listen to them in full. So I got used to listening to longer length projects, and I always strived to make my own. As a listener, I think it gives you more of an idea of where that artist’s headspace currently is and allows you to lose yourself in their world. As a creator, I feel like I always have so much to say and a single just doesn’t have enough time or space to fit everything in.
If you weren’t a producer and DJ what career would you pursue and why?
Haha I actually just had this conversation with my friends over the weekend. I think I’d still be in some sort of creative field because I just need the ability to control my own schedule and routine. I love cooking and photography, so maybe a chef or an editorial / traveling photographer. I’d love to have my own cafe / bistro on the beach somewhere in Europe.
What are you listening to on repeat at the moment?
I’m listening to a lot of indie rock and summery funk right now. As the weather gets warmer here in Chicago, that’s my favorite music to listen to. Most of the stuff I’m currently listening to I put on my bi-monthly Spotify playlist found here:
How have the various lockdowns and the pandemic in general affected your creative process and productivity as an artist, do you do anything differently now?
For me, being in the studio by myself was always how I did things so the past year didn’t really change my creative process that much. The one thing it did, however, was it made me realize that I needed to work harder and more efficiently.
Any plans after the release of krypt. vol2?
My immediate plans post release include partying and celebrating that it’s out haha. My future plans include a couple official remixes that I’m super excited about and more original music through the summer.
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KRYPTOGRAM RETURNS WITH HIS ‘KRYPT. VOL2’ MIXTAPE PROJECT
Out 30th April
