Proud owner and manager of the Sekai Collective, Resonata has been pushing his own flavour of wave music that he likes to call “dance music for sad people”. Rather than basking in unhappiness, his music is emotionally uplifting and defiant. The atmosphere of his tracks exhibits influences from early trip-hop and Industrial sounds, while his percussion features the stylings of future garage and trap.
We recently premiered ‘Oathbreaker’ from the roving Texan, a pulsing tune inspired by the idea of a high-speed race. Equal parts dark and light, the track drives its message home with crisp percussion and booming bass.
Listen to ‘Oathbreaker’ below and read on to get to know more about Resonata:
Hi there, how are you and what are you up to today?
Finishing up a set list last minute before heading to the airport tomorrow.
Where are you currently based? Give us a sense of the music scene here.
I’m currently in East Texas. I grew up here, but before that, I lived in Richmond, VA for a couple of years and before that, I was based in Seattle. There’s not really a scene here, but there were pretty strong music scenes in both Richmond and Seattle. They were just also really different.
Tell us about your journey in music, how long have you been producing? What inspired you to start?
I’ve always loved the arts and particularly had a lot of love for filmmaking when I was younger. One day a friend of mine invited me to a Dubstep show near the end of 2010 when it was still a blossoming genre in the US and I walked away with this energy that I’d never felt before. I just knew in my soul that I wanted to make music and eventually play shows like that. The next week I went to a store to grab a copy of Fruity Loops and started grinding every day after work to learn the program.
Where do you gather songwriting inspiration?
I usually have a basic idea in my head before I start recording anything. Sometimes I base how I make a song on an emotion I’m feeling at the time or a specific memory that I want to kind of capture its essence. It’s usually something pretty sad.
Do you experience creative block? How do you deal with this?
I creative blocks probably more than anyone I know. I only ever release around 5-6 tracks within a year it seems when most people I know are dropping a new song every month, sometimes more often than that. I usually just step away from music for a while when I feel a block and catch up on shows or play video games or even get into other creative endeavours. At the moment, I’ve been spending the past few weekends on set recording a short film that will be out in a few months.
Considering the very complicated and heavy global political and social climate, do you feel that music is should be a reflection of this, or an escape from this?
Music can be both. Music connects people. I have my playlists that help me drift off and daydream of another life or universe where everything is peaceful, but it can also unify people for an important cause. There has always been music that tells stories of the oppressed, the down-trodden, the used, the broken, and having those voices be heard and understood is equally important in my opinion. I’m not a fan of apathy, so I believe both have their rightful place in society.
Breakdown the news for us: what can we expect from you this year?
I’m working on a full album, complete with videos, merch, and maybe an accompanying tour if funds permit. I also have a few hot collabs on the horizon. Outside of that, this year will probably have a lot of downtime from me too. I’m taking a break from hustling too hard to try to make my personal life a little easier for me in order to make this music thing work out better long term.
Famous last words?
There’s a difference between living and simply existing. Most people do the latter.
Download ‘Oathbreaker’:
https://www.toneden.io/resonata/post/premiere-resonata-oathbreaker
Follow Resonata:
Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – Soundcloud
