其他
Knopha: 惬意却绝对热情
他如同夏末海风的化身：
He is the end-of-summer ocean breeze
扑面而来的惬意，却藏不住涌动的专注与热情
Serene, yet focused and passionate
闻声如其人
Just like his music
This time in conversation with us is Noah Li aka Knopha, who through his own take on 90s oriental ambient music, leads us to a novel horizon where dance, ambient and enigmatic soundscape coexist.
His well-received EP ‘Nothing Nil’, released via Shanghai based label Eating Music, instead of the house groove he is previously known for, showcases an imaginative fourth world 3-tracker built on 90s inspired sound palette. Besides being a producer and DJ, Noah also co-manages club night Beatween and its podcast show Beatween Radio.
China Social Club的PCJ和Frau
给Knopha宝贵意见的Bell Towers
Eliasson在Tate Modern的大型声光电汇演
What is it like living in Xiamen? Some people are surprised to know that you’re not actually based here – have you ever thought about moving to Shanghai? Xiamen is breezy, easy and chill. We have both an intimate community and peaceful isolated lifestyle. I think i will move to Shanghai sooner or later. Opinions on Shanghai’s scene Shanghai has a strong bass/new club scene, that is making waves around the world. There are producers, DJs, promoters constantly making things happen that push the scene to grow bigger and stronger. Our house/techno scene is still following what is cool and popular in Europe. I wish to see more people especially young people involved, bringing in new ideas. From where you came from, or have been to, what are the biggest differences? Is there anything that seems unique about the scene here? I think is the lack of communications, mutual understanding and unity. I just wish people, crews, and organizations can help each other more. Regarding the uniqueness, I think in general punters are quite open to music that is played in underground clubs. Some young people just want to have a good dance on their night out, and some come for the surprise and weirdness. We have a potential crowd for making great parties. On the other hand, we have a very interesting alternative music industry that is growing massively fast, also mainstream labels are very keen on taking it over. I’d love to see how the scene is going to change in the next couple of years. What inspired Beatween? Xiamen inspired Beatween, its so boring.
What are some challenges you have faced as a Shanghai promoter? Being a music nerd with niche bookings, an inefficient graphic designer, anti-social/crazy boring idiot on wechat moments, and most importantly – living outside of Shanghai! Who do you respect or look up to in the local music community? I appreciate crews like SHCR, China Social Club, Daily Vinyl and many others that have put in a lot of effort into the building the scene and community. It’s mostly a labor of love thing. Who are your favorite artists right now in China? Fishdoll, she’s the female version of Chinese Four Tet. How did you come up with your alias -- Knopha? I got this nick name Nova since I was a teenager, so it is just being spelled differently. What was your most memorable night in Shanghai behind the decks, and on the other side of the booth as a dancer? That would be the time I played for Medusa. Musically I went for a direction that was different than the usual sound of the party. I was happy that it worked out and it led to arguably some of the first public oral fun at Elevator. I had a really good time on the dance floor when Beatween first invited Mood Hut. They played some beautiful music that night. (How) did the scene in Shanghai shape your music? I try to fit in different genres and styles when I’m playing, people expect changes in emotion and grooves as far as I can tell. Being dynamic works really well for our crowd, another reason would be to play out a lot of great local productions in the bass/club scene. I’d always work my way through those tracks if I could. How and why did you start a residency at Elevator? Has it impacted your music / if so, how? I met Sam for the first time when I played The Tent at Concrete and Grass festival some years ago. The relationship was built ever since. Playing at Elevator over the past 3 years had taught me many things. From being a rookie that just want to play cool tracks to learning how to handle the crowd well, it’s an invaluable opportunity. More importantly the experience helped me to understand better how music works in clubs. How do you prepare for your gigs (physically, mentally, spiritually)? I am still learning how to be prepared and unprepared for gigs. I think get to the club early, feel the vibe and energy really helps. Also just hope the cue buttons work and try to be as relax as possible. Could you pick 3 tracks that gives us a sense of your preference in music over the years? (from early discoveries or influences, to a current favorite?) Dub poets - Black and WhiteJoe - Rut村田有美– Face to Face Your taste runs really broad – we’ve heard you play from ambient to disco to house and slamming techno. Was it always this way, or how did it develop? Were there any specific moments that made you want to explore other sounds than you’d been listening to? Its just how I discovered music along the way I think. From experimental hip hop instrumentals to post dubstep days channeling influence from house and techno, one thing lead to another. Also radio and mixes played a big part of opening doors to wider range of music. I’m interested in a lot of new beat these days because one time I discovered a song that sounded similar to grime in a way. That kind of experience makes me want to explore more.
What were the biggest challenges you faced on your musical journey? People think I only spin house music. If you could time travel and give yourself two pieces of advice when you were just starting out, what would they be?1. Put out more music. 2. Talk to your heroes.
When/why/how did you decide to get into production
I started being serious about making music when I went to university in Melbourne. I thought I was bad for a while. Then as I worked harder and harder, and getting close to what I wanted to achieve, I found I really enjoyed making music.
How do you decide when your productions are finished? They’re never really finished. I always think the mix down can be better, especially when I hear other people’s work. What is the most difficult thing you have had to overcome when it comes to production? Sometimes I have melodic ideas, but I always struggle to find a musical direction. Especially when I try to write dance music, so many things have been done already. When a lot of people are contributing to a certain sound,you have to make things sound as unique as possible, even if just with a slight twist. What do you use to produce? Do you have a favorite tool or piece of gear? I mainly use Ableton Live and some hardware. I like my Yamaha SY99, it’s huge, heavy and powerful, the pads sounds so silky.Can you tell us about the ideas or sounds that went into these two recent mixes of yours – Red Light Radio and NTS with Pender Street Steppers?
The Pender Street Steppers show has been my favorite on NTS, I remember listening to it while driving through the leafy roads of Melbourne at dusk. That was something. So I just wanted to soundtrack that moment with music I found at the time.The Red Light show was a bit interesting, I was supposed to play the first slot (8-9am) in the morning, but ended up playing last at night (10-11pm). I received Howie Lee’s promo album, and put together that show based around one song I really like from him. It was pretty special playing personal, meditative, spiritual music, while you can have a view of this busy touristy street of the red light zone in Amsterdam. At that moment I feel like music is protecting me from all the evil of the outside world.
How do you balance the roles between a promoter, producer, and DJ? Do you enjoy one over the others? Which role demands most of your time right now? I can’t balance myself among those roles, that’s why I’m so bad it. I don’t like being a promoter, its really not my thing. Djing and all the work for putting on a party have been taking up most of my time. Although financially our parties failed epically, I enjoyed each and every night we put together. What was the best advice you've received as a DJ or producer? Bell Towers once said to me, “You can’t satisfy everyone.”
Where would you like to see yourself as an artist in 5 years? I wouldn’t consider myself an artist just yet. I make music and provide the soundtrack of my favourite clubs in China. I hope I can keep doing this and achieve something that people can talk about many many years later.
Pick three artists for your dream line-up of a night at Elevator. What's the time table? Assume you have unlimited budget and booking powers, including reincarnating past talents to take the decks again. Olafur Eliasson on the lights,Ryuichi Sakamoto plays live version of his Ongau Zukan album, Cai Guo Qiang on the smoke machine maybe.
What was your favorite flyer you have ever done? I don’t think any of them are that great actually. However, here is a story: A couple months ago, I played at Zhaodai. After finished my set, one guy came up to me and said he likes what Beatween does and particularly the flyer for Wolf Muller and Niklas Wandt. He turned out to be one of the guys behind Menslies, Yenk.I always wanted to meet him and his partner PJ,their works for Zhaodai has a strong aesthetic and made the club instantly recognizable. Collaboration is a big part of your life, any fun story you can share with us in that regard? I was making some music with Mr.Ho when he last visited Xiamen. It was really fun, we took turns at Ableton building a track in my studio at home. How do we find you in the digital world? Knopha is occasionally on weibo, Instagram @Knopha