SET Underground’s TIERRA DE LOS MUERTOS returns for a second year and four more magical nights of world class music from Denis Horvat, Frankey and Sandrino, Gab Rhome, Jan Blomqvist, Rafael Cerato, Rebolledo, Sabo & Goldcap, Santiago Garcia, The Organism and many more. It goes down during the iconic Day of the Dead celebrations in Oaxaca City, Mexico from Friday, October 28th to Tuesday, November 1st.n Verlk is also one of those playing and here we speak to him about his recent musical success, what to expect from him at the festival and more besides.
Whats good in your world?
Coffee to start the day and music that makes you connect emotionally.
Tell us about your The Cure – At Night bootleg – what made you do it?
The Cure has been my favourite band forever and I had tried to remix the original 1982 version of At NIght but I couldn’t really make it work out; bummer! A few years later though, The Cure came to play in San Francisco where they did a live version of it and boom, the idea came to my head right away that I should try and make a club rework using a live version. Thankfully it worked out 🙂
It has had some high profile support right? what does that mean to you?
Normally when you are producing a track, there is an initial excitement about it that starts fading away the more you listen to it. If you take a long time to finish it, at some point you start thinking it is not even good. Long story short when you send it out and its supported by big profile DJs and you see the crowd reactions, you go back to that initial phase where you are really excited building a track
You performing at SET Underground – what is the vibe or the party, what makes it unique?
The crowd. People that support the shows are always open minded about music and that’s huge for us
What should people expect from you at SET Underground’s TIERRA DE LOS MUERTOS?
I never plan my sets but given the before sunrise time slot and magical location, I have the feeling that I might be able to drop tracks on the spacier spectrum, which I love!
Can you match the mood and vibe of the festival with your music or do you do your own thing?
I think it’s important to have continuity and coherence with whoever is playing before so I’d always consider that for the first few tracks and then move on whatever direction feels right at the moment
What are you most looking forward to about playing there?
Probably seeing seeing the first rays of light come out of the horizon while I am playing and drop something proper for the moment
You’re a pretty prolific producer, where does the inspiration come from to create?
Normally I draw inspiration from non club music. I might go out for a walk while listening to a 60’s spotify playlist, hear an organ riff that I like and then use it on a track. Most of my tracks start from a sample idea i got somewhere far from house and techno music
What is the most important lesson you have learnt in your career so far?
That good things always take time and that patience is a big virtue alongside a strong work ethic
What else have you got coming up/are you working on?
About to sign a single on a big label; I can;t say more for now but I might drop it at Tierra de los Muertos since it’s the perfect vibe for a Oaxaca sunrise 🙂
