MOCEAN raising the sea level.
Ibiza veterans on starting a DJ journey together.
Pictures and interview by Karim Tabar
Where in the world is your home base and why?
VICKY:
Ibiza is my home - I moved here in 2018 because I fell in love with the lifestyle, people and music on the island. My first visit was in 2017 and I was staying in Can Soleil for 2 weeks while Guy Laliberte and his daughter Naima were still there - it was an incredible first time experience for me, I will never forget it as it changed my life.
Growing up in Thailand, there is plenty of culture and beauty all around…but I was missing the festivals, great electronic music, inspirations from other cultures and meeting interesting and like-minded people. I remember listening to mixes from Bedouin, Acid Pauli, Guy Gerber, Solomun and more while I was at home in Thailand…wondering how it might be to actually see them play live. I watched videos of Beachouse, Acid Sundays, Rumours etc and wished that one day I would be there to experience it myself.
Then I met Guy, who was booked to play at Cafe Del Mar Phuket where I was working at the time. He had invited me and my ex partner to stay with him in Ibiza. To tell you the truth, I had no idea who he was when I first met him…but he was so fascinating, full of positive energy and great ideas, played an amazing set and had a beautiful crew of people with him. I thought, this is my calling to finally go to Ibiza for the first time with such a great group of people! And it was…I got a crash course on life in Ibiza, followed by my first Burning Man with the same wonderful crew of friends. Once I got back to Thailand I managed to get a job with Heart Ibiza, and so I sold everything I had and moved to the White Island! It was a dream come true and I am grateful everyday.
What’s distinctive about the places you grew up, and how did it shape you?
VICKY:
I grew up in Phuket Thailand, known as “The Land of Smiles” as everyone is always smiling at you or greeting you with a “wai” (hands in prayer). Thailand will always be my home, one that I try to visit every winter except for the last 2 years due to the pandemic.
My highschool years were spent there, besides regular studies I also studied Classical Music & Theory, played the piano and was part of a band as a vocalist. I was very much into rock back then, it was the beginning of my musical life journey which eventually led me to study Music & Events in Swedish university. I was determined to become a professional within the music industry - whether I was on stage or back stage, I just wanted to work with music and art.
Thailand has shaped me in the ways of the Thai people. I received teachings from the monks whenever my mum would take me to the temples - I learnt the importance of kindness, respect, patience, humility and loyalty. All values I hold strong today. I found my love for nature and animals as I spend my free time surfing, diving, horse riding, chasing sunsets and island hopping. I couldn’t have asked for a better childhood...I wish to go back one day and retire on a remote island somewhere.
If you had to recommend one album for someone looking to get into dance music, what would you give them and why?
VICKY:
I would suggest listening to Hans Zimmer’s Interstellar album from 2014. All of his works are amazing, but this one is one of my favourites and so is Hans as a film score and record producer. It is not exactly a collection of tracks for the dancefloor, but Hans is known for integrating electronic music sounds with traditional orchestral arrangements; many artists today remix his pieces into dancefloor anthems.
When I studied music, I used to analyse score music and eventually wrote a score myself for my music thesis - hence why I truly appreciate how Hans builds his pieces…how they tell a story, take you on a journey, how he uses a broad range of classical instruments, how each part has meaning and compliments the other, how he introduces motifs and scatters them across his works, how emotional and dramatic he gets.
I love it when music makes you feel, whatever the emotion - when it makes the hair on the back of your neck and arms stand up, when it touches your heart. Expressing, communicating and storytelling without necessarily using words, this is what music is about.
Who are some upcoming artists that you’re into right now?
VICKY:
Kermesse, The Soul Brothers, Birds Of Mind, Just Emma, Oceanvs Orientalis, Lum…
Please share with us a soundcloud link of a track you’ve recently released or you’re most proud of.
VICKY & KARLA:
We are currently working on a 3 track EP to be released this year! It will be track collaborations with 3 local artists based in Ibiza that we admire, stay tuned on our instagram account @moceanmusik for announcements.
One piece of advice you’d give to new Artists/DJ’s trying to break through the DJ world?
VICKY:
Play from the heart, play what you love - it may take some time to find your sound, but as long as you play what you love you will always enjoy it, have passion and drive. It’s ok to mix genres and styles once you know how to play and plan your sets properly…in fact that could give you a distinct sound. There is no right or wrong, only what you love and how much practice and effort you put in to play well.
KARLA
Where in the world is your home base and why?
Home is Ibiza since 2017. The reasons why are all very much related with my intuition and that feeling of “I belong here” somehow. I was living in Paris and coming to visit Ibiza since 2014. Every time I had to leave I was deeply and inexplicably sad. Like there was a bond created between us, a connection that in that moment I could not explain.
Was not the music scene that got me hooked, but the nature and its mystical corners and the mind blowing sunsets and energy that rules this place. I could not stop the thought of living on an island with so much freedom where people are able to dance and listen to the best music from Monday to Monday. The utopia of both sides convinced me I had to move here. Went to Bali for 1 year and moved straight from island to island without ever looking back.
It was so far the best decision I could have ever made. I can’t imagine myself living anywhere else in the world after living in more than 10 countries. I’m the happiest here.
What’s distinctive about the places you grew up, and how did it shape you?
I was born and raised in Brazil. The country gave me all the strength, love for life - I consider we do have an appreciation for life that makes people feel so in love with Brazil - we call it “alegria de viver”, which means more or less “happiness for being in this life”. We do know how to have fun and how to never give up on our goals/dreams. We are passionate. I love this about my country. Though what really shaped me, was all the experiences I had after leaving my own country when I was 22 years old.
I see so many people very comfortable everywhere I live and settling for less than their dreams. I left Brazil in 2012 and never went back again, only for holidays. Travelling and living in different countries was the most valuable thing I did for myself. I always hated to stay in my comfort zone, I’m too curious for that. It makes me feel restless, with so much out there to be discovered, so much to learn from different cultures and people.
I would say I don’t feel 100% Brazilian and that I took from every country a bit of what felt right to me and aligned with my values. The most special one is India, where I learned that it doesn't matter where you are, “you are where you are meant to be, do things with sense and compromise and enjoy the ride”.
If you had to recommend one album for someone looking to get into dance music, what would you give them and why?
To recommend an album is to talk about someone who inspires me. Personally, to really be an inspirational artist on dance music, I believe you must have a vast appreciation for different types of music, sounds, cultures and so on - or at least the more you know/listen the richer your music will be. This is what is going to make your music incomparable and timeless.
My favourite album of all time is “Space Is Only Noise” by Nicolas Jaar. His music for me is simply art work. He manages to fuse and restructure traditional house, downtempo, jazz touchstones. The album has a fascination with space (as much as I do too) and near-silence. Besides he uses his own voice, for the most part, for texture rather than center, I was kinda obsessed with the way he did it. This album was pretty addictive to me.
My favourite tracks are "Balance Her in Between Your Eyes” this track resembles the slow emotional slide of life itself, and my one and only “Space Is Only Noise If You Can See”. Full and purely music education if you just start DJing, don't go anywhere without listening to this album first. :)
"Balance Her in Between Your Eyes”
You can try to find the star that made you
You can try to find that speck of light in your eye
You can look into and see the eye that made you
The light that made you
But you might as well make yourself at home balance at home
Put both feet in the thin line of light
And look into the eye that made you
Tell her you see her
Balance her in between your eyes
Who are some upcoming artists that you’re into right now?
Zigan Aldi, Kutiman
Please share with us a soundcloud link of a track you’ve recently released or you’re most proud of.
ANSWERED BY KARLA
One piece of advice you’d give to new Artists/DJ’s trying to break through the DJ world?
Stay true to the very first reason (feeling/idea/utopia) that made you want to be a DJ. Don’t sell your soul, be curious and have discipline if you really wanna rock it.
