With electronic music being such a new and constantly evolving space, it’s easy to forget how far the roots go back. From the heydays of Disco, to the debut of Daft Punk, to the early days of Deadmau5, the EDM industry has over 5 decades of rich history that has contributed to the scene we know and love today.
Recently, River Beats crossed paths with an artist who has been chiseled by the Miami Music scene and the fervent EDM revolution that has taken place over the last 15 years. Luis Crucet, our subject in focus, has undergone multiple transformations when it comes to his musical endeavors and has recently surfaced with his latest project – an ambient-experimental endeavor by the name of Crudanlu.
Starting his music career playing the electric bass for a Metal and Post-Hardcore band, Luis Crucet was eventually introduced to the stylings of Justice and Daft Punk via live videos uploaded to the internet. Quickly turning from a fan into a DJ/producer, Crucet adopted the Atrasolis moniker and began aggressively pursuing complextro and the new era of dubstep that was seeping into the scene.
After a few years of playing shows in and around the Miami area and venues as prominent as Webster Hall, yet another change in the scene came about that made Crucet rethink his ambitions. The new wave of Future Bass in 2013/2014 came crashing over him in a surge of inspiration that led him to change the name and direction of the project. Reverting back to his government name, Luis Crucet, the young Miami musician began to take ownership of the sounds he was creating and producing music that didn’t cater to anyone’s preferences but his own.
Although he didn’t know it at the time, by reclaiming his art form he planted a seed that has now led to the formation of the Crudanlu project. Combining 15 years of music influence, which includes the early days of complextro, the new dawn of future bass, and some of the more experimental applications of recent times, Crudanlu represents one artist’s journey to create art that truly speaks to him.
Recently, River Beats got the chance to catch up with Crucet following the debut of Crudanlu and its first official release. In our conversation, Crucet discusses his experiences growing up in the EDM hotbed that is Miami, the pivotal moments in his career that reshifted his pursuits, the creative freedom he felt when he let go of expectations, and much more.
River Beats: What events or occurrences early on in your career were most influential in driving your desire to become a DJ and producer?
Luis Crucet: I believe it was when I first saw live videos of JUSTICE or Daft Punk. Reading about their background of being in bands seemed to have some type of relative connection that allowed me to become influenced and feel like I was similar to them. I saw an opportunity to dive into the electronic music culture by using the road they paved. I got a laptop, and some headphones and started making cheesy beats on GarageBand while trying to impress my circle of friends. I didn’t want to lose my songwriting ability so I became hooked as I learned. When I started going out to clubs and venues in Miami like White Room, Vagabond, Grand Central, and Space, I saw a handful of acts that helped me dive more into what I was getting into.
RB: When you first started listening to names like Justice and Deadmau5 in 2008, did you think they were going to have as big of an impact on music as they did?
LC: Absolutely. In my opinion, they were ahead of their time with their style of dance music during that era and paved the way for what was about to happen a few years later. I believe they had their unique ways of showing their craft and pioneered the aggressive fidget style combined with those signature chord progressions they used respectively. I think they had the complete package as far as great shows with stage props go and cultivated the image of the DIY thing, especially Justice.
RB: What do you think growing up in the EDM hotbed of Miami during this complextro revolution did to shape your growth as an artist?
LC: That’s a good question. Most of those sounds would stem from events I attended during MMW (Miami Music Week) aka WMC (Winter Music Conference) between 2009-2015. At the time, it was definitely an elite style of music to compose that had those recognizable quick-changing bass sounds in micro-moments while keeping a 4/4 dance beat. I strived to understand how it worked and had fun learning it knowing it was going to be an element I now use for other things. But Miami in general had almost every prominent genre covered as well – lots of drum n’ bass, techno, and house were mostly present.
RB: In what ways, if any, do your Metal and Post-Hardcore roots influence your current style as an electronic music artist?
LC: I find when it’s sonically translated from one genre to another in a very subtle way it ends up having the same aggressive energy that I was drawn to when I used to listen to that style of music. It could be saturated drum processing that is placed very upfront or complex rhythmic patterns on other instruments that make that bridge. Minus the screaming vocals of course.
RB: Can you discuss the circumstances surrounding the new wave of Future Bass that arrived in 2013/2014? How did it change the scene?
LC: It was so dope! I remember hearing a remix of “HyperParadise” from Hermitude by a person from the Netherlands named GANZ. I heard it on a RinseFM episode Plastician hosted. I remember feeling a nice rush when I got really hooked on it and said to myself that this is the next thing. In this case, it was dope trap beats with major key supersaw chords. Many music producers from all over the country, like myself, began picking up the shifting trend of capturing that vibe and adding our own cluster of influences to it.
RB: How did it change your perspectives, preferences, and music taste?
LC: After that, it helped me get better at researching by getting to the source of things. I enjoyed learning the history of when genres became popular and how to give the pioneers their flowers; Rustie, Hudson Mohawke/Lunice (aka tnght), Point Point, Lido, and of course early Flume. This led me to keep digging and following what they would like on SoundCloud. I also started picking up and tuning in on other collectives or online stations that focused more on future hip-hop beats like Soulection.
RB: What factors influenced you to move on to the Luis Crucet project from Atrasolis?
LC: It had a lot to do with being sonically influenced by different artists at the current time. I wasn’t listening to dubstep/electro house or whatever it was called as it evolved anymore. When the shift occurred, I naturally followed what I felt sounded fresh at the time. Also, traffic shifted, and I parted ways with the people who handled my bookings and releases. I felt that that era in my life was beginning to sunset. When all of that occurred, I realized it was time for a new opportunity.
RB: In what ways was reverting to Luis Crucet, your actual name, a grounding experience that helped you take more ownership of your musical pursuits?
LC: It felt nice to be honest. I didn’t want the project to have some type of gimmick besides the fact that I wanted to focus more on my intention. I understood that a new opportunity was presented to gain new skillsets in my production and improve on my craft. I even did an audit and purchased all of my software stuff after torrenting for years. I wasn’t focused too much on building a foundation. My new entity at the time was a platform for me to go on a journey and discover what I ultimately wanted. This helped me let go of the perception of ‘chasing the dream’ and what that entails. There’s nothing wrong if that’s what some people are into, and there’s a crowd for that, but I personally preferred to take the route I chose.
RB: What did this do to your creativity?
LC: It began to feel more liberating that I was able to start fresh and allowed me to experiment with sounds, learn more techniques, and discover so many new software synths (synplant, quanta, spectral effects, echo-bode, anything from Slate + Ash). It also helped me understand my limitations but also strive to stay curious and ambitious. Since it was a restart and I didn’t have any expectations as to what it was going to be, I was able to have fun again.
RB When did the ideas for Crudanlu begin? What were the musical, artistic, situational, or environmental influences that led to it?
LC: It was pretty recent when I felt that I wanted to funnel down and simplify what really makes me happy at the end of the day. I think as time progressed, my interests shifted. Sonically, I was becoming more influenced by experimental music. I also had personal thoughts on rebranding in order to tie an entity to my artist projects and leave the LC brand for potential placements and credits in the future. It was solidified on one of my recent trips to California when I was driving in the desert in a moment of deep thought.
RB: What musical styles or artistic influences are you trying to capture with Crudanlu?
LC: This is a tricky question because naturally, any artist wants to push their own unique sound. But to be honest, I’ve learned to let that go. I’ve learned to embrace things to turn them into influences and gain new techniques or skill sets. I’ve also learned to embrace my Hispanic roots through folk music and its culture based on where my parents are from. I am definitely leaning towards the experimental side of music – but with structure. I can say I am definitely influenced by Flume, SOPHIE (RIP), and other artists in that realm. Their style of music helps me feel that I can write any style of songs I want. It can be pop-structured, dance music-structured, ear candy abstract stuff, who knows. It opened a new pallet of sounds for me and allowed me to think outside of the box. I’ve also been really loving how I can now understand how to use these software synths fully and make sounds from scratch.
RB: In what ways does Crudanlu meet your desire to keep pushing the envelope of music exploration?
LC: Good question. I think it’s definitely taking pressure off myself as I mentioned above. It’s not an easy task to let go if something gets put out and all of a sudden it resonates, the expectation is created, and your next song has to match or exceed it. I think I’ve learned personally from those lessons that music is just random and some things will connect and others won’t. That helps me to find the joy in writing music and stay curious, uncomfortable, and present. I also plan on continuing to experiment while embracing failure and picking myself up.
RB: What do you hope to accomplish with the project?
LC: I honestly want to be able to build a solid fanbase, leverage my resources better, and impact whichever community I feel like I’ll end up in. I want to make something that resonates with anyone in any way shape or form, jam with my friends, share production stuff online or build new relationships without expecting something out of it. I’d also like to collaborate with artists and continue expressing that habit of feeling excited when I figure it something out or learn something new. Lastly, I hope to avoid planning things and letting them happen naturally while celebrating my small accomplishments as I complete them.
RB: Why did you choose to remix a Good Times Ahead song as your first official release for Crudanlu?
LC: It was a song I immediately latched onto when I first heard it and it’s also the quickest I’ve ever finished a track. I felt what I had written was a shift of what I did with Luis Crucet compared to this new project and a prototype of what I am currently getting myself into. Plus, they’re friends of mine as we’re both from Miami. I’ve always wanted to work with them and it’s a great segue for this project.
RB: Can you touch upon the details regarding the Crudanlu live performance? What does it consist of and what is the perfect environment for it?
LC: I am very excited about it because I began practicing with this remix as an experiment to see if it was going to work. I’ve had ideas for years on how I was going to do it but I never had the equipment or the specifics on how it worked. Essentially, I intend on playing the songs by piecing them together live on Ableton and filling in the missing spaces. I plan on mainly playing drum parts on a Roland drum pad, some chords on the launchpad or MIDI keyboard, and maybe some other sounds while manipulating the song in parallel with effects.
LC: I am aiming to start in small intimate settings that will integrate the experience with the environment as it grows its own legs and see where it goes. I miss playing live music from my band days and I feel that with what I’ve learned in my DJ phase, I can blend both of the things I’ve always known how to do. More to come soon.
RB: What can fans expect next from Crudanlu?
LC: For those who decide to follow, I am currently writing original music. I love exploring different styles, different structures, and different tones. As I mentioned, I also plan to focus on what a live performance will look like. I think the DJ sets are something I’ll put aside for now unless something spurs me to want to play one. Lastly, I hope to really connect with whoever decides to follow my journey. I’m currently using tools to enhance that fan experience when the time comes.
The artist journey is a road filled with immense amount of ups and downs, wins and losses, but to see a DJ and producer like Luis Crucet come out on the other side with a clear and driven goal of what he wants to do is inspiring whether you’re a fan or fellow artist.
With original music, a live curated performance, and much more soon to come, we will have our eyes on Crudanlu as he begins to make his way into speakers and venues across the scene.
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