Interview Series: Uth Fruit.
Axel Courtes AKA uth fruit is among a recent [see: yet another] wave of French artists pushing the game forward and promulgating innovation with their every move. Uth does this in both his solo work, as well as in a group setting – he’s part of a collective, “pizza cult,” which has been smashing barriers and defying all attempts at categorization, thanks to a stacked roster of artists from the world over. The group’s songs are haunting, and uth fruit’s inclusion therein comes as no surprise given his well-deserved place among some of the utmost progressive beatmakers from the next generation.
One quality is omnipresent in uth fruit’s work: the evocation of an emotional response. Whether it’s the calming but rousing melodies of his remix of SG Lewis’ “Yours,” or the somber, gorgeous vibes in his take on “Someone New,” or the ultra-happy and bouncy tones in his collaboration with KYLI, when listening to his tracks there’s one thing of which you can be assured – you will feel something.
Uth Fruit’s classical background is evident in all of his work – his chord progressions, in particular, are simply beautiful, immaculate, really, and quite clearly come from a trained ear. As he is quick to point out, however, his music is in a constant state of flux and evolution – and that’s ultimately what makes him so exciting to follow.
With respect to his songs, each iteration may be markedly different from the last, but one is consistently treated to quality regardless. Don’t be surprised if you see this young producer headlining shows a few years down the road. In fact, get ready for it. Read on for the full interview with this talented producer below!
So you’ve been producing for about three years, but also playing piano and guitar as of well before that, is that right? How has your music evolved over time?
Actually I’ve been producing for less time than that haha. Yeah of course, I’ve been playing piano for a while, 11 years actually. I started learning classical piano compositions, then discovering guitar I’ve been introduced to rock, metal and other musical universes like that.
As my musical experience evolved I’ve been searching for more surprising, exotic and complex stuff so I started composing jazz on my piano. And finally not so long ago I discovered electronic music and I seriously believed it could allow me to infinitely expand my creative possibilities. As I produced and as my musical culture grew I knew a little bit more each time how I wanted my stuff to sound, and I think we’re only at the start of this evolution still.
What are your personal goals for the next while?
I want to finish this last highschool year, get good marks at my exams haha but also do my first live shows, and be inspired.
You’ve got some really cool visual art too! How did you get into that and do you have any specific plans for it?
Thank you! I absolutely love photography and the message it can deliver, even better when linked up with audio material. I developed much interest in still life photography, and I discovered so amazing photographers that really inspire me. Those first artworks I did were just photos from those amazing photographers where I added the “uth fruit tatoo”.
For me this “uth fruit tatoo” is representing the vanity aspect of life, the meaningless aesthetical search as baroque artists tried to achieve.
I started creating my own photography compositions and I’m looking forward to getting my own cam to make totally my own artworks in the near future.
How did you link up with alaya?
I always loved the aesthetic of alaya and they always pick awesome artists to feature. One day [alaya] just contacted me to do an episode of alaya radio. That’s the first ever mix of mine by the way.
There seem to be so many cool French producers right now – and of course that’s nothing new, if you look at some of the forefathers of current electronic music like Justice and Daft Punk – what’s the culture like over there?
Yes, I believe that France (especially Paris) is a really important point in the history of electronic music, so french producers still try to innovate and bring something new, I see a lot of producers from here influencing the worldwide electronic music scene, that is pleasant.
How was pizza cult conceived? All of its members typically have pretty different styles, but you’ve nonetheless managed to create a cohesive vibe throughout your releases – what’s your goal for the group?
Pizza cult was simply conceived on skype with a bunch of producer friends, and it’s amazing how the cohesive aspect of all of us was a pure coincidence haha. As pizza cult we’re still trying to show the most forward thinking music, keeping the minimum of it. Some cool projects are coming as a compilation and [there are] other things that I should not talk about here for the moment.
How would you describe uth fruit’s sound? Are you still trying to mold it to some extent? What kind of music would you like to make in the future?
I think that uth fruit’s sound is kind of “electronic trap-oriented contemporary rnb” hahaha. This is the way I want it to sound though.
Yeah I’m still trying to refine it to become something different than what soundcloud is being saturated of. I can’t know what I would like to do in the future, as I don’t know what new music will influence me and how my music taste will be in the future haha, I just let it flow for the moment.
What are a few songs that have really inspired you lately and that we’ve got to check out?
Rhianna – James Joint
Frank Ocean – Godspeed
PARTYNEXTDOOR – Tbh
Gabrielle Aplin – Panic Cord (Hucci remix)
Really varied and rnb stuff, you’ll thank me later hahaha!
. . .
Show uth fruit some love:
SoundCloud | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
(And check out our full SoundCloud Artist Spotlight playlist for uth fruit here.)
