Interview with The Further

Music magazine The Further from Paris and Berlin asked me some good questions about my latest single Death and I tried to answer them.

Can you share a bit about your background and journey as a musician? How did your experiences lead you to combine spiritual themes with funky, guitar-driven beats?

I have been making music and writing songs since my teenage years. I played in several bands, and although I followed a different career in the Internet industry since 1985, I never stopped making music. Later I got very involved with Bitcoin and wrote several songs about it, the most popular was my Reggaeton about the Bitcoin Beach in El Salvador. I only started writing about spiritual topics in December 2023, so that’s a new development for me.

Your latest single, Death, explores profound topics of death and rebirth. How did your personal spiritual journey, particularly your Buddhist practice, influence your decision to write this song?

I participated in many courses where one learns a meditation technique that can be very useful in the moment of death. It definitely removes any fear of death. Buddhism has very profound teachings about what happens after death and they match to what people report who had near-death experiences. Normally as a Buddhist one doesn’t believe anything, but checks out everything by one’s own experience, which would be a bit difficult with death (laughs). So for a while I have to trust that what my teachers tell me about death and rebirth is true – but it sounds very logical and convincing to me.

The fusion of spirituality and groove is a unique approach. How did you develop your signature sound and how has your musical style evolved over the years?

I don’t find it so unique, even the Beatles have already sung about spiritual topics, think about ‘Tomorrow never knows’ from the Revolver album, which also quotes the Tibetan Book of the Dead. However, I try to be very authentic and genuine in my lyrics, and so far people’s reactions to it are very good. It seems that I am talking about things that resonate with them. My musical style is quite diverse, it’s mostly Rock, Funk and Soul, but I also have a Ska, a Flamenco and a Bossa Nova. I just like many different styles of music, and I try to incorporate everything I like into my music.

You’ve mentioned that the Tibetan Book of the Dead and your years of meditation have played a significant role in shaping your views on death. How did you first come into contact with these teachings, and how have they impacted both your life and your music?

I remember that I first read about the Tibetan Book of the Dead in a popular science magazine when I was fifteen. It immediately struck me as true. However, it took me quite a while to really practice Buddhist meditation, as most schools of Buddhism seemed very Asian and exotic to me. I definitely didn’t want to become a monk! I was lucky to finally meet a school that is more compatible with our Western culture. It keeps the essence of Buddha’s teachings, but presents them in a form that fits with modern life. Buddhism has definitely changed my life for the better. However, it is still a new thing for me to write Buddhist lyrics, and I don’t want them to sound too Buddhist. I try to use normal words and to avoid typical Buddhist terms. I want everybody to be able to relate to my songs, you don’t have to be a Buddhist to like them.

Having spent a lot of time in Mexico, what elements of Mexican culture, particularly the “Day of the Dead” celebrations, have inspired you? How did this influence the creation of your music video for “Death”?

The way Mexicans celebrate the ‘Dia de los Muertos’ is amazing! They celebrate by putting the dead ones’ favourite foods and drinks on their graves. Cemeteries are decorated in a beautiful way with lots of flowers, and often you have live brass bands playing loud music there. I find that positive approach to death very inspiring, so it was logical to play with these elements in my music video. A skull face paint I received in Mexico served as the model for what Swedish artist Filippa Levemark painted on my face or the video, but we added a ‘third eye’ to my forehead, which is a more Buddhist symbol.

What role has spirituality played in your overall artistic journey? Has it always been a part of your music, or was there a turning point in your life that brought this deeper meaning into your art?

I have only combined these two passions of mine in December of 2023. The turning point was a coaching session in which we were talking about how to handle pride. We discussed how to turn the stupid “I am better than you” pride into something called equalising wisdom, when you can recognise and appreciate the qualities of others, not only your own ones. Suddenly my coach gave me the task to write a song about this insight. He even gave me a deadline of 72 hours to do so! I accepted the challenge and wrote the song Be Proud!, the first one of this new series of songs that I call ‘Mindful Music’. I performed it at a Christmas party in Mexico and people liked it so much that I started writing more and more songs about spiritual topics.

Here is the original article.

Some more articles that have been published about my music.