A Quick Chat With Hugo van Buuren

Congratulations on your new EP Two Truths - can you talk to us about the title and where it came from?

Thank you! ‘Two Truths’ is a nod to the opening line of the track ‘Hell Is Other People’. “Two people, two truths, digging deeper lies. Hell is other people, and so I know I’m right”. That song is about confrontation / the friction found between two people / two ideologies. In both my close relationships and the broader political climate - everyone has their version of truth, and I find myself trying to distill and navigate this everyday.

 Who - or what - was influencing you while creating the album?

Last year I was lucky enough to make a pilgrimage to see Joni Mitchell play live at The Gorge Amphitheatre while I was visiting friends in the pacific northwest. We drove down the coast from Canada to the gig and had her album ‘Heijera’ on high rotation. It was surreal listening to Joni sing and share stories with the backdrop of the Columbia River below these beautiful cliffs and a burning sunset melting into the horizon. My EP was recorded a week later and these images and warmth really found their way into the songs.

What was the creative process like for Two Truths, from writing through to recording?

I had written all of these songs here at home in Naarm but just didn’t quite know how to begin recording them in a way that honoured their energy and warmth. I kept driving my way south after seeing Joni play and met up with Gabe Lubowe, a long-distance collaborator of mine who is based in Arcata, northern California. Gabe and I were introduced back in 2020 during an online songwriting residency led by Meg Duffy (Hand Habits) and the incomparable folks at School of Song. Gabe and I spent that week in his studio in Arcata laying down the backbone of the EP and ducking out for river swims and walks in the redwood forests. I never wanted to leave!

Do you have a current favorite song on the EP, and why?

Currently it’s ‘Two Rivers’ - I love the warmth found in the friction between the acoustic/electronic and the soft/firm elements. The lush textural landscape paired with Gabe’s driving, discrete rhythmic backbone really mirrors the sentiment of the track - a racing mind and heart processing grief within the stillness of natural spaces.

Can you tell us about some of the themes you explore on Two Truths?

I keep coming back to the word ‘friction’ a lot here - but I think it really sums up EP perfectly. All the songs are about me trying to navigate my way through complex relationships. Also, the friction felt between the more folky-acoustic sounds and rigid electronic production moments - I carry a deep love for both these sonic worlds and love how these two truths exist within me and how they blend together on the record.

Visually, how would you describe this body of work?

It comes back to that memory of the Joni gig for me - burning oranges and warm light bouncing off water. I wanted to extend the themes of conflict between the gentle/firm and continuous/discrete into the visuals too so I brought dear friend Dylan Marelic onboard to make a video for ‘Two Rivers’. I was so moved by his work and some stills from the video became the covers for the first two singles of the EP.

Is there a song on the EP that was perhaps especially challenging and is now one you are most proud of?

‘Hell Is Other People’ was a challenging one to land - Gabe and I were stumped on how to progress it so I sent it to Sydney based artist and friend, Jerome Blaze. I wanted him to completely dismantle it and send back something to disorientate and surprised me. This experiment worked and really carried the song across the finish line. It was a fine line balancing the weight of the lyrics with a carefully coloured sonic pallet.’

You worked with Gabe Lubowe on the EP. How did he help to shape the sound of Two Truths?

I admire Gabe’s work so so much, I feel like he is my musical doppelganger who happens to just live on the other side of the world. The core part of my writing is grounded in my guitar playing and lyric whereas Gabe really brought through the rhythmic and energetic backbone to the EP. His style is so playful and intuitive - blending together drum machines, MIDI sounds played off a computer keyboard and real drum kit. It’s this crazy hybrid sound that is so alive and uniquely ‘Gabe’ to me.

What is exciting you at the moment? Aside from music?

Well, it’s kind of music adjacent… but I’ve been really finding so much joy and release learning how to move and connect with my body while dancing - both in hot sweaty clubs with friends and in improvised/free movement workshops too. So many of my friends have a creative practice grounded in expression through movement - it’s a new frontier for me but it’s definitely rubbing off and slowly manifesting in my practice too.

Who are some local artists we should check out?

I can’t stop listening to Sunny Morris’ incredible new record ‘You’re A Liar, Girl’ - Sunny is one of the strongest women and artists I know and I am flawed over and over by her poetry and songwriting. I’ve also just recently come to learn about Mayari (I’m late to the game here). She makes incredible textural electronic music for angels that love ambient/natural sounds but also love to let loose too. Her new track ‘See Me (Ritual)’ is huge.

What will celebrating the EP release look like for you?

We launched the EP officially last night at The Old Bar which was incredible - playing these tunes live with my band and holding space in a room with so many beautiful people really makes the release feel real. Releasing music independently can be so hard and it makes me feel so liberated and vulnerable all at once. I always make sure to ‘celebrate’ releases by being really gentle with myself - lot’s of river swims and time in nature. The important things.

What’s next for Hugo van Buuren?

I’ve been gigging and writing a lot this year alongside close collaborator Emma Kelly (Happy Axe) and we’re keen to keep the energy going into the new year. There are definitely plans brewing for the next step for me, maybe a full length, we’ll see. All I can say is I’m loving leaning into new sounds and directions, queering the alt-folk space and finding home in the balance between the soft/firm, and the natural/synthetic.

Thank you precious Aus Music Scene!