Name: Patrik Berger aka Hög sjö

Nationality: Swedish
Occupation: Producer, songwriter
Current release: Hög sjö's Gnosienne no. 6, third in a trilogy of EPs, is out via Smuggler, also home to acts like Rural Tapes.

[Read our Rural Tapes interview]

If you enjoyed this interview with Patrik Berger / Hög sjö, visit him on Instagram for updates about his music.



Where does the impulse to create something come from for you? What role do often-quoted sources of inspiration like dreams, other forms of art, personal relationships, politics etc play?

All of the above I would say. Every aspect of life is a factor as long as you let the subconscious take the lead and guide you.

If you’re in some sort of connection with your own intuitive side, everything that effects your life will translate into whatever art form you’re expressing yourself through.

For you to get started, do there need to be concrete ideas – or what some have called a 'visualisation' of the finished work? What does the balance between planning and chance look like for you?

I never really have a clear idea of what the end result will be like. I know that a lot of people work that way, but for me it always turns out different from what I’ve envisioned. So I’ve given up on the idea of controlling it. Everyday is like a white empty sheet of paper.

I just start. With whatever basically. Could be a drumbeat, playing an instrument that I can’t play, writing down some words. Hopefully I get some ideas from that and I just spin off and expand on it.
 
The best feeling is when I listen back to stuff a week later or so and I have no memory of creating it. Then I feel that I was in the right zone. You can tell by be way I label the session. Might be something like waltz Black Sabbath riff idea, but the finished song is more like minimal techno or something.

Is there a preparation phase for your process? Do you require your tools to be laid out in a particular way, for example, do you need to do 'research' or create 'early versions'?

I really enjoy having everything record ready in my studio. Drums, piano, guitar amps etc, all mics in place so I never have to rig stuff or patch it. I can just hit record as soon as I have an idea.

Everything needs to be super fast and easy. As soon as there’s an obstacle like a broken cable or something, I lose momentum. So stuff needs to be in its right place. I don’t believe in creative chaos …

When it comes to working together with other people it’s a bit different than when I work by myself. Then I feel like I want to be prepared and have some ideas going before I get in the room with someone new. Not everybody enjoys working completely aimless, no brain-activity style.

Do you have certain rituals to get you into the right mindset for creating? What role do certain foods or stimulants like coffee, lighting, scents, exercise or reading poetry play?

I don’t really believe in that ether.

For me, the best music I’ve done (and I think that goes for a lot of other people as well) has been in really poor environments. Hungry in cold mouldy basements without windows.

In my head I’ve always dreamed of having a beautiful studio facing the ocean or something. But every time I’ve got to work in places like that I just wanna hang at the beach and don’t really feel like making music at all.

I try to work the same way as writers do. You get up in the morning and then you just start working. Waiting for inspiration is for rookies.

What do you start with? How difficult is that first line of text, the first note?

Again, it’s all different everyday.

I just try to surprise myself. I think it’s important not to criticize anything you do for the first hour or so. It might be shit but it doesn’t matter. It’s not the point. That first hour is just to build something to create from.

It’s a skill though. When you work with people who are not that experienced and havn’t yet built up enough self-confidence, they can say stuff like, oh that sounds a bit like that song, or that reminds me of that kind of music that I’m not really in to.

After a few of those, the vibe is definitely gone …

When do the lyrics enter the picture? Where do they come from? Do lyrics need to grow together with the music or can they emerge from a place of their own?

Lyrics are the toughest part I think. When it comes to lyrics I have a hard time adapting my own dogmas of creating and not criticizing. It’s because it’s so in your face.

What do I really have to say of any sort of importance, that millions of people need to hear?

What makes lyrics good in your opinion? What are your own ambitions and challenges in this regard?

Every lyric that comes from an honest place is I good lyric I think. Can be sad, stupid, happy, whatever. Just honest.

There are many descriptions of the creative state. How would you describe it for you personally? Is there an element of spirituality to what you do?

Yes and no. When you’re in the flow, everything lines up and you just follow that compass needle. That’s great. But a lot of times it’s just plain work and you can’t really rely on that force (whatever that is) to be there working in your favour.

There’s definitely a magical aspect to music making. I used to fear decoding it. I thought the magic would get lost if learned to much about the underlying structures and theories behind it. But that’s kind of bullshit. You will never be able to decode what this is all about.

Especially in the digital age, the writing and production process tends towards the infinite. What marks the end of the process? How do you finish a work?

When you reached the deadline, the production is done.

Once a piece is finished, how important is it for you to let it lie and evaluate it later on? How much improvement and refinement do you personally allow until you're satisfied with a piece? What does this process look like in practise?

It’s always nice to leave something for some time and come back to it as see what needs to be done. Most of the time you don’t really have the time to wait for that perspective. Then you’ll have to trick yourself into getting to that state of mind.

To invite someone over and listen to your work is probably the best way to hear what’s working or not. As soon as there’s another person there, you can instantly tell. Everything is so obvious. The tempo is wrong, or the lyric feels contrived etc. It’s a very strange phenomenon, but it really does the job.

What's your take on the role and importance of production, including mixing and mastering for you personally? How involved do you get in this?

Early in my career, I spent most of my small production fees on getting someone great to mix my stuff.

I thought it would pay off in the end that my stuff sounded really good. It kind of made sense. It was a big deal getting something mixed on a big SSL console rather than a cracked logic and crap speakers. Also I think mastering was a bigger deal back then. It was really hard to get stuff open, loud and punchy without all the expensive mastering gear.

Now you've got all these amazing tools in your computer. It all really comes down to your ears. I mostly mix my stuff myself nowadays. It’s just less of a hustle. The analog vs digital sort of played out its role.

After finishing a piece or album and releasing something into the world, there can be a sense of emptiness. Can you relate to this – and how do you return to the state of creativity after experiencing it?

Ingmar Bergman said, you should always start the process of your next movie before you finish the one you’re currently working on. If you get shit reviews, you will be depressed and it’s gonna be hard to start something new. And if people think you made a masterpiece, you will get performance anxiety and not be able to start something new.

Just keep creating and never look back. I try to mimic that view of life

Creativity can reach many different corners of our lives. Do you personally feel as though writing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?

I think making music has very little to do with making a cup of coffee.