London-born SBTRKT may be one of the best electronic artists
you’ll never see. The DJ is most infamous for the tribal mask that obscures his
face during shows. But unlike the charismatic European DJs du jour, for the man
behind the mask Aaron Jerome, the performance is not about being seen, but
being heard. The Badger Herald caught up with him from Miami where he is slated
to play Ultra Music Festival on Sunday.

“[The mask] always becomes the first point of reference,”
Jerome said. “My initial thing was based around the music first and the image
second.”

We asked Jerome about SBTRKT’s sound, his experience in
Miami, and what he has in store for his upcoming Madison show.

BH: Your sound has defied categorization. If you’re not
looking to fit into a prescribed genre, what is the most important part of
composing a song for you?

SBTRKT: “I dunno, it’s just, the way that I write is not
about fitting in a specific genre or a certain sound. Most artists sit and
choose a specific sound bank or certain group of sounds that they’ll use for
all their music and kind of get a trademark thing. But for me it’s literally
that spark moment when you get inspired by certain ideas and try new things.

I’m always trying to develop and play different melodies,
use different keyboards in different ways, and try drum sounds and other
instruments I would never normally use. And it’s just an exciting melting pot
where something happens that you didn’t think you could have created. And
that’s kind of where I think my best art has come from really, when I’m not
playing it safe and doing something I can easily create with the kind of
knowledge and tools I have, but kind of pushing those instruments and sounds to
their extremes and creating something new and fresh.”

BH: Have you produced a song that you think best represents
you as an artist?

SBTRKT: “I guess in all the subcategories of the music and
the different elements I use I choose the ones I think work best, but one of
the remixes I did, it was Art & Cash, I thought was probably the song where
it all came together. You got mixed parts and my own sound kind of melded in
the middle with it.

But in terms the record, there are things with instruments I
like, like “Ready, Set, Loop,” which kind of showcases what I’m about and what
I produce. And then some of the collaborative work with tracks like “Hold On,”
which kind of shows how you can strip toning down and only use a handful of
sounds and the most minimal kind of rising approach, but then have something
become so much bigger than the sum of it’s parts.”

BH: You’ve said in past interviews that you make music for
the joy of making music. How does performing live fit in?

SBTRKT: “It’s essentially the same premise, for me it’s very
much going on stage and doing something which is enjoyable and kind of creating
stuff on the fly. I think it’s always different with the shows we do.

I think with the tools I choose and the instruments I use
I’ve very much become more adaptable, where I can change up and create new
versions every day of songs people know. That’s the most thing fun for me,
being in a studio and making songs, but onstage you get to produce on the fly.”

BH: You’re in Miami for the first time getting ready to play
a festival some artists dream about. How do you feel about having secured a
slot?

SBTRKT: “It’s quite cool you know, to be able to showcase
music in different places. Doing shows in different cities is always the most
exciting bit really, and playing the staple cities like New York, LA and San
Francisco. We’ve played them quite a few times, but it’s quite cool to be
involved in a festival like Ultra, and I’m excited to see the reaction and the
kind of crowd.

We’ve been quite lucky in terms of the festivals we’ve been
able to play in the last couple of years, and the last year especially it’s
been really building up. Hopefully having been 9 months since the album was
released the audience will be familiar with the music they’ll be hearing, and yeah,
it should be a good night I suppose.”

BH: How will your set at Ultra differ from your upcoming set
in Madison?

SBTRKT: I’m not too sure yet to be honest. Are you
suggesting that Miami might be more dance orientated than Madison? (laughs)
Normally our solo shows are things that we throw in a few more experimental
tracks and kind of jam on the fly for.”

BH: Anything you’d like people coming to Madison your show
to know?

SBTRKT: “Keep an open mind to the music and go with our idea
of performance.”

SBTRKT will perform at the Majestic on Sunday, April 8.
Doors open at 8 p.m. and tickets are $18 in advance or $20 at the door.