Reflections: Philipp Gorbachev Talks

Music

Philipp Gorbachev has had a very interesting couple of years. The charismatic young Russian has rocketed to success with electronic music which preaches of rebellion, freedom and expression. His latest release saw none other than Nina Kravz, the seductive Russian disc jockey, slash model, remix his music and he has played a string of dates around the world. His music focuses on elements of rave and passion.

He speaks of his experiences and relationship with rave culture and music.

"As an artist I had different moments in my evolution until I discovered God (it is one love) and since then I can not divide the love from dance music and anything else. For me throughout years raving means life and as a raver I don't distinguish between different modes during life. ON..OFF.. it has been always ON! For me rave is not only at night with strobes and lasers, it is 24/7. My drugs are prayers. For example, in Moscow, 5 years ago, dancing on Sunday afternoon would have been a dream. Now, thanks to ARMA17, it is part of the music culture."

His music has been heavily backed and supported by the slightly more abstract within dance culture, by the likes of Cómeme for example, who have been responsible for releasing a large body of his work. It is only recently that he has begun to turn his focus towards developing his own label, PG Tune.

"PG Tune is a series of contributions to the internet, to the online world as one huge public space. So these singles are like street art, that link to real events with real soundsystems. There will be vinyl as well, but not at the moment. It's not a web label or net label. It is not even a label, it is my small contribution to the DJ culture."

He still seems to be riding the buzz of his own success at present, it is lovely to see such enjoyment being displayed by an artist exploring a new world of opportunity. This becomes clear as he talks about the recent Nina Kraviz collaboration.

We got the power with Nina! It is a real trip, the story of this track, and our life in music, mine for sure, since the beginning with Cómeme! Recorded in one take during a daytime session between breakfast and a football game, 'Ivan, Come On, Unlock, The Box' means what it says. I was surprised when Nina wrote me saying, "hey, I need that one and I want to make a simple edit of it!"! It took some time, and I am grateful that this became not only a track, but also a message for a whole V/A compilation. I could never expect that. And I am happy that there will be more artists from Russia appreciated globally. It is just a matter of time."

Philipp certainly has a strikingly positive outlook on the world of music, he seems joyous about what lies ahead. He sums up what he is looking forward to as follows, it bodes promisingly for the coming year.

"Unlocking the box and presenting nothing but the funk, I am working on this during all my shows since since the fist one, so I will keep jacking this trip and I am looking forward to more fun with all my fans!"