Dezabel - Another Drink
Pop, R&B, Soul, Electronica
Switzerland
Dezabel reminds us of Alt. Pop meets R&B. A little Halsey meets Kehlani if you will. Delivering the relenting hook, with a soft, yet compelling element for you to stay in the moment and "pour another drink". - RadioAirplay.com
Songwriter and producer Bilgi gained his musical background back in the 90s at the ACM (The Academy of Contemporary Music in Zurich). He continued to build up his knowledge in Songwriting and Music Production at Berklee College of Music. The influence of Pop, Jazz, Film Music, and Contemporary R&B cannot be overheard. Bilgi’s goal is to write sophisticated popular music keeping the sound commercial yet giving it a special aura. With his lyrics, he tells stories in the course of which the listeners find themselves. He typically collaborates with artists from the United States and the United Kingdom.
Tell us more about "Another Drink"
Songwriter and producer Dezabel expertly fuses pop, jazz, soul, and electronica
to make instantly lovable tracks. Collaborating with singers from around the
world, he creates a sound with universal appeal. His latest release, ‘When It
Comes To You,’ showcases his gift for laid back grooves and irresistible
melodies.
Tell us more about "When It Comes To You"
With its combination of organic instruments and cutting edge production, ‘When
It Comes To You’ feels fresh and familiar at the same time. The vocalist delivers
an impassioned R&B inspired performance that grabs the listener’s attention and
doesn’t let go until the closing notes. With its sensual mood and romantic
overtones, ‘When It Comes To You’ is a dose of pop perfection.
How are you impacted as a musician during this time?
I'm mainly trying out new ideas that I typically don't dare to do. So for example I experiment crossing various genres with unpopular instruments (Alp Horn, Cembalo) etc.
Further more I'm just writing, writing, proto typing new song ideas an lyrics.
Can you describe your sound in one ramble-on sentence?
When Zurich meets L.A.
What's your earliest music-related memory growing up?
I was about a 5-6 years old buy and was spending the ski holiday at my school friends house. He had an older brother that would hate other people to be in his room. One day he was away so me and my friend entered his room when I saw his walls filled with posters of the Beatles. We started to listen to the huge collection of Beatles albums he had. At that time (mid 70's) of course we had only tapes and vinyl albums and we weren't experiences to handle them. So it ended it a pretty big mess with scratches on a few disk and tape salad on the floor. But we had great fun.....until he came back!
Do you write/compose your own songs? Briefly describe your songwriting process.
Yes, I do. However quite often I envolve other musicians.
I typically start with a story I have in my mind or something that I experienced that I would like to write about. In other words, I first write the prototype of lyrics. When I feel comfortable with it try to sketch a musical idea, by typically first finding the right chord progression for the mood I'd like to introduce. Once I have these two elements things progress pretty fast. Find a phrasing rhythm of melody ideas after that trying to evolve a good hook. Once I have these important elements I try to bring in some production to see in which direction this could evolve. Once the prototype, let's call it an alpha version I typically share my ideas with friends, family and other musicians to get their feedback and bring in some ideas. When this is done I end up with a beta version that I send to songwriters (typically 2-3) to review the lyrics (I'm Swiss, so I need a native English speaking person to collab with) and the melody. This is where it really get interesting, since I let the songwriters bring in ideas and variations. After this is done I enter the last stage which would be getting the right artist to sing my song and then making some adaptions to support the vocals. Last stage is the mixing, which I do myself. The mastering is done externally so far.
Does anything in particular inspire you to write? What get's your creative juices flowing?
Peace, peace, peace... In the past I was waiting for inspiration and I almost every time ended up in getting vague ideas but nothing really concrete. So I started to analyze: why was it like that? My conclusion was, that I wanted to force it but the more I forced it the less the ideas would flow. So, whenever I feel relaxed, no tight schedule ahead, that's when I go into the studio and start working on it. I took Andrea Stolpe's class "Commercial Songwriting Techniques" which help me a lot. It has nothing to do with commercial writing, but how to create a process to write lyrics without getting stuck. Awesome!
What do you like more: Performing live or recording in the studio?
I personally like to work in the studio, that's my second home!
Any on stage moments you'd like to share? C’mon, don’t be shy!
I don't perform live, since my singers are typically out of the US. On one of my last birthdays I played the piano and my daughter would sing one of my songs. After the performance I saw some of the audience having tears in their eyes. This was a very heartfelt moment. This is a song that I'm going to release very soon!
What has been a highlight for you in the past year? (Either personally or for your music career.)
One of the greatest moments for me was, when my song "Another Drink" was added to an offical Spotify playlist. I felt so honored and grateful. Every time a new radio station adds one of my few songs to their playlist I try to tune in live, to enjoy this very moment.
If you were to cover another band/artist's song/record, which would you pick and why?
There are so many great musicians out there and I listen to all sorts of styles. If I could sing I'd probably pick something from Sting.
What are some artists/bands that you're into at the moment? Or any particular song you find yourself listening to over and over?
As mentioned previously I listen to all sorts of music and I don't have particular preferences. I can tell you to what I'm not listening to, that list is way shorter. For example I'm absolutely not into LoFi or Gangster Hip Hop.
What do you enjoy doing outside of music? Does your hobby rejuvenate your creativity?
I personally like reading and spending time out in nature with my good friend Newton, our dog. He's the best. I'm having such a great time with him!
What's one thing people should know about you?
That's a tough one. I think that I'm very simple person. I hate playing games or pretending to be somebody I ain't. So in short, once you know me for half an hour, you know what get.
If you had one message to give to your fans, what would it be?
I hate to preach a message. I'm here to communicate and share my thoughts and experiences with my music.