A Chat with Perttu Leinonen (04.08.2022)
Perttu Leinonen is opening the musical door for adventurous people looking to delve into different genres and enjoy everything that music has to offer. With their album Hidden Path, they explore various sonic worlds as they draw listeners into a journey of learning. Using sounds that spark something deep in your brain, the music has you delving into the interesting twists of the world. We had a chance to speak with Leinonen about the album, defying genres, musical contrasts and much more!
OSR: As a composer and musician, you use a lot of different genres to bring the message of your music to life, but what is the genre that first drew you to music?
Leinonen: First was the acid that was playing on the radio in the late 80s and then techno. So it was not about music, it was about dance and sound at first and how it makes you feel. Music came much later, through Gilles Peterson Worldwide. That opened my understanding of how much more there is.
OSR: Your album Hidden Path touches on diverse genres, including techno, jazz, ambient, noise and classical. Were these genres chosen at the start of your creative process or did they form organically?
Leinonen: It was kind of a backward process. The question was: what is it that makes me feel in music?
From that, I tried to bring out the feelings that I get from different genres. To me, it is all about feelings, either in body, mind or soul. So, I don’t put music in genres. Everything works if the timing is correct.
OSR: Through the tracks, the album takes listeners on a journey of exploration and learning. Is there something that inspired this journey?
Leinonen: Yes, we have been working on an industrial album in a separate project for like 5 months straight, daily, and suddenly I felt that the vibe is totally wrong and I took all the music that was “not good enough” or “wrong” in the project and gave them life. I tried to give the feeling of release and letting go of everything.
OSR: Certain tracks have a very dance vibe while others sink into the softness of ambient movement. Do you find it easy to swing between such different sounds?
Leinonen: It’s a choice to make from a listening point. Often it is like walking on a tight rope, if you fall too much on either side it’s kind of game over from the balance perspective. So I tried to make both worlds possible.
OSR: There is also an experimental edge to the album. How does this translate into your creative process?
Leinonen: All tracks were salvaged from the industrial project, the feeling was there but I wanted to make them more musical and approachable.
OSR: The album has a lot of contrasts woven into the movement of the sound, but what is the one thing you would like people to feel as they journey through the tracks?
Leinonen: It begins with something I felt like techno was for me in the 90s. Naturally, it was not like that, but that’s the impression I wanted to share. About letting go, relief and inviting to a lifelong journey.
OSR: While all the tracks are unique and special in their own way, is there one that holds a special place for you?
Leinonen: ‘Field of hay’, that starts everything. There was just special energy that created the whole project.
OSR: This is your third album release, but how do you feel Hidden Path compares to your other releases?
Leinonen: Production wise you can’t even compare the earlier ones. Or musically. I have learned so much since the first albums, but you can’t look back, you can only make choices with what you have now and focus on the next project.
OSR: What was the greatest challenge you faced when creating this album?
Leinonen: Money is always the biggest resource issue, everything costs and since it’s an art project there is no income. Sticking with the decision to do what you feel, despite people saying that you shouldn’t do this or this because there is a musical rule that you have to follow, is always soul consuming.
OSR: Do you have anything else planned for the next 12 months?
Leinonen: Yes, I’ve been processing a lot with my nature connection and how a child sees a forest.
Usually, there is a feeling that gets processed, when it’s ready the production is quite effortless and you kind of just glue the pieces together. It requires a load of walking in the woods and picking mushrooms.
Thanks to Perttu Leinonen for chatting with us! You can find more about them on their Spotify.
