Photo credit: Martin Vivian Pearse Photography
Born in Salvador, Brazil, Nine One is a musical project by Davi Pinheiro. Currently graduated as Audio Engineer at SAE, he is living in Sydney since 2014, a place that inspired him to become a DJ and producer. He has found his passion in electronic music a few years ago and he’s quickly become intensely addicted and devoted. Even with a music career so fresh, Davi has already played at some of Sydney’s biggest events and is always in demand. With his raw attraction for percussion-driven elements and a progressive and deep house touch, he goes from house to techno in a heartbeat and blows the crowd’s mind at every gig. Davi’s been evolving fast in the world of music production, releasing quality music that has drawn the interest of reputable labels from Australia, USA and Germany, receiving support from big artists such as Hot Since 82, D-nox, Stan Kolev, Nick Warren, Hernan Cattaneo, Jerome Isma-Ae, Quivver, Cid Inc and many more.
We caught up with Nine One to talk about his new release, the ‘Kepler’ EP, out now via Sprout Records.
Electronic Groove: Hi Davi, it’s a pleasure to have you down for a chat with us. How have you been holding up? What’s everything looking like in Sydney at the moment?
Nine One: The pleasure is mine, thanks for having me. I’ve been great, obviously faced financial challenges like many people, but I’ve never grown so much as a person in the past two years. I am also blessed to be living in a city where the virus didn’t spread like in most countries, the government here was very strong towards lockdown and isolation, the bad side of that is that the music industry here received no incentive whatsoever and now all the promoters, clubs and festivals are struggling to survive.
Electronic Groove: You’re living in Sydney, but you’re Brazilian, correct? So, what took you there? What the move due to opportunities in the music industry?
Nine One: This was in 2014, I had just graduated in Business Administration, so I decided to come to Australia mostly to learn English and business for a few months and then get back to Brazil to start my own business there. Well…That was the plan until I went to my first electronic music festival here. I fell in love completely with the music and dropped everything I
was doing and started to chase the dream of becoming a DJ and music producer.
Electronic Groove: What were your first contacts with music like in Brazil? Were you into the local native rhythms at all? Do these appear in your music in any form?
Nine One: My first contact with music came from the best drummer and percussionist in the world, my dad. The first thing he would do as soon as he wakes up was turning on the radio, which would play some of the international classics, rock, and MPB (Brazilian Popular Music). So, there wasn’t a single day in my house that I wouldn’t listen to music. I also started playing guitar at an early age but never thought I would take music very seriously. I always try to incorporate some of this background into my music, as you can hear in some of my songs there are Brazilian percussions, guitars, and African elements.
Electronic Groove: And now you’re an Audio Engineer. Does this knowledge ‘constrain’ some creative moments? Is there a thing in maybe knowing ‘TOO much’?
Nine One: Good question. I graduated in Audio Engineering in 2019 at SAE Sydney, but that was just the beginning. It definitely helped me as I didn’t even know how to connect a microphone, let alone record anything. It opened my eyes and ears to the music industry and the more I learned a new recording or mixing technique the more I wanted to apply it in my
music. I think knowledge can only enhance creativity, and I feel sorry for those who think they already “know too much”.
” I fell in love completely with the music and dropped everything I was doing and started to chase the dream
of becoming a DJ and music producer”
Electronic Groove: Let’s dive into your latest project, your ‘Kepler’ EP on Sprout Records. This one has been in the works for quite some time…what’s the story behind this one? Where did the name for the EP come from?
Nine One: I love the universe, so when I read about Nasa’s Kepler Mission and I saw that telescope found around 30 planets similar to our Earth, I imagined what music I would like to hear if I could visit one of these planets. I even sampled some aliens sounds and spacecraft’s sounds in this EP, maybe I went too far in my imagination (laughter).
I started this project at the beginning of my music career, late 2018. At that time it was very hard for me to finish a track, and I was struggling with ‘Kepler’, I knew there was something missing, but I didn’t know what, so I met online this Brazilian band called Lo-Kaus through my manager Raoni, and asked them to help me finish this song together. After one year of
recording sessions and zoom meetings back and forth, they did an amazing job sending me some guitar, bass, synths, and percussion stems. However, I made the newbie mistake of formatting my computer and the project didn’t get saved on my backup disk. So I literally started the song all over again, but this time I was more experienced and applied things I had learned at Uni and with my past productions. Honestly, the second version sounds much better, so even though I got a bit frustrated at that time, I now think it was help from the universe.
The second track “A New Way of Life” was also I collab track I did with my friend Gabriel, who actually was my first Logic Pro teacher. He lived in Sydney for a few years and then returned to Brazil to continue his music career with his duo project called Autobotz. We didn’t talk much since his return, but during the pandemic in 2020, he messaged me saying that he would like to start a solo project focused on Progressive House. For me, it was an honor to produce a track with someone who taught me so much and gave me the first tools to start producing. We had some technical challenges to produce a track together through the Zoom, and also the time difference between Australia and Brazil, but other than that I think
we managed to do a good job.
Electronic Groove: What did you make of the remixes? It’s always an exciting moment, hearing what someone else has done with your music…Did you have any expectations given the names that are involved?
Nine One: I loved the two remixes. I am suspicious to say as I love the work from D-Nox, Gai Barone, Kamilo Sanclemente, and Dabeat. I’ve always been playing their tracks and for me, they are all amazing producers. Obviously, they exceeded my expectations.
Electronic Groove: You’ve got an extensive relationship with Sprout Records. How did that come about? What drew you to their catalog?
Nine One: I met Chris, D-Nox, in April 2018, when he was touring in Sydney. We had a very deep and meaningful conversation the day after his gig that changed my life. From that day I decided to start studying music production, and after sending him some crappy music he finally liked ‘The Last Piece of Land’, which was included in the ‘Passion’ VA 2 on Sprout Music. I am grateful to have him as a friend, he is like a mentor to me.
Electronic Groove: About your studio, being an engineer…are you a massive gear-head? Is there any particular bit of soft or hardware you discovered during the production of ‘Kepler’?
Nine One: I work mostly in the box but I love analog gear, last year I was able to buy my first synthesizer and I dream the day I am gonna have a studio full of them. On the ‘Kepler’ EP you are gonna hear some analog synth sounds, like the pads and some plucks in ‘A New Way of Life’ and the live instruments recorded by Lo-Kaus.
“I always try to incorporate some of this background into my music, as you can hear in some of my songs there are Brazilian percussions, guitars, and African elements”
Electronic Groove: What’s in store for Nine One for the rest of 2021? Are there any new milestones you are looking forward to?
Nine One: My next EP is coming out soon on One Dot Six Two, it’s called ‘Survival’. It will be a two-track EP with a remix from Rise and Fall. I am very excited about this one and I am gonna make sure the fans of Electronic Groove will hear them first. Besides that, I am working on a few collaborations, one solo EP, and a few remixes, but most likely they won’t be for this year.
Electronic Groove: Thank you for sitting down with us, Davi! We wish you all the best for the future!
Nine One: It was my pleasure, guys. Much love and see you all on the dance floor!
Nine One’s ‘Kepler’ EP is out via Sprout Records. Grab your copy here.
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