Amonita is a Russian DJ/Producer who has already shown her supreme talent with releases on the likes of a All Day I Dream, Anjunadeep & TRYBESof. Now with a new single on Peace Symphonies ‘Milky Way’, we caught up with her to find out how she’s coped over the last year and a half and what she has coming up for the rest of the year…
WWD: Hey Amonita, how are you, what’s good and bad right now in your life?
Hello everybody! I’m doing ok. It looks like June 2021 was too good of a month for me. My single Milky Way was released on the Peace Symphonies label and it was well received and loved. Then a week later my Aura EP was released on the All Day I Dream label and reached number 1 position in Organic / Deep house chart in the Beatport, which surely makes me happy. Also, Makebo and I started a new label Rubicunda and are expecting the first release soon. We really wanted to celebrate this event and organize a big party in honor of our label, but due to the new COVID-19 restrictions in Moscow we cannot do it, which is quite upsetting but I hope we will do it a little bit later.
WWD: Introduce yourself to our readers and tell us how you got to where you are now?
My name is Natalia Shapovalova and have been a DJ for over 15 years already. More than 10 years ago I started learning producing programs, started experimenting and was in search of my own style. But I didn’t have enough knowledge and that’s why I couldn’t get my works into a proper shape. When I found out that Makebo has his own signature music production course – I knew straight away that is exactly what I needed. During this course I got new knowledge and skills and it was a big step forward for me. It’s been 5 years since I figured out my own sound and I continue working on it.
WWD: How has the last year been for you? How have you survived?
I think that for every musician, it is important to see the eyes and smiles of their fans, feel their support, hug each other and share emotions. I didn’t have all that during the last year and it was a great disappointment for me. But thanks to Lee Burridge and All Day I Stream, I was able to play my sets online and it really saved me.
WWD: Did you find yourself writing more music with more time on your hands or did it come less important without clubs?
I got a lot of time to work in the studio. I wrote more than 10 tracks and prepared a lot of sketches on which I am still working right now. This is still important and I am working for the future!
WWD: Tell us about your new EP ‘Milky Way’ on Peace Symphonies – what inspired or influenced it?
The track was started before the lockdown but when the lockdown happened it was impossible to find strength as the inspiration was gone. Everything was closed and it was hard to believe that we were all locked up. Very often I looked out of the window and only the night sky and the stars were so free… After a while I got myself together and finished this track calling it Milky Way which it became a symbol of freedom for me.
WWD: What gear do you use – have you got an obsession with your tools at all?
I don’t have particular schemes or tactics when producing. I like to improvise a lot and I feel an absolute delight when I just start to hear the melody. I work on iMAC with Logic Pro and partially with Ableton. Also, I use Native Instruments Maschine. I like the Logic Pro – Alchemy Synthesizer, as well as Spectrasonics Omnisphere and NI Kontakt.
WWD: What changes and trends do you predict we will see next year when things get back to normal? Will parties focus more on local DJs and fewer international traveling guests?
It seems that everyone missed each other so much that when everything returns to normal, people will much more appreciate seeing each other, parties and treat all this as a holiday. Guests are always something special with their new music and fresh creative views! I am sure that as soon as everything gets back to normal, I’ll be able to tour abroad and interesting artists will be able to visit us.
WWD: What else have you got coming up/are you working on?
I have just finished the remix for Tim Green and our new joint track with Makebo is almost ready. It turned out to be quite a dance track and a little unusual for us which is great. In addition, I am working on my first album which I hope to finish this year.
WWD: What are you most looking forward to about the end of lockdown?
I am looking forward to the day without COVID-19 and travel restrictions so that I’m finally able to go on tours and meet my fans all over the world who I miss a lot.
Amonita’s “Milky Way” is out now on Peace Symphonies
Grab it here