Cora Novoa is an artist who operates across a wide range of creative disciplines within contemporary electronic music. When it comes to music production, her releases span multiple genres and labels such as Turbo or Citizen. In October we had the pleasure of releasing her latest work on Void+1, “Ancient Rites”, and for this occasion she took the time to share some insight into her world with us.
VOID+1: Hi Cora, it’s great to have you in our V+1 Interview Series. Your name hardly needs an introduction, but we would love to get to know a bit more about the person behind the artist “Cora Novoa”. Where were you born? Did you grow up surrounded by music? Give us a little sneak peek into Cora’s origin-story.
CORA NOVOA: I was born in Ourense, a very small town in Galicia, Spain. I grew up surrounded by music thanks to my father and Radio3 (the public radio station for alternative music). Thanks to that, I grew up with zero prejudice towards musical styles or genres, as we listened to all kinds of music at home: soul, flamenco, salsa, hip hop, and electronic music.
I studied the transverse flute for a few years until I discovered that I could make music with computers thanks to my IT studies.
Was there a moment where you either heard a specific track or were at an event that made you think: “This is it, I want to make electronic music”? Or did it all come together gradually and spontaneously?
I remember being blown away by Portishead’s album. My dad gave it to me to listen to and I didn’t understand it at all, but at the same time I couldn’t stop listening to it. It was like music made by aliens, but very creative ones.
After that, my next encounter with electronic music was thanks to “Mákina music,” a genre that originated in Spain and is linked to the bakalo scene. I discovered it one time when I went out partying in Benidorm, and I was also able to experience the culture surrounding this style.
You have just released an EP on our label, and we are curious to hear more about how the creative process unfolded. Was it produced with a particular goal in mind?
I created almost the entire EP from scratch, except for one track. I was particularly interested in working with very hypnotic sounds and a song structure that would build up elegantly and progressively. There were moments when I felt a little stuck in the creative process, but when that happens, I always leave a week or two of space to return to projects with a certain perspective and freshness.
Do you have a set of rules and/or rituals when creating music? Are you always following the same process?
I really enjoy learning new production, mixing, and sound design techniques. It helps me stay inspired and not lose my creative drive. Ultimately, if I always do the same thing, I get bored, and that stifles my creativity.
If you could go back in time and give a single advice, be it technical, business-related or otherwise, to the version of yourself that is just starting to create music, what advice would that be?
Enjoy the process; there is always a solution to problems, and if there is no solution, why worry?
A few weeks ago you were playing live at Mutek. The clips and pics looked great! We are curious to know which equipment are you currently using for your live performances and how do the devices interact with each other to serve your goals?
For the AV-Live format, I try to have a simple and practical setup that won’t give me too many surprises. At the end of the day, people come to enjoy themselves and dance, not to watch you suffer. It’s something that took me a while to understand in my early years, and something I try to incorporate into my live shows. I’ve done 100% analog improvisational live shows, digital setups, hybrids, and in the end, it all comes down to the same thing: getting people to dance.
Currently, I carry a laptop with Ableton, which I use to centralize everything, Ableton Push 3, which I use with the sound card and to send CV and gate to the modular, a Korg knob controller, a couple of audio effects pedals, the modular synthesizer, a 4-channel Pioneer DJ mixer, an Electron Rytm drum machine, and a USB hub.
You stand out with your genuine energy in your performances, interviews, and overall online presence. What drives you to keep that positive spirit alive?
It’s my way of staying connected to the world and life. I think that if I didn’t find motivation to bring projects to life, everything would be very boring and sad. That’s why what drives me to do things is research and learning.
We need to talk about Turbo Recordings. You have been involved with this iconic label for a couple of years by now, even to the point of performing together with Tiga. Can you tell us how the first release came about?
I started working with Turbo five years ago, and everything has developed very organically and naturally. Working with Tiga and also with his label manager Guthrie, and previously with Francis, is a real pleasure. They have always made me feel at home, given me complete creative freedom, and they have a real passion for music.
I feel like it’s my home, and I will be eternally grateful to Tiga for everything he teaches me about the music industry and life in general. He is a unique person.
Is there anything you enjoy doing in your free time that has nothing to do with music? Any other interests, hobbies or obsessions?
One of my guiding lights is sport, more specifically CrossFit. Without it, I wouldn’t be where I am today, nor would I be doing what I do. I need that dose of exercise almost every day, which helps me connect with my body and disconnect from my mind. I also think it’s wonderful to see how, little by little, you improve your technique or your execution of the exercises, moving on to more complex movements.
We get quite geeky when it comes to movies, so we ask all our guests to pick their top 3 movies ever. Which ones would make the list for you?
I wasn’t expecting that question but I love it , so I’m going to name three films that were important to me, although they may not be the most important ones:
– Into The Wild by Sean Penn
– The Day Iceland Stood Still by Pamela Hogan
– Parasite by Bong Joon Ho
While we are doing our best with the label, staying immune to most of the common issues labels and artist face, we are certainly not blind to the rotten state of the scene. Most of the issues that are talked about do not exactly affect us directly, but there are many other issues that are not often talked about. Which are the biggest challenges coming from the scene for you as an artist in this day and age?
I think the biggest challenge is staying in the music industry. But this isn’t unique to our sector; it’s something that all freelancers experience firsthand every day. The romanticization of the artist that we saw in the 90s and 00s is a thing of the past. Artists who could live in anonymity with an aura of mystery, like Aphex Twin, no longer exist; they are exceptions that can be counted on one hand. Now artists have to be small business owners, know about digital marketing, social media, finance, press and communication, branding… It’s crazy, but at the same time I’m passionate about it because it’s a never-ending learning process.
Are there any upcoming projects of yours that you would like to and can reveal at this moment in time?
At the moment, I really want to end the year with my to-do list almost completely cleared, so I can start creating beautiful music in the studio. I want to explore the idea of experimental pop while continuing to work on industrial techno and dance floor music.
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