Exclusive Interview with HAMPI

Have you ever awoken from a dream with the desire to return there? Are you yearning for the comfort of the subconscious world? Hampi’s music enchants a passageway between the known and the unknown, with one foot in each.

The seed for Hampi, which originated in the Scottish Highlands, was planted after pilgrimages to Japan, India, Canada, and Spain. His soaring guitar drones, which draw inspiration from Shoegaze, Electronica, and Post-Rock, aim to recreate the nostalgia that lingers after a vivid dream and the melancholy of sensing but not comprehending the depths of the unknowable self.

Hampi’s captivating debut single, “Devil’s Moon,” offers a haunting stage to encourage your shadows to dance during this time of spells and enchantments. As we look into our most sinister reflections, a playground where those spirits are warmly welcomed. With his current base of operations in Edinburgh, Hampi is assembling his band of “weirdos of the night” in preparation for his live debut during festival season in 2023. Check out his debut single Devil’s Moon and the exclusive interview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

HAMPI: I’m from the north of Scotland and I first picked up a bass guitar when I was 11 after listening to Metallica and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I moved to Edinburgh when I was 18 to study music and that’s when I started focusing more on songwriting and creating. I had a band for a couple of years called Let Love Rule that helped me explore that, and then I ended up travelling around for a few years to different parts of the world. Now things have come full-circle and I’m back in Scotland making music.

2. Who were your strongest musical influences and why the name ‘HAMPI’?

HAMPI: Hampi is a place in India. I had no idea that a place like that existed on earth when I went there, it was really surreal. And that’s what I want my music to do – take people to places that are new for them. I started getting into more ambient soundscape types of rock a while back and there was an artist named Jefre Cantu-Ledesma who really blew me away the first time I heard him. That helped me realise that there really are no boundaries with where you can take sounds. Also a Norwegian band called Dråpe were a big influence.

3. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?

HAMPI: I would describe it as pretty simple really. Most of my songs at the moment only have 2/3 chords in them, and I’m enjoying seeing how far I can take that simplicity. Each song is meant to be a vibe on its own, a kind of meditation or trance, and so too much harmonic movement would hinder that. The dynamics come from all the other textures around them.

4. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?

HAMPI: It’s the creative process excites me the most – the idea of creating an artefact that will live on in eternity is so cool. Of course, there is so much saturation these days that most things get lost in the market, but to take that on is all part of the challenge. I would love to take my stuff live at some point, but I’m just tackling one thing at a time.

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style?

HAMPI:

Well, its constantly evolving, but I love different types of music. One of my favourite artists is the R&B singer Miguel. He is singing about love and romance with catchy hooks and a really clean vocal. My music is more ambient than that, but I also don’t see any reason why some of those elements can’t translate into a more trance-like shoegaze song. So, yeah, I don’t really want to lean too much into any one influence, I’d rather sample them all. That way it stays more unique.

6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative, and entertainment?

HAMPI:

Art can be a really powerful tool to symbolise moments in culture and enshrine ideas and the voice of the people. But for me, music is more of an emotional solace than an intellectual one. For that reason, lyrics are less prominent in my work and there is probably more dynamic movement than in traditional mainstream music, because it is more about the emotion than the ideas.

7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

HAMPI:

Right now, at the beginning of my journey, I’m just trying to find a balance. The modern indie musician has a lot to consider. Social media alone for example could be a full time job in and of itself. I love creating and putting things out into the world but I’m also learning the necessity of marketing and how much time that takes to build. You just need to have faith that over time the scales start to tip in favour of what you get back versus what you put in.

8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?

HAMPI:

I’ve been looping a lot lately. I’ll come up with a couple of chords that I’m happy to vibe and build on. If I don’t get bored listening to it then I know I’m onto something. From there it’s just creating movement through layers and dynamics. And then of course, mixing! Mixing I think is one of those skills where you just constantly feel like you’re a beginner. You’ve just got to trust your ears, and your gut, because there’s always more that you ‘could’ do.

9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?

HAMPI: Self deception. I’ve always known what I’ve wanted to do, but you don’t always have the confidence to pursue it. When your confidence isn’t good, then you start telling yourself little stories, pretending to yourself that you want to do other things, or creating self-limiting beliefs. It’s a daily struggle to overcome these things but it’s taken a few years of introspection to get me to the point where I am now. Hampi was conceptualised back in 2016/17 and I’ve just released my first song now. Most of that is down to self deception.

10. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?

HAMPI: I love individual interpretation. Art is a two-way street, and the listener can derive their own meaning from the work as best serves them. That is what all this is about. Sometimes I like to intentionally deliver ambiguous lyrics that can be interpreted in different ways, to encourage this collaboration. It can be fun. Most of my favourite songs I don’t even know what they’re about!