Sacha Robotti on Electronic Music’s Future: “Perhaps There Is No More Underground”

Sacha Robotti discusses his recent single “Open Up” on Plump Records, his thoughts on the current state of dance music in the US, and so much more.

Sacha Robotti has spent the last two decades mastering the art of sonic manipulation to create hypnotic house and techno heaters. This beatmaker has taken his craft to extraordinary heights, becoming a beloved name in the electronic music community and solidifying himself as a house music icon. His classical roots are deeply interwoven into all he creates, making his music stand tall.

This year has proven to be a pivotal time for Robotti, throwing down massive sets at festivals like Lightning In A Bottle, cooking up some studio magic for his duo project Third Culture with Sian, and releasing new solo music on labels like Club Sweat, SOLOTOKO, Shall Not Fade, and his very own Slothacid imprint. After a minor hiatus from the label, the house music pioneer has, in true sloth fashion, been slowly releasing new track IDs from his sets, like “Baby Cry” and “Think About U.”

Now, Sacha Robotti has released his first single under Kevin Knapp and Hutchtastic’s label Plump Records, “Open Up.” To celebrate the new tune, we sat down with the creative mastermind to discuss his sexy summer highlights, how his creative process has evolved, his thoughts on the current trajectory of electronic music in the US, and more.

Stream “Open Up” on Spotify or your preferred platform, and read on for a deeper dive into the creative mind of Sacha Robotti.

Hi Sacha! Thanks so much for chatting with us today. You’ve been making a splash this summer. How has the summer been treating you, and what’s been your favorite part of the season so far?

Hey, thanks for having me! I’ve had a productive summer. It has been incredibly hot in Las Vegas for the last three months, but I haven’t been affected by this heat much since I’ve been on the road so much! My favorite sets I played this summer were at Lightning In A Bottle and the Dirtybird “Back To Baysics” public event at the Embarcadero in San Francisco.

Musically, I’ve been working a lot in the studio for my solo project and Third Culture with Sian. I also reactivated my record label, Slothacid, in April, and I’m slowly rolling out all my music that I’ve been club testing for a while. I’m also currently in the process of moving out of my spot in Las Vegas.

Tell us about your track, “Open Up,” on Plump Records. This one is a full-throttle house heater! What do you hope listeners and fans take away from the track?

“Open Up” has a positive message: “Open up, don’t be scared.”

You can interpret the words however you’d like. I didn’t have any larger vocal concept for the record; apart from that, it came from an uplifted mental place and sat on a chunky minimalistic beat/bass groove. Also, I wanted to play with deconstructing the classic snare drum roll element, take it out of sync, speed it up, and slow it down again to create big moments in the breaks, which was influenced by “Roar” by Patrice Bäumel from back in the day. I’m super stoked that Kevin Knapp picked up this record!

Photo Credit: TJ Bruggere

This will be your first single on the queer, sex-positive label following releases on Club Sweat, SOLOTOKO, Shall Not Fade and his own Slothacid imprint. Tell us more about working with such an inclusive, progressive label like Plump Records.

I’ve known Kevin Knapp since I remixed a track he created with Audiojack, “These Days,” which came out on Audiojack’s label Gruuv in 2012. It was around that time that we met in person in Berlin and became good friends after bonding over food and wine.

Since then, we’ve played and toured together a bunch in Berlin, Europe, the US, and beyond and worked on a few tracks together, like “Thump Bumper” and “King Midas,” which came out on Dirtybird. Plump Records is the brainchild of Kevin Knapp and Hutchtastic, so when he asked me whether I wanted to be included in their label catalog with a release, I was honored and wanted to contribute, of course!

Genres like Afro-house and hard techno are experiencing a massive resurgence in the US right now. What are your thoughts on the current state of the electronic music scene, and where do you see it heading?

Music changes, like technology. When I started DJing around 1995, I remember that a lot of the techno music I bought on vinyl was hard and fast. It goes in waves – every genre can come back for a few seasons only to disappear and come back again! Nowadays everything goes. Everything can be mixed up, and everything can co-exist. Perhaps there is no more “underground” since most events and music are public, filmed, shared, and visible. Genres and lifestyles previously hidden and laughed at are now trendy on TikTok.

I see it heading even more in that direction. The DJ as a brand, the DJ as a meme, DJing as an activity that’s so ‘glamorous’ that even people with no music knowledge or talent want to be a DJ, as DJing now embodies some social credibility. House and Techno have the biggest audiences they have ever had. DJing is no longer an occupation for music nerds. It has appeal now; it gives you relevance on social media. “Going viral” has become more important than the musical creation itself. This ain’t a decade for introverts.

I see music becoming a vehicle for promotion to get booked for shows in the future and less as an authentic means of artistic creation. It is becoming less of a means of making money from the musical product and more of a service. I see the overall amount of new and upcoming music growing in the next few years as AI will be used more and more for content creation. I see music becoming creator-less. It’s an interesting dichotomy – more and more people will want to become DJs and producers in the next 5-10 years, but fewer people will produce, or know how to produce, their music “by hand” themselves.

Photo Credit: Miranda McDonald

You’re currently residing in Las Vegas, but you’ve resided in many different places at one point or another. How does residing in different locations change your creative process?

I haven’t been here for long, but Las Vegas was a great city to live in. What I appreciated was the rawness of nature, the dry desert heat, the space you have here as a resident, the colors of the sunrises and sunsets, and obviously how buzzing it is as a city where there are so many things to do, on and off the strip, all day and night. My surroundings and the outdoors inspire me heavily as an artist, but I tend to cocoon myself inside the studio. I am most productive in places where I create music when I feel safe, not distracted, and have a bunch of food in my fridge.

How has running your label, Slothacid, impacted your career and creative process?

Having my own imprint to release my music and music producers send my way is a great way of curating what I like musically and what I love to play as a DJ. It’s nice to be independent in that way. It’s worth a lot to schedule your own music independently as an artist. I still demo music to other labels, but I have so many tracks that I love that need to be released on Slothacid.

Finally, are there any upcoming projects or collaborations that you are excited about and can share with us?

Yes, I have a few outstanding records coming out on Slothacid by Berndt Bechstein, Lucas Frota, and Oscar N, to name a few. I’m also scheduling a couple more tracks of mine on the label in the fall! I’ve been working on music with my friends, the Blakkat and BabyGirl, and vocal and instrumental cuts that will surprise you! I’m also very excited about what I’ve been working on with Sian for our duo project, Third Culture, and I just signed two singles on a big label, which are coming out this winter.

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