a meditation, probably not. So we try to create this frame where people can focus. If you leave the room, the door is closed and you can’t come back in, just to avoid too many interruptions.” Mullaert’s work often draws from zen philosophy and notions of stillness and mindfulness, and he likes the idea that a sleep concert allows people to observe their own patterns. “We can become really hindered by old patterns that we have. If you’re trying to give up smoking or drink less, for example, you might use strategies to repattern yourself. A sleep concert is a great opportunity to set a clear frame, to notice some of our more needy and distracted patterns and maybe avoid or even transcend them. That’s when you feel the magic! That’s never down to the artist either; if you can get past that distraction and feel the magic, it’s always you!” Mullaert’s touring schedule means he’ll often go long stretches without much sleep. “Tour life can be crazy. I played Stockholm recently for example, then slept three hours and flew to Morocco. I played, slept one hour then went to Berlin, had a four-hour soundcheck and played for eight hours straight.” Despite the weird hours, Mullaert doesn’t think the dance music scene is an unhealthy one for artists. “I don’t think it’s dangerous to not have much sleep. Dancing and being part of music
are extremely important. But balance is important too. Health issues come when the situation doesn’t allow you time to recover. My kids are 11 and nine now but I remember the first year after they were born; not sleeping much for months took me to a very special, weird place!” “We’re not trying to tell you to relax,” says Knutsson. “Everyone knows that it doesn’t work if someone just says, ‘Be relaxed!’ But if the music lets people get comfortable and drift into their imaginations, that makes me so proud and happy. I can’t do all nighters really anymore, I don’t snap back so easily and I need to nap like a baby to reboot my brain sometimes before performing! But after leaving the sleeping concert in Malmö, we cleared up our stuff and stepped out at 10am. I’d stayed awake with just a smoothie to keep me going, but I felt like I’d had a really good night’s sleep. Maybe that’s the closest I’ve got to meditation!”
Johanna Knutsson and Sebastian Mullaert will perform a sleeping concert at ADE Zen Space at Waalse Kerk on Thursday October 17.
p.61