Producer, pianist, DJ, film composer… Ruthlss wears many hats — and they all fit perfectly! The multi-hyphenate artist’s path in music has been rich and diverse, ranging from classical training in piano to experimenting with the latest Ableton technology. With all the knowledge she’s accumulated throughout the years, the London-based artist has just released Northern Lights, her debut EP, where she’s included enveloping tracks that create dreamy soundscapes as well as club-ready songs to dance and sweat to. Today, we speak with her about being in the studio vs DJing in front of large crowds, the pros and cons of formal musical education, and her next projects.
Hello, it’s a pleasure to speak with you. First of all, who is Ruth and who is Ruthlss? Are they very different or pretty much alike?
Funny you should ask that as the other night I was with a few friends and realised that two of them only call me Ruthlss now rather than Ruth (laughs). Ruthlss is an alter ego I created to be my artist name and to represent an elevated version of who I am, someone that I can embody the mindset of in order to achieve what I want to as an artist and a creative.
I used to be a very shy and unconfident person, and envisioning this other persona helped me to grow a lot in confidence, determination and focus, and now I feel like I am becoming more like that as a person every day. So, I guess Ruth and Ruthlss are now melting into one :)
I used to be a very shy and unconfident person, and envisioning this other persona helped me to grow a lot in confidence, determination and focus, and now I feel like I am becoming more like that as a person every day. So, I guess Ruth and Ruthlss are now melting into one :)
You’ve always had a penchant for music. At the age of four, you started classical piano lessons, by twelve you were composing, but then everything changed when you discovered electronic music. So how would you describe this rich yet meandering journey?
I think I’m still on this never-ending journey of evolving tastes and new things I want to learn in music. I feel lucky to have discovered different genres in the order that I did. Piano will always be my number one instrument, but once I discovered playing synths and drum machines and going to raves, my whole view of music changed completely. It opened up my world to different experiences and people, so I’m forever thankful for that too.
In what ways do you think your classical training influences the way you approach electronic music production?
My music theory and composition background enables me to write music for piano, orchestra or choral ensembles, and I sometimes bring those skills into making electronic music, which is perhaps a different approach to quite a lot of other producers. Artists like Floating Points and Jon Hopkins make great use of their classical training to create unique and compelling electronic tracks, and they both inspire me a lot. In a literal sense, I like to add a lot of strings parts, piano parts (even if I end up turning those into synth parts), and stacked vocal harmonies to dance tracks.
In a technical sense, classical training can help to create more complex melodies and unusual harmonies, and playing most instruments live when producing makes the process really fun and hands on too. I like to make my own arps on piano rather than programming them with a synth for example because then I can program it in a human way I guess, which is cool. It’s also good practice for playing fast.
On the flip side, sometimes I have to try and forget the classical training to unlock more creativity when making electronic or pop music as the confines of music theory can hold you back creatively as much as they can enhance it. I keep reminding myself that some of the best or wildest ideas come from total accidents or from not thinking too hard, so it’s about striking the balance.
In a technical sense, classical training can help to create more complex melodies and unusual harmonies, and playing most instruments live when producing makes the process really fun and hands on too. I like to make my own arps on piano rather than programming them with a synth for example because then I can program it in a human way I guess, which is cool. It’s also good practice for playing fast.
On the flip side, sometimes I have to try and forget the classical training to unlock more creativity when making electronic or pop music as the confines of music theory can hold you back creatively as much as they can enhance it. I keep reminding myself that some of the best or wildest ideas come from total accidents or from not thinking too hard, so it’s about striking the balance.
“I like my sets to thrill people and to make them really lose themselves by taking them somewhere new.”
Let’s dive into Northern Lights, your debut EP. Could you tell us more about how the record came to be?
The EP emerged from sketches of synth parts, loops, and samples that I wrote over the past few years, which mostly began in the aftermath of a breakup but also inspired by new experiences I had after that. Some were written while or just after watching scenes from films or TV shows. For example, I produced the entirety of the closing track, 2:16, while rewatching this film, Past Lives, which is about lost love, identities changing, and letting go.
A technique I often use when writing is to put a film or TV show on with the subtitles and play or write while it’s on until I fix on an idea that I can run with. I think this is always a good remedy for writer’s block and equally good for starting to get into writing for films too, which is something I’m really excited about now.
A technique I often use when writing is to put a film or TV show on with the subtitles and play or write while it’s on until I fix on an idea that I can run with. I think this is always a good remedy for writer’s block and equally good for starting to get into writing for films too, which is something I’m really excited about now.
You worked on it between London (where you’re based) and Sweden, and the latter inspired its title. Did you see the northern lights, then? How would you say that experience affected you?
You know what, I didn’t even get to see the Northern Lights when I was in Sweden! I actually saw them one night in London last summer on my rooftop — it was a rare phenomenon to see them in London, which is what made it all the more profound. There were all these news articles about it and it felt like a really surreal and significant moment in time that lots of people were experiencing at once. I was sitting up on the roof listening to ideas that I’d been working on (as I do quite often), and that’s when I fixed on the name for that track as it happened to fit perfectly as a soundtrack to that moment.
As many other artists, you draw from personal experiences to create — from your stay in Sweden to “a challenging breakup,” as you explain. But how is the process of transforming feelings into sounds, melodies, and rhythms? How does that work?
I don’t know how to explain that so well, only that I feel things very deeply and sometimes the only way I can process them in a non self-destructive and healthier way is by sitting at the piano or opening up Ableton and creating something, whether it starts with a melody or a drum pattern, and it tends to come out sounding like how the emotion feels, probably because the emotion is so strong and all-encompassing that it creates razor sharp focus.
The opening track, Northern Lights, is very atmospheric and dreamy; it creates an enveloping soundscape that can easily transport listeners to a night that’s dark but also ablaze with stars and auroras borealis. Why did you choose this one to introduce us to the EP?
It’s my favourite track from the EP because it’s the most emotive and seems to affect people in a positive and profound way, and that means a lot to me. Also, I’ve spent so long trying to combine piano with electronic music in a way that I’m happy with, and in this case it worked, so it was really satisfying to land on!
But this wasn’t the first song you released; instead, you opted for Higher, a much more club-oriented track. It’s also the first song on your Spotify, so it’s probably how many people will start to get to know you. Why does this song represents what Ruthlss stands for?
Higher is a proper peak time club track and I wanted to start with something bold that people maybe wouldn’t expect. I’d also sent it to quite a few DJ friends of mine who loved it and started playing it out, so I thought it would be a good one to lead with. The words ‘get higher’ are as much about experiencing pure euphoria as they are about the rave demons in your head tempting you to chase highs and nothing else, which is why it has a kind of unhinged quality to it.
It brings in influences of 90s rave and big beat tunes, which I always go back to when digging for club tracks to play out at the height of a set. I like my sets to thrill people and to make them really lose themselves by taking them somewhere new, and that is really what the project and my creative world is all about.
It brings in influences of 90s rave and big beat tunes, which I always go back to when digging for club tracks to play out at the height of a set. I like my sets to thrill people and to make them really lose themselves by taking them somewhere new, and that is really what the project and my creative world is all about.
You’ll be doing a release party at London’s The Glove That Fits. I’m sure details are under wraps, but could you give us a hint of what people might expect from that night?
I’m so excited for this party! Because of DJ booking radiuses, I can’t announce any of the special guests in advance (there are four), but all I can say is they’re some of the best DJs in the game right now as well as being good friends of mine who I love. I feel really lucky that they were all up for playing in such an intimate space to celebrate with me.
The idea behind putting on a party was only ever going to be appealing for me if it could be done with a real shared love of great music and the community we’ve built from it. I feel like that sense of unity always comes across on any good night, so I can’t wait for this one!
The idea behind putting on a party was only ever going to be appealing for me if it could be done with a real shared love of great music and the community we’ve built from it. I feel like that sense of unity always comes across on any good night, so I can’t wait for this one!
Producing in the studio and DJing in front of large audiences at festivals or parties must be very different experiences. What do you take from each? And as a curiosity, do you have a favourite?
I love both equally! I really enjoy spending long periods of time in my home studio (it’s quite a simple setup, so studio is maybe a loose term!), and I tend to get completely immersed in the process which comes with a lot of alone time (sometimes too much), especially with the solo piano and film scoring work added into that. Because of that, I do equally feel the need to be out having shared experiences and connections with people as that’s where I draw a lot of inspiration from, and I’m grateful that DJing allows me to do that, as well as it being the biggest thrill to experience people dancing to your sets and testing out new tracks with different crowds. I’ll never ever tire of that!
Now that you’ll be releasing the EP, what will you do to unwind and clear your mind for the next project?
I’m already deep in the next couple of projects (a solo piano record and my next electronic EP, which will take things in a slightly different direction), but to clear my mind I tend to either improvise on the piano for extremely long periods of time (importantly with no end goal), or I’ll go to spin classes, listen to podcasts/watch films to gather new inspiration for what’s next. I don’t think I’d take a proper holiday or anything like that until the next couple of records are out. This is just the beginning!
