I am so thrilled to introduce you to an atmospheric and magical musician Manon Schlittler who goes under the name of Nebno. I have to admit that listening to Nebno’s music teleported me to the time when I was living and breathing in Bjork’s, Lamb’s and Sigur Ros’ music.
It doesn’t often happen that a musician manages to create such a sonic joy. Even though I discovered Nebno after hearing her latest single ‘Eyote’ the journey into her previous releases was extremely fruitful. Also it is one of those rare time when you simply need to put the record on and discover a magical world that Nebno is trying to create.
We will be sharing our review of the track tomorrow as it is one of the 9 best songs released this week and will featured on our New Music Sunday playlist and today we are sharing a very honest conversation with one and only Nebno.
Your sound is so different to anything that is out there right now that feels as if I travelled to another planet. How did you manage to create such a magical sound?
My motivation is to create an atmosphere, to let a universe of sound emerge.
NEBNO
This universe is characterized by long textures, drones, dark and melancholy. I like to layer numerous textures on top of each other. This gives a piece width and depth. My obsession with reverb opens up in addition. I sometimes imagine waves flowing into orbit. I don’t know where this picture comes from. We use mostly organic elements in the production which gives the spherical, ethereal sounds a familiar feel. Also, I don’t see my voice as a leading element. I consider it as another instrument and try to let the voice and sounds become one unit. I feel what I do or express with my music is very intimate, completely personal. Silence, fragility, deep sadness, mistakes, they all have a place. I have no expectations for my work and do not seek to entertain. My goal is entirely to create an ambience, to discover and express myself.
I don’t see my voice as a leading element. I consider it as another instrument and try to let the voice and sounds become one unit.
NEBNO
I’d love to dig a little deeper and understand which musicians shaped your universe?
A musician who has strongly shaped my universe and still does is Francesco Fabris. I worked with Francesco on my first full album ‘Streams’ just as on the new works. He is an extremely inspiring and talented musician and producer from whom I have learned a lot and with whom I love to work.
When I think back to my student days, there was a key experience where a friend lent me a CD. It was the album ‘Valtari’ by Sigur Rós. I was immediately in love. I think that was in 2012 and it seemed like I had been waiting for such a sound universe for a long time. Something I had in my heart was suddenly in my ears.
I keep listening to the same artists over a long period of time. I don’t look for direct inspiration from other artists but listen carefully to what they do. Grouper, Julianna Barwick, Fennesz, Bing & Ruth. There are so many wonderful artists on this earth (tears of joy). On my Spotify artist profile I have added a playlist called ‘Quiet Revolution’ which is publicly available. It gives a good impression of what I’m listening to when I’m passing time at home or running for the train. I listen to the same kind of music in all situations. It’s simply my sound.
My father is a classical musician and composer. I didn’t connect with classical music at all in my younger years but later I was very into neo classical and cinematic music and can find various influences in my own stuff. Also I have been studying Jazz music. My teacher introduced me to experimental music and improvisation. He often pushed me to my limits in a good way. I learned to push boundaries and find the beauty in dissonance.
You mentioned that ‘Eyote’ describes the feeling of travelling on a boat that is sailing in stormy waters. Is this something you experienced in real life?
The stormy waters represent a collection of emotions that are in opposition to each other. An inner turbulence or an emotional rollercoaster with which I have come into contact again and again in recent years. Left or right, head or heart. I am learning to detach myself from worries, to trust that everything will be fine, that I give enough and receive enough.
‘Eyote’ is a siren that sounds through the wind that animates to follow the path with ambition and courage.
NEBNO
Somewhere around 2012 I found myself in Reykjavík on a whale watching tour. The swell was pretty high. Close to the movie ‘The Wave’. Ninety percent of the passengers got seasick, me excluded. Lots of vomit, no whales. It was quite traumatizing. Just to share a stormy waters story that isn’t an analogy.
Do you remember what was happening in your life when Nebno was born?
This project was born in 2015. I just finished my music studies and focused on composing. I lived in a small apartment, had no money, no plan but still it was a very carefree time. I produced my first EP that same year, pretty inexperienced and aimless. I made quite a lot of mistakes but I am glad for the experience. The project was called Manon at that time, which is my first name. At the beginning of 2021 I renamed the project to Nebno. Something I wanted to do for a long time but somehow the circumstances at that time always argued against it. Over the last year some things have changed and so also partnerships were adjusted. There was a moment when I realized that I could do whatever I want with my solo project. That was a very liberating and beautiful awareness. So Nebno exists since a short time and somehow since many years while it is just me with what I like to do – no more and no less.
You talk about the importance of connecting with nature. Do you have a favourite getaway spot?
I live in the city and like to go to the forest for spontaneous getaways. The forest also gives me the feeling of being able to hide for a short time. Sometimes I long for a field where I see nothing far and wide. I like to hike in the mountains and to look for new places close to my home. So as you can see I am up for anything.
Would it be correct to say that you find inspiration in nature?
Yes, I’m also inspired mostly by what I observe around me and within me. I am sensitive, feel things very deeply. In a different environment, feelings and thoughts can be received in a new way. I wouldn’t say that a beautiful landscape inspires me to a creative process but so much that can be captured in nature touches me deeply, shapes me as a person and inspires me as an artist. The power of elements. Nature or life with all its beauty, cruelty and mysticism. To feel the transience, see new life growing, symbioses arise. To be part of something whole and yet only a spectator makes me emotional. Then I just try to catch the beautiful moments. So hard to describe.
Tell us more about your creative process? How do songs come to you? While being in nature, at home, in the studio?
Most of the time it’s a sound I just found that triggers something in me or a motif I play on the piano that inspires me right away. I usually know very quickly whether I can connect with it and whether I want to build on an idea or not.
I like to work very much with repetition. It lets me dive deep into that world, allows me to build it slowly.
NEBNO
I prefer to work on my music at home. I have a nice rehearsal room, but there is no daylight, so it is mainly used for teaching or rehearsing. I appreciate natural light and the feeling of space while composing and producing. Sometimes I open all the windows for the feeling of an open space and it gives some lightness to the process. For my debut album and the new tracks, I went to Greenhouse Studios in Reykjavík for further work with Francesco Fabris. It’s a great place to be creative and spend time. Working in a recording studio for a certain amount of time allows you to put full focus only on the production. From early to late there is nothing else. Now new and valuable input flows into the arrangement, collaborations makes magic happen.
You released an album ‘Streams’ in 2019 and then in 2020 the world has changed. We were forced to stay at home. What kept you sane?
For the first time there was no expectation in the air, the world suddenly stood still. I had time to breathe, to do something senseless, examining a need for slowness and space. I seemed to get closer to myself again, to understand better why I function the way I do. While I like to spend time at home and feel comfortable in silence, I was doing well during this time. Anyway, at that moment, all we could do was stick to the measures and make the best of it, hoping to become wiser through the situation.
My grandmother liked to say: change or accept.
NEBNO
Did the lockdown have an impact on how you create music?
The way and the environment where I work has not changed. But of course the drastic measures, the amount of time you suddenly have, the uncertainty and all that did something to the inner being, and that certainly had an effect on my artistic work in some way. During that time, I was very much in touch with my emotional world. So many knobs opened up. I worked on some new work during that time. Would it sound different if I hadn’t written it during the lockdown? Who knows…
Nebno represents young and modern women. We all know that sadly women are still very much underrepresented in the music industry. What can we do today to change that?
I like this question and find the dialogue very important. I have often exchanged thoughts with friends about this. We all have our theories about why it is the way it is and personal experiences on this subject. We shouldn’t have to discuss gender anymore but there is still a long way to go. I cannot give a solution here and now in a few lines but I’m open for a deeper conversation on this topic and there are already interesting studies that give us a chance to reflect on challenges faced by female musicians.
What would you like to be remembered for?
We cannot know how we will be perceived by others, neither as a person nor as an artist. I try to be good and kind and can only hope to be taken that way.
Music to me is a wonderful and important opportunity to creatively develop and share myself.
NEBNO
Please finish the sentence: Music to me is…
Music to me is a wonderful and important opportunity to creatively develop and share myself. It’s a combination between a playground and a diary. I definitely belong to the introvert faction. Nebno allows me to take a step forward sometimes, to take up space and communicate in other ways. It helps me to reflect, grow and stay close to myself. While listening to music I can completely forget about things. It is difficult to put into words but it also opens a very spiritual side in me.
Close your eyes. Imagine it’s the 20th of January 2022. How would you summarize 2021?
I am satisfied, tired, and grateful. Grateful for my family and friends. It has been an intense and productive year. My independence was put to the test. I am proud to have published another album single-handedly. I love what I do. I should have started playing the lottery. I have learned to be less hard on myself. Another year marked by transformations. Much has happened in the world and too little.
Make sure to connect with Nebno
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This coverage was created in collaboration with Musosoup as part of the #SustainableCurator movement.
