When the Coronavirus shut us down, clubs and festivals ceased, and everyone was essentially forced inside with no definitive end in sight, DJ Times wondered: How is our tribe coping? How are DJs getting by?
So, we sent out our “Coronavirus Questionnaire” to DJ/producers from all musical genres to find out. During this period, DJ Times will continue presenting the questionnaire responses from talented music-makers from all over the world. Here’s our latest entry, this time from Russia, the Moscow-based electronic duo Volen Sentir (aka Andrew Lemeshko and Davit Patvakanyan).
What’s it like where you’re living? How did you spend most of your time during the majority of the time? From the beginning of lockdown, one of us was in Moscow, another in Yerevan, Armenia. The borders were closed, so we were communicating online. There were no problems for us. Total isolation in Moscow was about one month or two. So in July 2020, parties slowly came back.
Did you lose important gigs, or income-producing work? We postponed events in the U.K., Australia, Albania, Spain, U.S.A. and more. Of course, we did not plan to spend 2020 like this. So we have to accept it like it is and move on. In the rest of the year, we started to prepare our live performance in Magic Forest – so, anyway, it was a lucky time for us.
Are you doing anything now that can or will produce music-related income? Have you learned anything in the downtime? We are in a process, always. No matter what’s happened around us, you must keep going.
What are you doing now that’s ultimately constructive to your music life/career? For example, any releases during this period? The next few months are full of new music by us. Our latest is “The Neunivai” EP on the Shanti Moscow Radio label. It’s available via digital and vinyl.
What’s the most surprising thing you’ve realized during this period of social distancing? Freedom is always important!
Have you done anything online recently? Yes, we have some. Just check the internet worldwide, above we shared our Magic Forest live show. That was special and we cannot wait to do more.
Any themed tunes recommended for the moment? Brian Eno’s “Thursday Afternoon,” Michael Jackson’s “Earth Song” and Talk Talk’s “Life’s What You Make It.”
Any advice on staying sane & relatively positive through this situation? Keep your inner light bright!
To check out more Life in Lockdown interviews, click here.
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