Sebastian Mullaert

Sweden’s Sebastian Mullaert has been producing several styles of hypnotic electronic music since the ’90s, ranging from trance to ambient techno to downtempo, with the common themes being tranquility and introspection. Even his most club-centric work is peaceful and meditative rather than aggressive or hedonistic. Mullaert is highly spiritual, and records his music in peace at a studio built next to a national park. He has collaborated with numerous musicians, most notably Marcus Henriksson, his partner in cult favorite minimal techno duo Minilogue. Mullaert was initially trained as a classical musician, and performed in orchestras and string quartets as a youth, gradually moving on to pop music. His discovery of electronic music was a major turning point in his life; he started promoting parties and eventually DJ’ing. It was through the Swedish party scene that he met Henriksson in 1996. The two began making progressive/psy-trance as Son Kite and Trimatic, but they achieved greater success as Minilogue. Throughout the 2000s, the duo released dozens of 12″s on notable minimal/tech-house labels such as Traum Schallplatten, Wagon Repair, and Mule Electronic. Mullaert also released solo progressive house/trance records as Ooze and Filur, but he largely abandoned trance as the decade progressed. Minilogue’s full-length debut, Animals, appeared on Crosstown Rebels in 2008. The duo also collaborated with Ian Chaplin and Philip Rex (Australian trance duo Decoy) for a jazzy, minimalist experimental project called IMPS. Mullaert began releasing solo 12″s on Mule Electronic in 2010, starting with “Voices Around the Fire.” His double-mix CD WaWuWe also appeared that same year. Another mix CD, Move the Wave to Your Heart, followed in 2011. Mullaert and Henriksson collaborated with Japanese ambient artist Koss (Kuniyuki Takahashi) for a sprawling double-CD of downtempo improvisations titled The Möllan Sessions, which was also released in 2011. Minilogue released their second full-length (Blomma) in 2013 and final 12” (The Island of If) in 2014 before splitting up in order to focus on solo material. Mullaert released two more collaborative full-lengths, both on Mule Musiq: Reflections of Nothingness with Eitah Reiter and The Dance, which featured selections spun by Ulf Eriksson along with Mullaert’s improvised playing on top. He also began releasing deep, meditative techno 12”s as WaWuWe, initially on an eponymous label. Mullaert continued releasing 12”s on labels such as Ovum, Minus, Kontra-Musik, Drumcode, Mule, and Hypercolour, both solo and in collaboration with producers such as Patrick Siech, Mathew Jonson, and Aril Brikha. Mullaert made his debut on R&S Records’ ambient division Apollo in 2017, with the lush four-track EP All the Keys Are Here. ~ Paul Simpson