SÄTILÄ | Shares his New EP “ON THE VERGE OF SOMETHING” & Music Video for his Soothing New Single “4AM” inspired by Insomnia |We Talk Music & Moving to London
Finnish born, London based artist Sätilä, aka Teemu Sätilä, combines a fresh fusion of infectious alternative/indie music with rich pop soundscapes. Having started writing songs at the age of seven after learning the piano, Sätilä later moved to Sydney, Australia, where he studied songwriting and joined an alternative rock band. However, he soon realised his ambition to create something that was entirely his own, eventually heading back to Europe to pursue his own sound.
His first body of work, ‘on the verge of something’ is a collection of six tracks that showcase the breadth and depth of his music. Including two new, unheard tracks, and four previously released songs, the EP is the perfect introduction to the rising alternative pop artist. Musically the EP moves from indie to left-leaning pop to electronic music drawing inspiration from contemporaries such as Tame Impala, MGMT, Foster the People, Lykke Li, Maggie Rogers, Bon Iver and James Blake, among others.
The EP opens with the soaring lead single ‘4am’, a fusion of indie and synth-pop with an anthemic chorus.
The song is accompanied by a beautiful video, depicting the restlessness of a sleepless night through dance, and starring the dancer Juan Tiardo. The video is directed by Glashier, who has worked with Bonobo, Dream Wife and Vök. It was filmed in Berlin in June, just as the city was emerging from lockdown.
The EP includes previously released songs ‘Expired’, ‘Slow Down’, ‘Bend and Break’, and ‘Like You Do’, as well as the new song ‘Soldier’. The song was written a few years ago during Sätilä’s time in Australia, with Paul Ooi who also co-wrote ‘Expired’: The song is layered with synths and brings even more pop sounds into Sätilä’s sound.
What is “4 am” about?
The song is about sleeplessness at night caused by worries of the future or life decisions” explains Sätilä, “Personally, I feel like this has been more relevant now than probably ever before. I’m just about to graduate from university and try to find my place in this crazy world in this crazy time. These seasons of transition are sometimes the hardest.
In another interview, you mentioned that your involvement in electronic music has helped you become liberated from a folk-rock singer-songwriter space. What made you feel that liberation from that space might be helpful or necessary?
I never felt trapped by the folk-rock and singer-songwriter space but electronic music was definitely the first world I tried to incorporate in my music after the first two singles. In a way, the electronic space is the complete opposite of the organic music I was making at the start. It definitely wasn’t easy trying to mix these two but I guess that was part of the process of moving forward.
Moving to London resulted in freeing your mind to not think about your music too commercially. What did you explore or discover in London that consequently helped you make that shift?
I think it was realising how much audience there was for the kind of music I loved that wouldn’t be big in Finland and be able to attract the crowds they could in the UK or London. It’s kind of widening your perspective cause you see so many possibilities. It was being exposed to the South London jazz scene, the indie scene in London and that kind of stuff. If I think of one gig where it sunk in, I’d say Sam Fender at Omeara in November 2018 when he was starting to blow up.
“Bend and Break” discusses the difficulty of decision making. Is the song reminiscent of a specific time or event for you?
Sort of. When we were writing the song with Denny, I think we were both thinking about whether we should stay in Australia for a bit longer or go back home. You’re always so scared of making the decision cause you’re afraid of making the wrong one and missing out on something glorious. But I’ve come to understand that it doesn’t matter what roads you take, it will happen if it’s meant to be.
The New EP “on the verge of something” showcases a number of collaborations with other musicians such as Lake Jons, Paul Ooi, and Denny Feltwell. How has collaboration impacted your creative process?
It’s definitely challenged me as a writer and an artist and helped me make some of those changes and mix different influences. There’s no way my music would be this good had it just been me. Working with Paul has definitely made the toplines poppier cause he is great at that and he brings that side of me out.
There is a demonstrated interest in alternative and indie rock in your work. What do you appreciate about the genre that differentiates it from other styles of music?
Yeah, I grew up listening to those genres. I just like great guitar riffs and sounds and energy. It’s also fantastic to play live cause you get to blow off some steam. The new music coming up soon will take more of an alternative or indie rock turn, for sure.
“On The Verge of Something” is a deeply personal EP filled with introspective reflection. Has the process of creating this EP helped you come to terms with or work out your emotional experiences from your past?
Yes. ‘4 AM’ and ‘Like You Do’ are the most personal songs on the EP and they’ve been my therapy songs, to an extent. It’s sometimes a long process of letting some things go.
You seem to be open to exploring new genres and creative possibilities. Your music has changed while moving through different spaces and you continue to try new things. Do you have any idea of where your music might be heading for future projects?
I do! The next project will be a bit more alternative and indie rock, drawing inspiration from my youth in a way. But after that, what I’m thinking now is I’ve been inspired by a lot of indie coming from London, mixing R’n’B and even hip hop into the mix. Maybe I’m a little late to the party haha
The track “4 am” features dancer Juan Tiardo expressing the nervousness and restlessness of a lack of sleep. What was it about this track that made you want to include the medium of dance in the music video?
I’ve been wanting to use dance as a way of telling a story for a while. I just find it fascinating how somebody can control their body like that cause I definitely can’t. When we were planning the video with the director Glashier, I mentioned it and he was immediately on board and thought of Juan. I think dance works nicely with this energetic track, too.
We’ve all been affected by Covid-19 in some way or another. Your track “4am” could easily be interpreted as the restlessness of many during the lockdowns occurring around the world. Did the pandemic have any influence on your EP?
All the music was done way before COVID-19 hit us so it didn’t influence the EP but funnily enough many of these songs seem to be relevant at the moment. ’Slow Down’ was released about 6 weeks before the lockdown started and now ‘4AM’ fits the current mood, especially among graduates and people in a transition phase in their life. Good timing!
With the release of the beautiful music video for “4 am” and the video for "Bend and Break" we await further music videos for your other EP tracks. Are you thinking about doing more?
There is a visual for ‘Expired’ dropping very soon. It’s one where I stepped out of my comfort zone so I’m a bit nervous about it.
How has the visual medium of video impacted and developed the creative vision for your songs?
I think it’s always a way of giving one meaning to the song, hopefully not limiting listeners’ freedom to make sense of the song on their own. It’s also a way of building the image of me as an artist and I quite enjoy thinking about what Sätilä looks like visually. I wish I had bigger budgets to do the stuff that I envision sometimes.
Can you tell us a little about your creative process, do you tend to start with music, lyrics, or ideas? How does a song unfold when you're composing it?
I usually start with a chord progression or a riff, or a beat even, and start singing out melodies. Then it usually develops into some sort of form. It’s all quite intuitive and based on emotion but I do look at songs quite structurally. That’s something I need to challenge myself out of in the future, I think. Lyrics are the last almost every time. I keep writing some ideas down in my notes on the phone but sometimes I just let the subconscious talk freely haha
You’ve spoken about your desire to blend organic and electronic elements together. This goal is manifested in your track “Like you do”. Now that you’ve made that happen, how do you feel about the end piece? Is this something you want to continue exploring?
I think so! I still find the electronic music space interesting cause it feels kind of endless and there’s so much to learn more about. I don’t want to limit myself and my expression too much. Sometimes I feel like that confuses people tho. I guess it would be easier business-wise to keep consistent with one thing that’s quite specific. I just find that too limiting and boring for myself, to be honest, and I want to believe there is still something in my music that connects the dots, possibly my voice. Maybe I’ll go crazy with auto-tune on my next project! Haha