Aarktica
... is the sonic manifestation of Jon DeRosa’s artistic vision, which has been evolving and expanding since 1998. As the sole architect of this musical landscape, DeRosa invites various collaborators and instruments to enrich his atmospheric creations.
Aarktica’s distinctive sound is mainly based on guitars, but also incorporates organic elements such as brass, strings, harmoniums, and voices on some albums. Aarktica transcends the boundaries of genre and style, and offers a unique and immersive listening experience.
Who is the person behind the artist Aarktica and what's his story?
My name is Jon DeRosa, and I've been the sole permanent member of Aarktica since I started the project in 1998.
What sparked your passion for music and who or what influenced your musical style and identity?
Music was kind of something I was always very drawn to from a young age. I began studying classical guitar when I was around 10 years old. I started to discover the music that became very influential to me in my adolescence, bands like Joy Division, darker, ethereal music like Lycia, Current 93, Dead Can Dance. And then onward to shoegaze bands like Slowdive and more unique sounds like Durutii Column. So I think the first influences that sparked the inspiration to begin making my own music in my teens were in that post-punk, goth and ambient type realm. Eventually branching out of the shoegaze world, I became very interested in the more "beautiful noise" artists like lovesliescrushing, Flying Saucer Attack, Azusa Plane...
When I was around 18, I lost my hearing in my right ear and this actually became the catalyst for starting Aarktica. I was having aural hallucinations and was really struggling to understand this new way of hearing I was experiencing. I began recording experiments with guitar, tape, effects on a 4-track cassette recorder and this album became Aarktica's debut No Solace in Sleep in 2000.
It was around this time that I began studying Indian Classical music with La Monte Young and his wife Marian Zazeela, and this was also very influential on my approach to sound, composition, tone....
How did you come up with the idea for “Morning Chorus” and what does it mean to you?
The song itself is a bit of a paean to dawn, a soundtrack for sunrise.
The song is also part of your 11th Album, how would you describe “Paeans” for our readers?
Paeans means "songs of tribute." So the idea for the album was to compose meditations on certain natural phenomena, both terrestrial and extraterrestrial, that inspire me. For this album I worked with the wonderful cellist/violist Henrik Meierkord, whose string parts really elevated the songs.
You have been making music as Aarktica since 1998, what do you think has been the most significant change or development in music history since then?
The way we listen to music has been the most significant change. At that time, MP3s were just starting to emerge, so there was still a reliance on physical product. I actually enjoy having access to all music at any time, and I think it leads to a lot of discovery which we didn't have access to then. However, it's a shame that artists are still not being properly compensated and, while it was never easy in the first place, it has grown to be nearly impossible to make a living as a performer in the present day.
Are you planning to perform live on stage anytime soon?
I'm currently writing a new Aarktica album and perhaps we'll see some live performances next year...
What are you looking forward to or working on for the future?
This Fall, we'll be releasing a remastered and expanded edition of Aarktica's second album from 2001 Morning One on Projekt Records here in the US. Hopefully, we'll see a new Aarktica full-length in 2024.
