Ōtone


clanging music & mineral grooves




The work of Ōtone (Pablo Diserens’ other moniker) is characterised by an ongoing investigation of abstract industrial soundscapes with the practices of field recording and attentive listening at the core of their creative process. Inspired by musique concrète and electroacoustic sonic manipulations, they manipulate, combine and alter sounds from the real → from their surroundings, from found objects and from their series of self-made metallic objects, called 'Tetsu', that they use as compositional tools and performable instruments. Stemming from this approach, Ōtone engages in rhythmical and textural research to elaborate a — peculiar, acousmatic and almost tangible — percussive, experimental, and club-oriented, clanging music. 

Ōtone is the founder and co-curator of ygam — an independent record label for tangible, percussive, and experimental music
> est. 2015 ~ run by Ōtone & Catartsis

Ōtone has performed live in venues such as OHM, Urban Spree, ACUD MACHT NEU, Spektrum, Punctum, and DJ sets in clubs such as Tresor, about:blank, and Arena Club. 



RELEASES

2022     Helices [Subverted, vinyl & digital]
2022     Awaken Alloys [Camera Magmatica, cassette]  
2022     Springs - with Catartsis [ygam, digital]
2020    Mechanical Gesture - split EP with Catartsis [Obscuur, vinyl & digital]
2020    In-between [Etang Brulant, digital]
2020    In the years of salt lands [ygam, digital]
2019    performance for the month of contemporary music [ygam, cassette & digital]
2019    Testu I [One Instrument, digital]
2019    Anthracite [suspension, digital]
2019    Colonne [LARMES, digital]
2018    Polaris [ygam, cassette]
2018    Nor here, Nor there (in collaboration with cplt) [digital]
2016    Past Structures, Present Matter [ygam, digital]
DJ SETS & LIVE PERFORMANCES (selection)

2023     Tresor, Berlin (DJ set)
2022     Astron Bar, Athens (DJ set)
2022     about:blank, Berlin (DJ set)
2022     Pattern, Berlin (DJ set stream)
2022     Wilde Renate, Berlin (DJ set)
2021     about:blank, Berlin (DJ set)
2020     HÖR (DJ set stream)
2020     HÖR b2b with Catartsis (DJ set stream)
2020    playing Bin Cir’s scultpure - backsteinbot, Berlin (live)
2020    OHM, Berlin (live)
2020    Urban Spree, Berlin (live)
2019     Party des Monats (der zeitgenössischen Musik) - ACUD MACHT NEU, Berlin (live) → recording
2019     Noiselab Festival - Teufelsberg (live)
2019     OHM, Berlin (DJ set)
2019     Punctum, Prague (live)
2019     Arena Club, Berlin (DJ set)
2019     Spektrum, Berlin (live with Magnétisme Animal)
2018     Tresor, Berlin (DJ set)
2018     Spektrum, Berlin (live)
2017     Drone-Übernachtung - Modular+ (live)





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Awaken Alloys


contribution for Camera Magmatica’s fundraising compilation in aid to Ukrainian children. All proceeds are donated to the Ukrainian charitable foundation "DIya Tene".
[Camera Magmatica - cassette & digital, 2022]

Camera Magmatica’s compilations focus on out-of-the-radar experimental electronic music, each time curated by an artist. The second volume of this series was entrusted to Jacopo, Midgar label founder. Jacopo selected 6 tracks by 6 different artists: Munich based multitalented Polygonia, Harmony Rec affiliated artist Shoal, Swiss rhythm master Agonis from Amenthia Recordings, London based Taiwanese artist and sound designer Jin [靜], Berlin based ambient and texture prodigies Ōtone and - Midgar ambassador - Ground Tactics.

Awaken Alloys is a sonic window on an encounter with an uncanny metallic body animated by a passing wanderer. Somewhere in the vestiges of a decaying factory, a silvery organism lay dormant. Little did the roamer knew what phenomenon they would spark as they crossed this isolated landscape.











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Mechanical Gesture


a sonic investigation of rhythms and timbres from various apparatuses — split EP with Catartsis
[Obscuur Records - vinyl & digital, 2020-2021]

Originally released digitally in August 2020 and supported by DJ Stingray, Martin Gore (Depeche Mode), Manni Dee, Machine Woman, Rommek and Tapefeed, Catartsis & Ōtone's split EP "Mechanical Gesture"  was re-issued on vinyl in 2021. A club-oriented EP that explores the sonic grooves found and recorded in mechanical apparatuses, tools, and gestures.

“Excellent, dark, stepping Industrial Techno EP” - Hard Wax

“[...] jam-packed with undulating grooves powered by snarling, unruly mechanics that, despite fitting into the techno mold, buck away from generic formulae. No straight-forward 4/4 time signature here - loaded with swing and unusual beat patterns, each stretch of the tracks shows keen creativity. Two names to watch for those who like their techno breaking free from long-held constraints.” - Freddie Husdon for Inverted Audio

Also appears in Reeko’s chart for Clone






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performance for the month of contemporary music


a recording of Ōtone’s performance for the month of contemporary music organized by Initiative Neue Musik Berlin at ACUD MACHT NEU (Sept. 2019) — an improvisation on two metallic instruments of the 'Tetsu' series and field recordings.
[ygam - cassette & digital, 2019]

In this recorded performance, Ōtone improvises on Tetsu I and Tetsu III, elaborating slowly evolving percussive accumulations and wind-instrument-like frictions, while a drone made out of recordings of resonating metal bars gradually ascends. Subtle recordings of birds, water and sea urchins also appear throughout the performance giving an organic touch to the metallic soundscape at play. — Ōtone dedicates this performance to Éliane Radigue.









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other selected works











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tetsu series


Collection/series of self-made/found metallic objects used as compositional tools and performable instruments.





Mark