deep creep is for the heads with big hearts.
The DJ, curator, organizer, and pi pi pi label runner born Sasha Cwalino joined Liner Notes to share some quick-hit reflections about making music ego-free, her org's F*cebook origins, materially supporting DIY efforts amidst ~all of this~ madness, turning Austin's Tamale House into a club, and lots more. Sasha publishes simply charming Q&As on her own site, pipipi.life, with the DJs and producers she loves. That inspired us to run the reverse here: Sasha's usually asking the questions, but here she's answering them.
Sasha also selected records from four other special independent labels: Motion Ward and Fast At Work in Los Angeles, and Sure Thing and SLINK in New York. The minds behind each (Jesse Sapell, Aaron J, Sam Sciarra, and Kenzo) were kind enough to share some thoughts and memories too.
We hope you enjoy this story :) Thanks for reading, listening, supporting. pi pi pi, Motion Ward, Sure Thing, SLINK, Fast At Work, and the artists they work with get paid the moment you support their music on Catalog.
deep creep q&a, pi pi pi style
Introduce yourself? Pronouns? Where are you answering from?
Hi hi, my name is Sasha (she / her), currently filling out this Q&A from my ever-so-comfortable, ergonomic chair next to my sweet pup Remy in my home office in Brooklyn.
What’s a new skill you’ve picked up that’d make younger you proud?
Not quite sure if this is considered to be a skill but in recent times, after lots of burnout / anxiety, I promised myself to stop comparing my success to others and authentically play what I like without any doubts.
How many gigabytes of music do you have across all your drives?
Let’s just say that I already hit the max number of playlists (1000) allowed on a USB and have been in pain ever since.
Music's meant to be shared and, often, experienced together, which requires another kind of organizing. You’ve consistently done both: in Texas, in NYC from borough to borough, and on the road. Where do you trace that magic connective tissue back to?
From time to time I like to remind myself why I continue to participate in the music world. I think the base idea stems from the pure joy of sharing music with friends and the connectivity that comes from that experience.
This was how pi started as a Facebook (RIP) music-sharing group circa 2012 with maybe 20 friends of mine, mostly Texas-based, plus some randos from all over. At that time, we did not have the opportunity to go out and listen to the music that we were into. This group served the purpose of connecting us by sound.
I think as a DJ you are a middle person in between the producer and the audience. To celebrate the work of another is to share the track and do so humbly. No ego needed, just let the music speak for itself.
During your time in Austin, Tamale House East seems to have been a key gathering spot. How did that space first enter your life?
To be honest: I am quite nostalgic for that era because it felt so pure and honest. At the time, we were trying to have a place where we could listen to music very, very loud while simultaneously learning how to DJ live lol. My friend / collaborator Malika and I somehow convinced our friend Robert’s mom to let us throw parties in their family-owned Mexican restaurant called Tamale House. We threw parties with passion, learning as we went.
It’s crazy to think of all the lovely people I met then and how they are still in my life now. My partner of eight years and his best friend, whom I now consider to be family, went to the local synth shop where my collaborator Malika worked. They asked her if she knew anything going on that was dance-oriented and she pointed them to our party, Pleasure Escape. Both of them came and became regulars. The connections that are made at events like these are so special. What if I never threw this party… would I have met the person I love and share a home with? Who knows : )
Can we include a little ode to the Texas <> Expats group chat that kept ties alive after you left for the East Coast?
I really do think the time I spent in Texas was a huge chapter for everyone involved. It’s been beautiful to see everyone grow from that point on and continue their passion in many different parts of the world. Shoutout to my Texas loves, you know who you are!
Mood Ring, Bossa, The Lot, and other NY spaces have housed some very formative moments in your journey (and vice versa). What’s a new space you’re appreciative of right now in the city?
Haha yes, thank you to all the above venues for giving me a chance when I first moved to NYC. I would like to mention a couple DIY spaces that mean a lot to me. DIY in this city with ever-soaring rents, inflation and all that jazz can be nearly impossible to keep going. I don’t think many know what goes into running a space on a daily basis. There is so much thought and consideration that goes into it. And I believe it is a much needed outlet for this city. Please, friends: Do not ask for guestlist at a DIY spot, especially to the ones who run it. Spend that $20 knowing that it’s going straight to the people who are making it happen.
First, I am so grateful to 123, run by a collective of wonderful individuals that have been championing the DIY scene in Brooklyn for the last four years. We threw the last pi event there and it brought me straight back to my roots of party throwing. Everyone involved brings something new to the table and their efforts are so noticed. Big love 123 homies <3 Thank you for welcoming us into your space.
Second mention would be LSD, a haven for soft, experimental everything, out-of-the-box sounds. This is a dream DIY space with a literal view of the Empire State Building coming out of the iconic lofted windows somewhere in Brooklyn. It feels timeless to be there. Every single bit of the space is considered by KG and intentionally designed to wow anyone who enters. The sound, the lighting, LSD has it all.
You have a recurring question I love on the pi site where you ask people what song they’d play for certain situations, and I’m wondering if we can reverse it: Pick a timestamp you love from each label’s release, then describe the situation it feels perfect for…
- Track: Plebeian - "Gowanus"
- Timestamp: 1:26
- Sounds like: Cruising in the Holland Tunnel at 6am with the peak of dawn in the distance.
- Track: Air Krew - "Types of Crickets"
- Timestamp: 3:33
- Sounds like: Floating on the surface of the pristine clear crisp water in Krause Springs, my favorite swimming hole in Texas, at midnight solo.
- Track: E Wata - "Cradle To The Grove"
- Timestamp: 4:26
- Sounds like: One single tear rolling down the cheek at an experimental play in 2068.
- Track: Carré - "Soft Fascination"
- Timestamp: 4:19
- Sounds like: One door open at the gates of heaven… 15 hour wait.
Your first release as a label was also Oscar Huang’s first as an artist. What do you remember and appreciate about the prep work leading up to that initial step together? What did you learn on the label side?
I am quite the over-committer, something I am working on today. It felt natural for pi to progress into a label and wanted to keep the ethos of working with my friends... Little did I know how much work goes into starting / running a label. I am endlessly grateful for Oscar Huang for helping take lead on the first release. He brought so many organizational skills and ideas to the table. (Thank you Oscar, I love you). I finally have a new release that I am super excited by that will be coming out later this year. For right now it is still a secret : ) More info on that soon!
Can you break down the pi pi pi temperature system pretty please?
The easiest way for me to remember beautiful moments in time is through sound and seasonal feels. The way the outdoors feels can connect to what I am in the mood for. Give me a slightly cool rainy day on a tiny micro-dose and you will find me vibing to…
Mmmm a late night dip into a pool in the midst of summer...
I also like that it doesn’t have to be taken seriously. A nice representation of this was the pi mix from Carly Barton, choosing “absolute zero.” You can definitely feel the chilling elements in it. Truly one of my favs to date.
What would you like to see in the future for the dance community?
Less branding, less ego, more DIY, more deep digs, play the unpredictable.
Uncut Label Roundtable
Three questions for four independent label runners: Aaron J of Sure Thing, Kenzo of SLINK, Jesse Sapell of Motion Ward, and Sam Sciarra of Fast At Work.
What’s a fond, formative memory you have of your label’s origins?
Aaron J (Founder, Sure Thing): To be honest there are so many to choose from, and I feel like they keep coming as I'm still learning so much along the way. To put it another way, it still feels like the label is in its "origin" period so to speak, and I hope that never changes. But the exact moments of where and when I listened to the early demos, like listening to Simone Bauer's Arcadia while walking around MASS MoCA, or listening to Polygonia's Bloom on the Staten Island Ferry, definitely come to mind. Or seeing the label's releases in stock at the same record stores I would dig through online every week, such as Juno, Redeye, Hardwax, etc., is such a fond feeling that continues through to this day.
Kenzo (Cofounder, SLINK): We started out as a party before even considering the label side of things. I had talked to Brandon (Simisea) about starting a night together, because we were always at the same parties in NYC, finding each other on the dancefloor. Enayet is an amazing lighting designer and someone we knew was into the same kind of music, so we asked him to join. We took over this small bar space called 444 and brought in some extra sound. Turiya (rrao) was actually our first booking (along with Cassius Select), and is also a professional sound engineer. I remember all of us talking at the end of the night, seeing all of our friends having a great time, and saying, “Wow, we should do this again, and we have everything we need with the four of us." This whole thing has worked because I think we’ve all had our specialties since the beginning.
Jesse Sapell (Founder, Motion Ward): Just driving aimlessly around LA listening to demos from friends and getting completely absorbed. Getting acquainted with new ways to feel closer music in different contexts in general was and continues to be such a fun and deep part of it all.
Sam Sciarra (Cofounder, Fast At Work): Releasing our very first record, with it coming from our own resident / matriarch Carré. Not only was this only Carre’s second EP, but it was her first proper body of work after a long period of dedication to production, and represented the true blossoming of her career as an artist. As soon as we heard the tunes, we immediately knew this was the EP with which we should launch. Up to that point, we’d simply been great friends and worked together organizing parties, so seeing this special and very personal record come together so naturally felt really special. Towards the end of the A&R process, tapping two Fast At Work alums and friends (Priori and James Bangura) for contribute remixes was the perfect way to wrap the project. In many ways this process solidified our core values into a concrete ethos for everything we do moving forward.
What’s a project you made happen with love and minimal funds?
Aaron J (Founder, Sure Thing): In 2019, the same year the label was started, Alyce [Lychee] and I rented a house in the Poconos and invited a few friends to perform and stay the weekend together, with our late friend Dennis Zografos helping with the sound and lighting equipment and donating so much of their time and energy for the setup. That was a particularly influential period of time for me, a time when I was still figuring out the mission of the label as well as my identity as a DJ, and how I could communicate through my sets in a way that would speak to my closest friends, and hopefully eventually to a crowd of strangers.
Kenzo (Cofounder, SLINK): I always think back to our first Big Room Boogie party in 2022, which is a collaboration with our friends Groovy Groovy (Akanbi and DJ Temporary). Without getting too deep into it, we were working with a venue that was supposed to cover all of the artist and production fees, but that relationship fell apart two weeks before the event. It was by far the most expensive party we had tried to throw and now all of a sudden we’re without a venue and taking on a huge financial risk. We were on the verge of canceling but we decided to just go for it and see what we could pull out of thin air. We called in a ton of favors and found a venue just in time. That ended up being such a great party, and a huge lesson in the value of DIY. We could’ve just done it ourselves the whole time, but being forced into that position activated our scrappiness in a whole new way.
Jesse Sapell (Founder, Motion Ward): I’ll speak about the release I’ve decided to highlight actually. This AIR Krew album really did come out of thin air. I had never spoken to them before, but my friend Ryan told them to reach out to me, and one day I recieved an album demo over a SoundCloud message from saying, “Hi, we finished an album for you.” with a WeTransfer link. I took a drive to Griffith Park and listened to it that day and fell in love instantly. We released it as a cassette which was very affordable : )
Sam Sciarra (Cofounder, Fast At Work): “Shapes in Real Life” from our recently released VA compilation series HOVER CAPSULE. Despite never having actually met in real life, this track organically and beautifully formed into a true standout in our catalog. Carré had written the original idea, and sent the project files to Addison Groove via IG DMs who fleshed this out further into a fusion of their distinct musical identities. It was casual, spontaneous, and just flowed naturally, capturing exactly the kind of energy we love.
What do you appreciate about the release you shared on Catalog?
Aaron J (Founder, Sure Thing): People following the label may have noticed a shift toward a compilation format with the recent releases, and while I do plan to continue releasing solo EP's on the label, the compilations are something I'd to continue for as long as possible. I feel they speak most directly to the connections I've been able to make through the label, a large part of its purpose, and I think the latest compilation "Fountain of Reason" highlights that well. It brings together producers from seven different countries, tying together different genres and tempos and pairing them with stunning artwork from our artist Sofia Hjortberg.
Kenzo (Cofounder, SLINK): This E Wata record is a collaboration between myself and Enayet, built from a live set we did at Sustain Release. We are both hopeless tweakers in the studio and take forever to finish music so getting this out was a long process. Putting together the physical side of it was extremely DIY. We did a run of 50 lathe cut records, had the sleeves laser cut by a friend, then spray painted all of the sleeves with individual designs (with the help of our partners Son and Kathy). It was extremely time consuming but it felt right for the spirit of the record.
Jesse Sapell (Founder, Motion Ward): Discuss and Come Back incorporates many worlds of sound in a way that really resonates for me still. There is a rawness / sentimentality about it that cuts deep. I really love this soviet-cinema music feel (Mikhail Chekelin comes to mind a bit), and the way it dovetails into all of these other styles while remaining cohesive feeling. I had no contact with the group behind it before they sent it to me, which left room to imagine the spaces they recorded it, the land and people it was inspired by, and what they were feeling when they made it. The lack of context / the magic of this album hitting in such a puzzle piece way at that time without having ever really spoken to these people who live across the world felt really mind boggling and special.
Sam Sciarra (Cofounder, Fast At Work): HOVER CAPSULE is unique because it came together naturally out of friendships and relationships we had already developed with the included artists. Having a real connection with the artists and people involved in our projects is integral to everything we create. The fact that the full VA gradually came together musically and materialized into an incredibly diverse package while still sounding cohesive was the best result we could have asked for. It hit nearly every sonic spectrum that we envision for Fast At Work, while the process was fun, smooth, and perfectly captured Fast At Work.
pi pi pi, Motion Ward, Sure Thing, SLINK, Fast At Work, and the artists they work with get paid the moment you support their music on Catalog.
