Origins: PETRU KSS – From Corsican Landscapes to Live Techno Systems
- 15 hours ago
- 4 min read
PETRU KSS doesn’t build music in isolation. His work begins with place. Corsica, specifically. An environment that shapes how you understand space before you ever try to recreate it through sound. Vast skies, shifting terrain, silence that feels full rather than empty. Those early experiences didn’t just sit in the background. They became the foundation.
“The nature in Corsica is truly wild and beautiful,” he says. “Growing up there… I saw some of the most beautiful skies at night.” It wasn’t just visual. It was formative. “My father used to show me stars and constellations… that sparked a deep curiosity to explore the unknown.”
That idea of exploration runs through everything he does. Not as a theme, but as a process. Movement, distance, tension, release. The same principles that define both landscape and sound.
Before electronic music entered the picture, sound was already physical.
“In Corsica, we have traditional polyphonic singing… which taught me early on that sound can rattle your bones.” That sensation stayed. The idea that sound exists in the body, not just the ears. When electronic music arrived, it amplified that feeling.
“I remember sneaking out to beach clubs… this was around 2002, 2003.” Early house, tribal rhythms, French touch. But the real shift came later. “In 2008… I heard techno and minimal on a powerful sound system. That changed everything.”
That moment wasn’t about genre. It was about scale. Pressure. The relationship between sound and space.
From there, the process became increasingly tactile. Hardware. Physical interaction. Live energy.
“Homework by Daft Punk was my entry point,” he says, but it was the live side that stayed with him. The unpredictability. The sense that anything could happen. That instinct pushed him away from purely digital workflows over time.
“I spent years in the trenches of clinical precision… which became an automation rabbit hole.” Working in high-level sound design sharpened his technical ability, but created distance from the raw instinct that first drew him in. Eventually, that balance tipped.
“After ten hours a day staring at a DAW… I needed something else.”
That “something else” became live performance. Improvisation. Risk.
Instead of building isolated tracks, the focus shifted to longer forms. Sets that evolve naturally. Energy that unfolds rather than resets every few minutes. The idea of music as a journey rather than a sequence.
That approach had been developing quietly for years.
Early experiments never fully landed. “My artistic voice didn’t feel completely realised yet,” he admits. There was technical skill, but something unresolved in the direction. The turning point came when he stopped trying to fit within existing structures.
“I’ve always been attracted by concept albums… bringing you onto a journey for about an hour was more important.”
That thinking aligned with his experience as a DJ. Understanding how tension builds over time. How a room reacts. How subtle changes can shift everything. A live set in Barcelona became a key moment.
“I built an entirely new, hour-long live set… starting experimental and slowly building into driving techno.” That was the first time everything clicked. The sound, the structure, the intention.
At the same time, nature was still present in the background. Not as an influence, but as a constant.
“The connection with nature has always been there,” he says. Hiking, recording, spending time in open space. Eventually, the two worlds merged. The idea of taking the process outside. Removing the studio entirely.
“Climbing a mountain, seeing the stars, then performing a live act at sunrise… that felt right.”
That instinct led directly into Kolibri Live LP.
The album isn’t constructed in the traditional sense. It’s captured. Built through real-time decisions. Mistakes included. Energy preserved rather than refined away. That approach changes everything.
Instead of perfection, the focus is honesty.
“I often progress through highly creative, messy times… then counterbalance with organised phases.” That balance defines how the record moves. Instinct drives the moment. Structure shapes what remains.
His academic work adds another layer. A more analytical lens. “My PhD… forced me to document my process.” But that structure never replaces instinct. It supports it. Keeps it focused without restricting it.
That duality runs through Kolibri Live LP.
“The freedom in composition… and a deep dedication to sound design… have been there since day one.” What’s different now is clarity. A refusal to compromise the intent.
“My music isn’t designed to fit a formula… but to bring back something unique.”
That’s what the album delivers. A live system of tension, space and movement. Techno that feels physical, but carries something more expansive underneath. Something closer to landscape than club formula.
Listeners don’t always interpret it the same way. And that’s intentional.
“The emotional connection seems to work… even if the meaning isn’t clear.” Sometimes, others define it more simply than he does. “A friend told me… your music is about hope. I’d add survival.”
That balance between light and darkness sits at the centre of the project. Kolibri Live LP isn’t just a debut album. It’s a statement of method. A way of working that prioritises human decision, imperfection and presence over optimisation.
For PETRU KSS, that’s where the value sits. In an environment where music can be endlessly refined, corrected and automated, choosing to leave space for risk becomes the defining choice. Not everything needs to be controlled. Not everything needs to be perfect.
Sometimes, the raw moment carries more weight than the finished product. That’s what Kolibri captures. Not just sound, but the act of creating it.
In true 'Origins' fashion, we round off this feature by asking PETRU to recount a small selection of the most influential tracks that have helped shape the artist he is today. Safe to say, his answer doesn't disappoint. Some absolute gems!
"It really is hard to nick pick so few tracks! I’ll start with "Rollin' & Scratchin'" by Daft Punk, it perfectly represents that raw electro sound and live aspect I was mentioning before.
Next, I am hesitating between "The Sky Was Pink" (Holden Remix) and "Rej" by Âme as they well portray my attachment to progressive house and storytelling.
And finally, “Error Polynomial” (Oscar Mulero Remix) by Takaaki Itoh as it conveys a pure techno energy while pushing to a hypnotic, trance-like state, "letting go of self" through sound. Interestingly, tracks with a narrative touch, without feeling gimmicky, seem to leave a higher imprint on me."
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