“Suumhow is what happens when two childhood friends who discovered electronic music together in their teens and then reunite 20 years later.” On the heels of their 5th album, appropriately titled 5ilth—available on n5MD October 25, 2024—Suumhow took some time out of their schedule to discuss the good old days of IDM, their backgrounds, processes, and beautifully choreographed sonic glitches.
Cooking up equally lousy beats nonstop
Igloo :: Let’s lift the veil on Suumhow. Tell us about the name of your project, what your environment(s) look like in Brussels and if you will divulge a little more about yourselves.
Suumhow :: Suumhow is what happens when two childhood friends who discovered electronic music together in their teens and then reunite 20 years later. After exploring all kinds of different music projects, we ended up in the studio again, jamming out experimental and glitchy beats like no time had passed—and loving it.
We’re originally from France and Norway but grew up in the same city—Brussels. Went to the same school, got musically corrupted at the same time. We hit our teenage years listening to Proem, Arovane, Phonem, Tim Hecker, Funkstörung, CiM—you name it. Our “education” was pretty much skipping school to dig through local vinyl shops, and downloading everything we could to keep up with the electronica/IDM whirlwind of the late ’90s/early 2000s. We spent hours on lousy computers, cooking up equally lousy beats nonstop.
This is going to sound obvious, but we’ve always been kind of obsessed with digital glitches, systems crashing, and the strange sounds of computers and tech falling apart. Suumhow is all about those happy accidents and unexpected moments that happen when you’re just trying to get things right. That world of errors and glitches—that’s where we feel most at home. And growing up with lousy computers probably helped a lot with that. :)
We’re now total sound design nerds, constantly experimenting with anything that makes noise or glitches visuals. We’re obsessed with pushing our gear, whether digital or analog, to its limits. And we’ll use whatever it takes—coding, circuit bending, VSTs, field recordings, or our modular synth—to create the sounds we want. Our workflow is all about (way too) destructive sampling, sound design, and having fun together in the studio, as well as on stage when we bring our visuals and sounds to life. In the studio, we’re like kids—having a blast making music, drinking beers, and listening to the classics. It’s our favorite thing in the world, and we couldn’t think of anything more fun to do.
We were lucky enough to get into experimental and leftfield electronic sounds early on and for the past 20 years, we’ve been all about those deconstructed beats and tear-jerking melodies. And now… it’s all coming back, “somehow.” When we signed with n5MD it felt like coming full circle, back to where it all started, and we couldn’t think of a better home for our music.
And to your question about our names, we hope this won’t sound pretentious or secretive in any way, but for us Suumhow exists somewhere between the two of us, and it’s really just about the music—who we are doesn’t matter.
“When we signed with n5MD it felt like coming full circle, back to where it all started, and we couldn’t think of a better home for our music.” ~Suumhow
While previous releases featured heavy emphasis on broken and crunchy electronics/glitch, 5ilth feels more surreal, tied to additional layers of atmosphere, while the heavily scorched beatwork is still present, but in a different shape. What was your process during 5ilth and what was the intention?
Suumhow :: For 5ilth, the process felt more like a conversation with the sounds rather than a direct manipulation of them. We’ve always been drawn to broken, glitchy textures and the chaos of digital errors and corruption, but this time around, it was more about finding beauty within that destruction. The beats are still scorched, still rough around the edges (the way we like them), but we wanted them to breathe in a different way, surrounded by “larger” sound landscapes—if that makes sense.
Our intention with 5ilth was also to push the boundaries of what we normally consider beautiful or ugly. Destruction, disgust, and all those things we tend to reject—they actually hold some of the most profound paths to explore emotionally and musically. There’s a rawness in embracing those imperfections, and in this album, we tried to let that tension between the dirty and the delicate guide us. It’s been a really “personal” journey for both of us, and we believe we’ve reached some of the most emotional and texturally interesting sounds we’ve ever created. Our personal lives have also been through a lot of changes and challenges, and that’s clearly reflected in the emotional tone of this album.
Some people may describe our sound as cold, harsh, and difficult to connect with. But we’re captivated by what’s unsettling, by the sounds that repel—by music you really can’t dance to. One of the most transformative tracks we heard as teenagers was Pita’s (aka Peter Rehberg) Get Out on Mego (3rd track). We were 15 or 16 at the time, and the raw, abrasive textures combined with such an unexpectedly moving melody left a lasting impression. That blend of grit and vulnerability is what we gravitate toward. With 5ilth, we’ve continued to explore that tension, discovering beauty in places we maybe wouldn’t normally explore.
The title track on 5ilth draws us deep into an emotional soundtrack of fuzzy ambient textures and tones that eventually give way to saturated yet serene noise. Is your intention to paint pictures with sound, or let sound paint the picture? Is there any real definition to Summhow’s audio/visual dynamic?
Suumhow :: For us, sound and visuals are inseparable—they’ve always fed into each other. We’ve been experimenting with audiovisual equipment since the beginning, often using circuit-bent video synths and using them not just for visuals but for sound too. Even before Suumhow officially came to life, we were running audio through old VCRs (using VHS tapes), and the more worn-out the tapes, the warmer and richer the sounds became. We also recently managed to get our hands on vintage VCR camcorders and started recording sound through them directly. What we love about that is how analog and corrupted the output gets—it’s so raw and textured. One of our cameras doesn’t even work properly anymore; it just creates static and noise, but that’s exactly what we wanted from it—the “filth” it spits out.
We don’t see our process as having a fixed definition, but rather a constant exploration where the lines between audio and visual are blurred. ~Suumhow
So when it comes to tracks like the title piece on 5ilth, the goal isn’t necessarily to paint a picture with sound or vice versa, but to let both evolve together in a fluid, symbiotic way. We don’t see our process as having a fixed definition, but rather a constant exploration where the lines between audio and visual are blurred. The textures, the noise, the imperfections—they all come from this deep connection between what you hear and what you see, or sometimes even what you imagine seeing. It’s all about those emotional, distorted landscapes that come out of pushing both mediums to their limits.
That being said, we’re really just amateurs when it comes to the video side of things. We try our best and love the exploration, but we’d love to collaborate with visual artists who are fluent in that language, who can take what we do sound wise and elevate the visual dimension beyond our current limitations.
The new albums’ track titles are letters from A to H, excluding C, which is reserved for the title track. Should we dig into this little mystery, or just leave it alone?
Suumhow :: Sometimes track names carry a lot of meaning, and other times, the music itself is the meaning. The title track “Filth” holds a very special place in our hearts—it’s where the tension in 5ilth reaches its peak, the point for us where everything unravels and comes together. The rest of the letters? Maybe they’re just different paths leading to different variations of that same moment.
Where previous albums felt secluded and solemn, 5ilth feels much more “alive,” if we can put it that way. The flow is transitory and contemplative (especially “F”); is this intentional and/or what was the intention?
Suumhow :: Totally agree with you, and “alive” is a really nice way to describe it. The flow was definitely intentional—transitory, yes, but also reflective, like it’s always in motion while pausing for contemplation. We wanted the album to feel like it was evolving, almost breathing, while still holding onto the emotional weight that we feel defines our sound.
This album was composed as one cohesive piece—the tracks came together quickly, and we were working on all of them at the same time, in the same headspace and emotional dimension. They evolved alongside each other, carrying the same energy and feelings throughout, which gives 5ilth what we see as a seamless, interconnected flow.
We still see ourselves as amateurs in many ways, learning as we go, inspired by so many artists who have shaped our sound. But something’s shifted—we’re starting to really understand where we want to go with our music, and as we let go, the sounds are coming to us more naturally. It’s been about trusting that process and allowing the music to unfold on its own terms.
Closing piece, “H” manages to combine both worlds (atmospheric and glitch) with a myriad of sandblasted nostalgia, blips, and bleeps. It’s an emotional journey, but tell us more about how you “see” your music, and what you hope to translate to us, the listener.
Suumhow :: What we hope to translate to the listener is a sense of journey, of discovery within imperfection. Our music is filled with contrasts, and we hope people will feel both the tension and the release, the familiar and the unsettling. More than anything, we want listeners to connect emotionally, to find something within the chaos that resonates with their own experiences. And we know we’re not alone in this. The artists who came before us—those who pushed the boundaries of sound and opened up this world—opened up the path we’re on. They showed us that music can exist in these raw, unconventional spaces, and we’re simply following in their footsteps. And the artists today, like the ones on n5MD, continue to inspire and challenge us, pushing the limits of what’s possible, and reminding us that there’s so much more.
Honestly, we’re just so grateful to be able to share the sounds we create. We’re super humble about our place in the world and know how lucky we are to even get a chance to do what we do. At the end of the day, we’re just having a freaking blast, and that’s what makes it all worthwhile.
The artists who came before us—those who pushed the boundaries of sound and opened up this world—opened up the path we’re on. ~Suumhow
Is there anything else you’d like your listeners to know?
We just want to say how incredibly grateful we are for all the support and love. At the end of the day, we’re listeners too, always on the hunt for new and exciting sounds. There’s so much amazing stuff out there, and life’s too short to miss out on it! Seriously, send us your music—we’d love to hear what you’re working on!
What’s next for Suumhow?
Suumhow :: We’re having way too much fun to stop! We’re in the studio most of the time, and honestly, we wouldn’t want it any other way. Right now, we’re working on videos for the new album and having a blast, but we also just added some new modules to our rig, so we’re diving headfirst into that madness again!
5ilth is available on n5MD October 25, 2024. [Bandcamp | Site]
