Exclusive: 5 Minutes with Squareffekt

The Portugal music scene has been a landscape of immense creativity, and with the advent of the internet, it’s becoming increasingly clear that a musical hub has been bubbling under the surface for quite some time. With the rise of Enchufada and Buraka Som Sistema, among many many others, people are beginning to notice.

We chatted with Squareffekt, a rising producer that blends various styles together to create a world of their own. With his production partner Bison, they’ve been making some of the most interesting music yet to come out of the scene. Catch up with the talents producer below!

Hi there, how are you and what are you up to today?

Hi, I’m fine,thanks for asking! I started working on new EP with my partner in crime Bison today, the process is very early cause we want to focus this project in a new direction- something more danceable and catchy.

To those not familiar with you, how would you describe your sound?

We make a kinda unique and futuristic sound that fuses tarraxo/Zouk bass or Kizomba beats mixed with vintage 80s atmosphere; we really like to create landscapes and melodic sensual vibes and we think of it as music to dance to with a partner, something that you don’t always see nowadays. We want it to be familiar in a sensual way and still distant in a Hang-on-a-minute way.

Can you the name albums and artists that have influenced you the most?

The Doors – All albums
Sisters of Mercy – A Slight Case of Overbombing
Nine Inch Nails – The Downward Spiral
Giorgio Moroder – From Here to Eternity
Bjork – Debut / Post
Portished – Dummy
Tricky – Maxinquaye

Which other artists are you into at the moment and why?

I really like the work of artists from Enchufada or Principe Discos both labels from Lisbon, they have been making an amazing job to put Lisbon on the map, and have carved a mark on the global music scene, especially guys like Branko from Buraka Som Sistema, Dj Marfox, Dj Niggafox, Batida, or Dotorado Pro; I’m also into other label artists like NAAFI or NON Worldwide,like Lechuga Zafiro, Imaabs, Siete Catorce, Chino Amobi, Angel Ho among others.

What would we find under the category of “Guilty pleasures” in your music collection?

I’m not sure if I can say this is a ‘Guilty Pleasures’ exactly, but if I’m going to those clubs where they play all the best of 80s and 90s and they play George Michael – Careless Whisper or Phil Collins – In The Air Tonight I feel like I’m a teenager again and I still love those songs!

Where do you gather song writing inspiration?


I get a lot of inspiration from movies and soundtracks, also musicians that usually uses a lot of synths to create those amazing atmospheres to their songs like Vangelis, Enigma, Jean-Michel Jarre, Brian Eno, Ennio Morricone. Also, I’m very lucky to live close to the beach and that gives me a very good environment to make music, the city is a very multi cultural place and I can easily get inspiration from music of Africa or Brazil to Mexico or U.S. I’m always in constant search for something new.

What’s the best gig you have ever done and why?

We have a club here in Lisbon that belongs to John Malkovich called LUX, and when I was in my 20s I tried to go to that club a couple times, it wasn’t easy to get in so I always stayed at the door haha. Last year I had the privileged to Warm up with Bison for Buraka Som Sistema, after that we’ve played a couple times since then.

If you weren’t a musician what would you be?

If I wasn’t into music I would choose to be a Barber.

Do you have any particular gigs or festivals that you dream about playing?

Yes I lived a couple years in Barcelona, and they have an amazing festival called Sonar, I hope one day weplay there or Coachella, both would be an awesome dream come true.

If you could perform alongside any other band or artist, who would it be?

I’ve been a huge fan of Bjork for so long so definitely I would like to perform with her.