The Story Behind ‘Gardyn’

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Gardyn is a gift to my mother, a track made of sounds that I recorded around her garden. The track also features harmonic syllables of her voice. I shot the video myself over a number of days after a refreshing trip to New York. Gardyn marks the first time I’ve ever mixed the real world, and I hope it won’t be the last.

The word ‘Gardyn’ is middle English. I wanted to name the track something real, but at the same time, I wanted it to be easy to find. Other names I considered were ‘Bluomo’ which is Latin for blossom, and simply ‘The Garden’ which I felt was terribly lazy and unappealing.

I pulled my mother outside one afternoon to interview her. I didn’t explain what it was for, but I’ve always been a very experimental chap, so this was nothing too out of the ordinary. For 10 minutes, I got her to tell me about her passion for gardening and her relationship with God.

With the vocal samples I needed, I ran around her property filming sights and sounds that I would later splice together with her voice to make music.  I wanted to capture the textures and materials. I’ve been a chronic rhythm tapper for as long as I can remember – always dropping beats on anything that sounds good. Doing this throughout the video made a lot of sense.

I spent a good three weeks painting with these sounds before I could call this creation a solid track. I was nervous about releasing it – I didn’t want people to think I was moving away from films. ‘Gardyn’ was the first real-world Pogo mix I released, and I had no idea how everyone would react.

Mother’s Day finally arrived, and ‘Gardyn’ gained a startling 100,000 views on YouTube in its first week.

I was in bed one night when this idea first struck me. I suddenly saw myself sitting with red Indian tribes, African tribes, visiting Shaolin monk monestries, traipsing through Egyptian markets – all the way making Pogo mixes out of my experiences. What better way for me to see the world? I could find no flaw with this idea other than the fact I’d have to seek funding that doesn’t entail deadlines and the advertising of some product or service. That would be the biggest challenge. It’s like everyone always says, start small and climb the ladder.

Filming and mixing my mother’s garden was a great experience. Mixing films will always be a passion of mine, but it’s certainly exciting to imagine running around the world with a camera, microphone and laptop. Now whenever I hear sounds and voices around me, my brain starts ticking!



  1. Hayley says:

    what was your mother’s reaction when you showed her this magnificent work?

  2. [...] après plus de trois semaines de travail et en tant que cadeau pour la fête des mères, Gardyn est un mix musical basé sur des sons [...]

  3. DeKDeS says:

    You made this for your mum.. wow and its the best track ever!

    I do think you should try to do this more, real world mixes!

  4. amazing, really! i love your works, i love the story of your tracks!
    you can really make people think about music: i mean, with you ol the simple sounds become music!
    i’ve to post some of your music in my blog, they’re wonderful!
    hope to hear as soon as possible something new, and, wait for your album!

  5. Man… Tank GOD you’ve moved away from movies… I mean, your work with movies is flawless… but this one…. this video shiver me timbers!!! DAMMIT! Please do more works like it… with PASSION! Even when you get famous (and you’ll be huge, I’ve no doubt of it), never forget the love and feeling you putted on this video. I would absolutely buy every and each cd you launch…. your style remembers me the cool side of Enigma songs, with the lounge spirit of Deep Forest… but it’s still unique and fantastic.

    Congrats for being awesome and keep up with the good work.
    Greetings from Curitiba – Brazil.

  6. Bella says:

    Your mother is absolutely beautiful. She reminds me of my mother with her love for gardening. This video and song is truly a treat. Thank you.

    I would love to purchase the track if you ever release it.

    All the best,
    Bella

  7. Rachel says:

    oooops! I meant here:http://www.kickstarter.com/start

  8. Elizabeth says:

    I really do hope you keep doing real-world mixes. Gardyn was very creative and inspirational. I think that going around the world doing these mixes would not only be a great experience for you, but would probably be quite profitable. You already have a great youtube fan-base! Show us the world in a whole new light.

  9. Chris says:

    Awesome, and wonderful. So creative. I can only imagine the time you spent on these.
    What did you film with? Looks great too.

  10. [...] das erste Werk, welches nicht aus irgendwelchen Filmen entstanden ist. Wie Pogo selbst in einem Blogeintrag sagt, ist dies ein Zusammenschnitt von seiner Mutter und ihrem Garten. Dabei hat er verschiedene [...]

  11. Perthonality says:

    This looks like Western Australia. Does this mean that possibly the most talented and influential electronic musician I have ever heard comes from my home town?

    Seriously – this track moved me so much, you cannot even imagine. Please, don’t ever stop making music.

    If you ever throw open for donations for your journey – let me know. I don’t even have that much money, but I’ll give whatever I can. Your dream MUST be achieved. The world needs your art.

  12. michael says:

    you should try kickstarter.com to get funding for travel, etc.

    your music is so beautiful, thank you

  13. Victoria Wilson says:

    My god, i wish i could’ve done this for my mother. she would’ve loved it. i can’t imagine how happy your mother was when you made this for her, and considering it was your first real world mix, that probably made it extra special. keep up the FANTASTIC work. <3 :)

  14. Adam Vallee says:

    I am breathless, You are amazing, It blows my mind how talented you are, that you can pick out sounds, and put them together to create such beautiful music.

  15. porter says:

    Porter this is so great

  16. Henry says:

    I would love for you to persue your idea of travelling with Pogo. If you haven’t seen it already, look for 1 Giant Leap. They did exactly what you want to do (only differently).

    Best of luck and thank you for your music.

  17. Sarah says:

    This is my favorite piece. You can feel how heartfelt it is. Only hope you make more real life songs that are reflections of your world!

  18. David Martin says:

    I saw this video the first week it was up and I got the MP3 and have been listening at least every couple of days for months. The track just makes me happy.

    I would love it if you also had a vid out of some of the raw interview but maybe that is something that you are opposed to.

    Anyway, thank you for your music! I’ll be very excited to hear from YouTube when you have a new one out!

    Peace,

    David Martin

  19. thewelshexile says:

    Wow, it just gets better and better. Please follow our dream around the world as I know I will be waiting to listen.

  20. Scott says:

    You are BRILLIANT!

    Thank you SO much for sharing!!

  21. james w says:

    I love the track, and ill be honest, I “filled up” a little whilst watching it. Its very sweet.

    Its my opinion that your mum must have absolutely loved you for this. Well done, for creating a beautiful sound and vision masterpiece.

    thanks for your hard work,

  22. Izzy says:

    Great news Pogo! One of my friends received an email with a link to Gardyn from a teenager– a sassy, preppy, 12-year-old girl! That surprised so much I had to tell you. You know the stuff people those ages are listening too… Justin Beiber, Taylor Swift, David Archuleta, blleh, and won’t even touch anything different.
    Your dream of getting good music back might actually start to be working!

  23. [...] music, the final result is absolutely fantastic. Check it out:Song available for download here. tweetmeme_source = 'geeksaresexy'; Sharing is Sexy!Related Posts:Expialidocious : Mary Poppins [...]

  24. jim says:

    Very touching. Excellent concept and remarkably well done. It felt good watching and listening to it…and I immediately shared the link with others i know will appreciate it. Best of luck to you pursing your passion. You’ll be doing your part to make the world a better place. Namaste.

  25. Anonymous says:

    This song is beautiful.

  26. Emily says:

    Imagine how many people’s lives you could transform by doing this!! This is truly an amazing feat and I wish you all the best with your endeavors. When First heard this track I was hooked on the spot. I quickly hit the Subscribe button and I hope to hear more of the real-life mixes. I’m rooting for you and your mom!

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