Barcelona duo Jessica Saves are fresh from their debut appearance on SOL. The rising pair dropped a scintillating three-track EP that is the perfect accompaniment for the journey to outer realms. ‘Weekend On Alpha Centauri’ blends lush, wavering synth-work and distant vocal samples, while coating the cuts in a dense, cosmic atmosphere that is truly palpable. This week, we caught up with Jessica Saves to gain an insight into their creative approach, the vision for the new EP and lots more. It’s all below, enjoy!

WWD: Thanks for joining us! Where in the world are you right now and what has been on your schedule this week?

Hey! Thanks for having us! We’re in Barcelona, we’re both long-time residents here. We’ve been taking it easy over the holidays eating and drinking waaaaay too much! This week we’ve been back in the studio working on some new tracks for the live set.

WWD: Your new EP ‘Weekend on Alpha Centauri’ is out now on SOL. Can you describe the EP for us in 3 words? 

Cosmic Space Voyage

WWD: Can you give us an insight into your production/recording process? 

We compose almost exclusively on hardware instruments, as working with VSTs on a laptop is a huge buzzkill.  Anything can be the spark for an idea, a sound, or a feeling but fundamentally it’s always about vibe and telling a story.

When starting a new project we will often set out guidelines on how to approach it. This imposes limitations that challenge us to be creative with our gear and keep the process fun. Mostly we try and capture something as quickly as possible. If we feel we’re trying too hard to make something work, it’s usually time to erase and start over. Capturing the live performance is a huge part of it, once we have all the parts down we will practice it over and over until it clicks. The final track will usually be recorded live in one or two takes.

WWD: How conscious are you when producing an EP that you want to tell a story? Is there a sort of underlying concept to this EP?

Very… Telling a story is very much at forefront of how we approach both our productions and our live performances. The journey has always been an integral part of the experience for us. Often for inspiration, we’ll make up a scene for some imaginary movie and then write the soundtrack for it. For this EP, we imagined ourselves in a 60’s sci-fi sitcom, jumping into a spaceship and taking a trip to Alpha Centauri.

WWD: How did you first get started in music?

Don’t let our good looks fool you, we’ve been DJing and producing under various guises since the early 90s. Jessica Saves is our latest and boldest incarnation. The project was born out of a desire to explore new musical ideas and shed the expectations of our previously established sounds and personas.

WWD: You’ve worked closely with Pablo Bolivar and his Seven Villas imprint. How did that relationship begin? 

We’ve been friends with Pablo for years and are big fans of his music. When we were looking for a home for our tracks we sent them to him first. He loved all of the tracks and we ended up releasing them as our debut album “Traveling Without Moving” and the “The Unity 4” EP.

WWDF: Who / what are your biggest influences right now?

It’s difficult to pin down any specific influence. To be honest, we do live in a bit of a bubble. We’re conscious of forging a sound of our own and we know what we like but we’re also happy to experiment and push our own boundaries. However, if there is a particular sound we draw the most pleasure and inspiration from, it’s 90s electronica.

WWD: What was your highlight of 2021?

Not dying…

WWD: One goal you’ve set for 2022?

Getting back on the road and performing live!

WWD: Are there any other exciting projects on the radar that we should know about?

Yes! We’re working on a bunch of new music as well as a new album and looking to introduce a visual aspect to our show by collaborating with video artists and creating a more immersive experience.