Interview by Luke Byatt

Meet Nectr, a new project from Melbourne’s Luboku and Charlz. Nectr combines both artists’ captivating vocals, wrapped up in the soft glow of downtempo electronica, displaying a subtler, more delicate side of their musical universe. We jump in with the pair to explore the creation of the project and their debut single, ‘Someone’.

Futuremag Music: Hey Nectr, how are you both?

Nectr: Hey we’re good! It’s a little strange in Melbourne right now, but we’re holding up okay. 

Futuremag Music: Congratulations on your debut release 'Someone', it's a sensational single! Before we jump into it, could you please talk us through how you two met? 

Nectr: Thanks! We met up for a writing session. I think we'd both heard of each other through the Melbourne muso scene, and we liked what we'd heard of each other's work, so decided to try collaborating. The chemistry just worked so well we decided the music deserved its own platform, hence Nectr!

Futuremag Music: Where does Nectr sit in relation to your individual projects, Charlz and Luboku? What do you each bring to the table when working on a record?

Nectr: Style wise, Nectr has a lot of elements that are familiar to our solo projects, but I think with this one we really let ourselves enjoy playing real live music and organic songwriting before anything else. I think we were both pretty happy to discover a new place to bring song ideas that may not have fit our solo projects, and it's also really nice to be able to express different sides of your creativity outside of solo projects. 

Futuremag Music: Jumping into 'Someone', could you please outline the production and writing process for the record? 

Nectr: We wrote Someone in our first session together. The bones of it happened pretty quickly. We found some chords we liked on the keys, turned on the mic, pressed record and started rolling out ideas. I don't think it was until a few days/weeks after the session that we listened back and realized we had something pretty special. 

Futuremag Music: With one incredible release under your belts, what does the future hold for Nectr project? 

Nectr: We're actually just excited to be focusing on the moment with this and taking it as it comes, the great thing about having a new project is the breath of fresh air it brings creatively. We’re definitely looking forward to the opportunity of playing ‘Someone’ live when we next get the chance though.

Futuremag Music: To wrap it up, if 'Nectr' was a cocktail, what would be in it to best describe the project?

Nectr: That’s a hard one! I’d probably say an Old Fashioned though - simple but sumptuous.