At 17, he debuted with "The Student EP" on Wolf + Lamb Music, with remixes by Seth Troxler and Kasper. At 18 he continued producing and played live at Club der Visionäre and Arena in Berlin, at the Marcy in Brooklyn and at Mutek in Mexico City, alongside Deadbeat, Flying Lotus and Guillaume & the Coutu Dumonts, amongst others. At 19 he studied at Brown University in Rhode Island. Nico has many releases coming up, including some on Circus Company, Wolf + Lamb (with remixes by Ryan Crosson) and on his own label, Clown and Sunset, of which he is the owner and founder.
Jaar then spent four years in underground dance circles, crafting rough, hip hop influenced house music (examples include "Love you gotta lose again", "Angles"). Initially made as jokes to make his mother laugh and dance, Jaar made two songs where he sang in his native Spanish ("Mi Mujer" and "El Bandido"). Jaar did not intend for them to come out. He changed his mind in 2010, as he felt the songs were his way of answering to what he deemed as exploitative sampling of Latin American culture by white European DJs.
He released his debut album, Space Is Only Noise, in January 2011 to critical acclaim, receiving a score of 8.4 and the title of Best New Music from Pitchfork [5] and four stars from the Guardian.[6] It was ranked #1 album of the year by Resident Advisor, Mixmag, and Crack Mag.
Jaar toured the album for three years with guitarist Dave Harrington (later of Darkside) and keyboardist Will Epstein. Jaar was voted # 1 Live Act on Resident Advisor for the 3 years he toured the record.[7]
In 2012, he debuted a live concept called From Scratch, where, in front of a live audience, he samples records he bought that day. The first iteration happened in Queens, NY at MOMA PS1; it was a 5-hour concert with collaborator Will Epstein, videographer Ryan Staake, dancer Lizzie Feidelson and singer Sasha Spielberg. He has also performed From Scratch at the Museum of Modern Art in Denver, Colorado and Montreal.
On May 18, 2012 Nicolas Jaar made his BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix' debut,[8] which was voted Radio 1's Essential Mix Of The Year of 2012.[9]
On October 4, 2013, the debut album from Darkside, Jaar's project with longtime collaborator Dave Harrington, was released to critical acclaim and a 9.0 score on Pitchfork.[10] The band toured the record for the entirety of 2014.[11]
In February 2015, Jaar released a largely ambient record entitled Pomegranates, which he intended as an alternate soundtrack to The Color of Pomegranates.[12][13]
Later that year, Jaar scored the soundtrack to Dheepan, a thriller by French filmmaker Jacques Audiard about a family of Sri Lankan refugees living in the suburbs of Paris. It was the winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes 2015.[2]
In 2019, Jaar assembled a group of 12 researchers (Shock Forest Group) in order to explore the history and future of a military complex-turned art institution in the Netherlands. The resulting exhibition, entitled "No Camouflage' (het Hem, 2019) uncovered the myriad layers of accumulated colonial, ecological and institutional violence that interlink on the site through archival media findings, data gathering, performances and sound installations.
Jaar is part of the team at Dar Yusuf Nasri Jacir for Art and Research, a grass-roots independent artist–run initiative founded in 2014 located in Bethlehem, Palestine. Jaar transformed Dar Jacir’s food shack into a sound studio where he has held sound workshops with kids from Aida and Dheisheh refugee camps. These sound workshops introduced the children to the practice of electronic music creation, experimenting with instruments and recording techniques available in the new studio. A residency program for international artists has been curated by Jaar since 2019, with Sebastián Jatz Rawicz (Chile) and Rolando Hernández (Mexico) as guests so far. Jaar has also held workshops at RCA Architecture Program (2021), Werkplaats Typografie, NL (2019, alongside research group SFG), 4x4 festival (Chiapas), Sonar Barcelona (2012) and Berklee College of Music, US (2015).
From 2017-2019, Jaar worked as producer / writer with FKA Twigs on her lauded album 'Magdalene'. He has recently collaborated with artist Somnath Bhatt (2018-2020), artist/designer/coder Abeera Kamran (2020-2021), composer Patrick Higgins (2019-Ongoing), artist Lydia Ourahmane (2018), installation artist Vincent De Belleval (2016-Ongoing), saxophone player Mette Henriette (2014-Ongoing) and fado singer Carminho (2011) among others. As a producer, he's been comissioned remixes by Brian Eno (2013), Cat Power (2012), Florence + The Machine (2015) and more. His song "Killing Time" was sampled on "Call Out My Name", a 2018 song by The Weeknd. He is also a current member of performance ensemble ¡miércoles! alongside dancer and choreographer Stéphanie Janaina, and part of the band DARKSIDE alongside multi-instrumentalist Dave Harrington.
Jaar is the owner and founder of the New York-based imprint Other People. Notable releases include works by Lydia Lunch, DJ Slugo, William Basinski, Valentin Stip, VTGNIKE, Lucretia Dalt and 12z. Although the label predominantly releases vinyl, it also offers a membership where fans can download new releases and gain access to the entire Other People archive for $4 a month. Other People only publishes creator-owned content and splits all profits made from records sales 50/50 with artists.
Space Is Only Noise If You Can See
Nicolas Jaar Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
See I want to write a story about two long lines
Two pretty lines that fall in love
Two little spaces they're filled with echoes
Did the lines ever intersect one another, at a moment in time?
moment time"..
have you always cross like this
have you been this way all the time
have you been this way all the time or were you always trying to get you with me?
with me? with me? with me?
you used to check the weather
now you stopped that
you used to look at time
now you stopped that
you used to wear red
now you wear white
what happens all the time it happens all the time
replace the word space with a drink and forget it
space is only noise if you can see.
grab a calculator and fix yourself
grab a calculator and fix yourself
read the news baby read the news
watch your clock baby watch your clock
watch the weather baby on tv
its all to get if you can see
grab a calculator and fix yourself
space is only noise if you can see
See I want to write a story about two long lines
Two pretty lines that fall in love
Two little spaces they're filled with echoes
Did the lines ever intersect one another, at a moment in time?
moment time"..
The lyrics of Nicolas Jaar's song Space Is Only Noise If You Can See are a contemplation of the nature of existence and perception. The statement "space is only noise if you can see" suggests that space has no intrinsic existence, but is a product of perception. The lyricist then imagines a story about two lines, which may represent two individuals. The lines are described as pretty and echoing, implying an aesthetic quality and a sense of resonance. The lyricist then questions whether the lines have ever intersected, suggesting a desire for connection and meaning in life.
The subsequent verses are a series of commands to "grab a calculator and fix yourself", suggesting a desire for control and precision. The lyricist urges the listener to "read the news" and "watch your clock", implying a sense of urgency and a preoccupation with time. The repetition of the phrase "it happens all the time" reinforces the sense of routine and mundanity in life.
The final verse returns to the story of the two lines, asking whether they were always trying to "get with" each other. This could be interpreted as a metaphor for human relationships, and a desire for connection and intimacy. The ambiguity of the lyricist's language leaves the interpretation open to the listener, suggesting that the meaning of existence is subjective and open to interpretation.
Line by Line Meaning
Space is only noise if you can see
The emptiness of space is only noticeable if you have the ability to perceive it
See I want to write a story about two long lines
I desire to create a narrative centered around two lengthy objects
Two pretty lines that fall in love
The two objects in the story will develop romantic feelings for one another
Two little spaces they're filled with echoes
The areas between the objects have a haunting quality due to reverberations of sound
Did the lines ever intersect one another, at a moment in time?
At any point, did the two objects cross paths?
Have you always cross like this
Have you been this way all the time
Or were you always trying to get you with me?
With me? With me? With me?
Have the two objects always maintained this close proximity, or did they deliberately become closer in order to be together?
You used to check the weather
Now you stopped that
You used to look at time
Now you stopped that
You used to wear red
Now you wear white
What happens all the time it happens all the time
Changes have occurred in the behavior and appearance of one or both of the objects, perhaps signaling an evolution in their relationship
Replace the word space with a drink and forget it
Space is only noise if you can see.
Ignore the concept of emptiness and focus on something more tangible; the lack of substance is only significant if it is observed
Grab a calculator and fix yourself
Take control of your situation through logical analysis
Read the news baby read the news
Watch your clock baby watch your clock
Watch the weather baby on TV
It's all to get if you can see
Grab a calculator and fix yourself
Space is only noise if you can see
Be vigilant and observant of the world around you, as understanding is attainable if you pay attention
Moment time
An unspecified point in time
Contributed by Carson V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@lucascherrera2700
6 años después y no deja de ser delicioso!! <3
@marianocaf8406
7
@F157world
Noiseshaper
@freddycontreras6098
.l.
@davidmartin1444
@@bassel1074 nadie es perfecto 😊
@naanonmoon
5 años después de tus 6 y... lo sigue siendo! ; )
@shobhitsharma1257
Whoever mixed this album is a genius.
@roDr1hGui
Shobhit Sharma I think Nico mixed it himself, and the mastering is also great
@pinkfloydicus
An unmatched level of refinement
@pacopicopideralamuneca6128
I'm still having trouble grasping the fact that Nico made this when he was just 20 years old. I mean Jesus Christ! What a beast.