Additional Information
There are first times that determine a before and after. For SLIBERIUM, aka Tristan Sendji and Prince Amani Kouame, that moment arrives on August 22 at MUTEK, when they will finally unveil their universe to the world. After years spent creating in their cocoon, between trials, errors, and experiments without a safety net, the two artists are preparing to transform their musical intimacy into a collective experience.
Because SLIBERIUM isn’t just a sound project: it’s a world. A territory where hallucinatory dreams and raw everyday life, digital beats and pop sensibility, visual chaos and vibrant humanity intersect. Born from adolescent friendship, fueled by resourcefulness, the duo has forged a hybrid identity—simultaneously Cameroonian, Ivorian, Montrealer, and French. Their music, which they themselves describe as “raw, digital, and emotional,” is an attempt to capture the essence of who they are, without filter or compromise.
With The Infinity Door, SLIBERIUM promises a “collective hallucination” where the audience will be invited to lose their bearings and discover new ones. An invitation to step through the door, to see and hear differently.
PAN M 360: Hello to you, SLIBERIUM, who warmly welcomed me to LaSalle, a place I had never visited before today. I was curious to visit your little creative space, where your collaboration took shape. To begin, let’s start with a seemingly simple question. How would you describe SLIBERIUM?
Prince Amani Kouame: I would say it’s a constantly evolving universe. It’s a digital universe, but a human one. And there’s a part of our soul in it. That’s very important since it’s a very personal project. But Tristan has another way of seeing it too. It’s two brains.
PAN M 360: SLIBERIUM becomes the form of your shared entity, while also being the amalgamation of two artists.
Sendji: Of course. I would describe SLIBERIUM as audio ecstasy. First of all, I have to say it’s a very emotional, very creative way of life. Sonically, it’s digital, raw, and very melodic. So that’s SLIBERIUM. We’re always pushing the boundaries. And it creates this universe because… we’re only mixing the essence, the purest, the most naive of me and Junior [Tristan’s nickname for Prince]. And that’s been going on for a very long time. I’d say officially since 2020. Unofficially since 2007.
PAN M 360: Your project started during your early years of friendship, right?
Sendji: At least, yeah. I’ll pull out a picture for you here. It was me and Junior. Really short, shaved head. In front of a computer. The screen isn’t even flat. It’s curved. And I know we were watching Kesha. You see? We were there.
PAN M 360: Ah, I see, you owe your career to Kesha.
Sendji: No, zero, haha. Kesha was… That was the vibe. That was the era.
PAN M 360: One of the terms used in your MUTEK profile specifies that you transform dreams into sounds. What exactly does that mean to you?
Sendji: I’ll let you in on a secret. I don’t even know if it’s a problem, but I dream every day.
PAN M 360: It’s not a problem, I assure you!
Sendji: Every day. At least three dreams in one night. There are dreams where you’re fine and everything. These are dreams where it’s surreal. Although it’s always anchored in reality. I’m not there like in an anime; in fact, I’m always at the intersection of dream and reality. It’s always related. But you don’t understand it because it comes from your unconscious. And we put that into the music. We really like to create a universe. And you can’t create a universe without putting some of your own into it. That’s what we did in the music.
At first, I wasn’t making music. He [Prince] was making music. I was into something completely different… I was doing science, I was a student. Yet, I was making art, but in a different way. I was even more passive. And then the pandemic happened. We were bored. We got back together because we’d lost touch. He played me some stuff he was making on his phone at first. Imagine, he takes out a phone. A pair of Apple headphones that everyone has, and then he comes back to you with a banger. I was just like, how do you do that? Then we evolved. We went from there to the computer.
PAN M 360: So that’s when the idea of collaborating germinated.
Prince Amani Kouame: I think it’s also because I was making music on my phone. Because that’s all I had at the time. It was with a pair of headphones, then I’d put it on the computer. I had a system that made me feel like I knew how to make music. And that interested Tristan.
Sendji: No, he knew, he’s humble. Then it really led to something quite special. We were bored during Covid, really! Then I saw him, he was doing crazy stuff. But it was really more rap-related. So I told him, okay, let’s do something. We went to France. That’s where it really started… we got really close in France. And I had zero knowledge of how to make music. And from there, we had other residencies, notably with Phi. And that’s when our sound started to change. Then there was MUTEK. I started learning because I was immersed in it. Without it, I made crappy music at first.
PAN M 360: Music isn’t easy to learn; it’s normal not to be able to do the best.
Sendji: Yes, but Junior [Prince]’s strength is really always finding beauty in something. And making it known. And enough to push you to continue.
PAN M 360: It’s a great quality to possess.
Prince Amani Kouame: There’s beauty everywhere.
Sendji:: Even I, if he had sent me the same thing, would have been, yes, but no. Honestly, we’re staying in the hood.
Prince Amani Kouame:You have to look beyond it. Because sometimes, when you see something that’s not finished, the essence is still there. Then it’s up to you to see how far it can go. And I always allow myself to see how far it can go. So, I end up finding beauty. It depends on your mood, I guess.
PAN M 360: Speaking of your musical practice, if we go back a little, last winter you released your first EP, 7REGIMENT, is that right?
Sendji: 7REGIMENT. Have you released it yet?
Prince Amani Kouame: Actually, it was… It was a mistake. Actually, it’s because we have a lot of things coming up, a lot. And then, this project isn’t finalized. So it was really a mistake. I didn’t manage to release it.
PAN M 360: However, you have an album coming out soon too, right?
Sendji: We have millions of albums. Millions of albums. Oh, but fuck, we don’t have the computer anymore.
Prince Amani Kouame: No, but I have them.
Sendji: I still have them. Actually, we have a flaw. We do a lot, but we don’t share much. You see, we started with a phone and headphones. And now we have to manage… If we really, really fast-forward, we’re at MUTEK, okay, we have a show and we’re playing a live performance. You know, at an incredible festival. Thank you very much MUTEK. Then there’s the social media, promotional part of the business, you know. Then you also have to balance it with your personal life and school. I make music all the time. That’s why I love summer. So yeah, finding a strategy so it doesn’t go unnoticed because we really have a lot of amazing stuff.
PAN M 360: You are artists first and foremost. That’s what guides your life before your other pursuits.
Sendji: It’s not even me who decides. It’s the creative energy. Yes, we have 7REGIMENT.
PAN M 360: I tried to find out some stuff about you. I went on your Soundcloud. Then I saw 7REGIMENT, which came out a few months earlier. I didn’t hesitate to listen to this EP to hear your sound, to identify your sonic identity.
Tristan: What did you think of it?
PAN M 360: Overall, I liked the mix of genres. Your music is driven by dense, vibrant synths and powerful bass. An aesthetic reminiscent of the RAGE subgenre popularized by artists like Playboi Carti, Bladee, and others. It also blends a pop sensibility… experimental, of course. You see, right now I’m wearing a JPEGMAFIA t-shirt…
Prince Amani Kouame: When I saw you, I respected you.
PAN M 360: Yes, haha! It made me think of all those things. Obviously, it’s very overdriven, very energetic, bouncy, almost chaotic. But there’s always a pop sensibility that unifies everything, evoking witch house for me. I also think you’re an interesting voice for Quebec with this style of rap. We shouldn’t forget the whole audiovisual aspect that’s affiliated with SLIBERIUM, which we’ll be able to talk about again. Anyway, I found it very exciting and I was already looking forward to hearing more. I admit that I was surprised to hear that it was a mistake. I didn’t approach it with that perspective in mind. I approached it as a finished product, and I really enjoyed it.
Prince: I’m really glad you got to hear it. It’s really cool.
Tristan: I’m really glad you enjoyed it.
Prince: At the end of the day, it’s one project among many. All those mixes you’ve heard are for this project specifically. Each project is a universe. Each song has its own universe too. So it’s cool that you got involved.
PAN M 360: If we go back to MUTEK with The Infinity Door.
Tristan : That’s another mistake too.
PAN M 360: What, another mistake, haha!
Tristan: Honestly, we’re very human. I’m not going to lie to you. You see us in the photos. You see, all that, the requests and everything. Nothing really prepares you for this. We learned everything on our own. Everything we do is really… Rock. We figure it out and find something. And we do what we love. And then we find solutions to problems. And there, in this thing, we had a whole mega concept. But this is the first time we’re going to do a live performance together. So, it’s not lip-syncing. And as you can see, we have a lot of elements, a lot.
PAN M 360: Yes, we can read that you’re going to use more traditional instruments with Ableton Push. There are also left-handers with a PS4 controller and a granular looper.
Tristan: So for us, it’s really, we’re digital, you know. Really, a… mechanical side. Digital, that’s the word. But anyway, to go back to The Infinity Door, we had an installation we were going to do. But then, with the computer issues and everything, we’re going to do even better. So, it’s more SLIBERIUM’s The Infinity Door specifically, but it’s SLIBERIUM.
