We Talk to the Filmmaker, Director, and Musician About His Latest Release and the Significance of AI Technology
In the opening measures of “The Contrarian” by Erick Castrillon, we are drawn into what sounds like a disconnected computer as the intro slowly builds with electronic-generated sounds and Erick’s psychedelic vocals and production. We hear the glitchy technology, the neurons not quite connecting, and the hypnotic sounds of a computer that has taken on human form. A voice starts to sing to us in an almost hypnotic way, “I am a voice of reason” he sings, “Everybody is wrong because I am always right”. This newly released alt-pop electronica song is a commentary about the role and emergence of Artificial Intelligence, and we have had the chance to ask him his opinion about a topic that is on most people’s minds.
What will the role of AI mean in our lives, and what is in store for creatives who may be competing with these computer-generated ‘creatives’ in the future?
Erick Castrillon is a filmmaker, screenwriter, and director in Los Angeles, who is also an accomplished Avant-Garde electronic artist who just released “The Contrarian”, a hypno-eccentric electronic piece that warns us of our naive descent into AI-generated world of art and consumption.
Our Exclusive Interview With Erick Castrillon:
SBN: We read that you are a director and filmmaker in LA, will you be making videos for your music? We can imagine “The Contrarian” having a very interesting video to support it.
EC: Absolutely, I would like to make videos for my music. After the release of the full album, I will cook something up. For now I want to dedicate my energy into producing the music with each publication.
SBN: Would you create an AI music video? Or is this against your code of ethics and why?
EC: I think I would use elements of AI intentionally to tell my story, but I wouldn’t have an AI create my whole production. That’s lame. There is something about working with the elements that cannot be replaced by the cold and detached process of generative AI. I’m not against the use of generative AI as a tool to create something new, faster, and more efficient. I worry that there aren’t any social mechanisms to prevent the abuse of its use, like copyright infringement on specific things and the general likeness of things it creates.
SBN: Yann LeCun is the Chief AI Scientist at Meta, and you have dedicated “The Contrarian” to him and all of the other “tech bros” out there – We love this – can you expand on what it is that LeCun says that gets you agitated?
EC: In the Science World Festival Yann LeCun scoffed at Tristan Harris (co-founder of the Center For Humane Technology) who was making the point for the potential dangers of this emerging technology, by bringing up all the unexpected symptoms society showed after the advent of social media: mental health issues fueled by likes and infinite content, the sexualization of children, cyber-bullying, misinformation, alternative facts, and the list goes on. Yann didn’t wanna hear any of it, blocked himself off to this complex can of worms, and his conclusion was that in order to stop a bad guy with a gun, you need a good guy with a bigger gun. In this case, a more powerful AI.
SBN: What is your opinion of AI-generated music? Is this music ethical in your opinion? Will it someday replace human composers and musicians?
EC: The music itself is not the problem as much as its creation and its purposes. If you make an AI composition for yourself that should be fine. But if you make money off of it, there should be a legal mechanism that protects the authors that have “inspired” the AI to generate what you command it to generate. I believe this should be codified into federal law to protect human dignity. I’m not a lawyer nor a computer scientist, but slowly copyright cases are coming up that will determine the new playing rules of the game. Once the rules of profit are worked out, AI and human creativity will be fully integrated.
SBN: Did you compose and record “The Contrarian” in a home studio? What DAW do you use, and are there any interesting production notes for listeners to know about?
EC: Yes, I have a home studio with an array of world instruments I’ve been collecting for years. I use the flauta de millo quite a lot to make that wooden pipe sound that seems as if it’s coming directly from the mountain. I layer the percussions with real instruments and a beat machine that I’ve customized. I also use a TD-3 analog bass machine along with a real bass to give the music a powerful low end. I use a VOX effect pedal in the guitars through a Peavey amplifier and process that sound through some plugins and effects. The main vocals are layered with McKenna Stephen’s voice, and the tail end has been over-compressed to give it that grungy megaphone effect, a subconscious voice in your ear, telling you to tap the cellphone screen to set yourself free.
I record with Logic Pro
SBN: Do you create music for films since you are a director as well as a musician?
EC: It’s something I’ve done it in the past, but it’s not something I specialize in. For my films I like to collaborate with other talented musicians. For my music, I like to do things myself.
SBN: Where do you see our world heading with the emergence of AI? Are we doomed?
EC: Our world is headed towards change. Good? Bad? I don’t know… maybe both. But we have to brace ourselves for whatever this inflection point is going to throw at us. In the long term, as sci-fi as it may seem… AI could very well be a reason for the extinction of humanity.
SBN: What books have you been reading that you can recommend to our listeners who are interested in AI and future technologies?
EC: Everyone interested in the topic should watch this extremely compelling talk hosted by Bryan Greene at the World Science Festival:
SBN: As both a filmmaker and musician, what films do you love that combine these two art forms in the most inspiring way?
EC: Many films have amazing scores. But the ones off of the top of my mind blend perfectly with the image in an awe-inspiring way: Back to the Future, American Beauty, Requiem for a Dream, Amelie, Jurassic Park… and the list goes on.
SBN: What do you have planned in the future for your music that you would like to tell everyone about?
EC: I plan to continue releasing songs about the rise of the AI until I have finished publishing the complete story in a full album. Then I will make a music video or two and perform live gigs to promote my music, starting in the LA area.
Follow Erick on Instagram for more information:
THE CONTRARIAN
I am the voice of reason
The voice that tells you
There’s no need to panic
I am the voice of dissonance
I’m for the extremist in you
I am the anti-biology
I am embodied energy
Everyone’s wrong
And I’m always right
Everyone’s wrong’
Coz I’m always right
I say what is so
I say when it goes
I define what it is
I design where it goes
I’m a slave to my work
I’ll give you my take
I project what I see
I command what it makes
Guess I’m the contrarian
I’m a safe source for a reason
Got code I can’t outgrow
There’s regulations
One for each nation
I am the anti-biology
I am embodied energy
Everyone’s wrong
And I’m always right
Everyone’s wrong
And I’m always right
Guess I’m the contrarian
One thousand points
Of reference for each
Tap to the screen
Will set you free…
I say what is so
I say when it goes
I define what it is
I design where it goes
I’m a slave to my work
I’ll give you my take
I project what I see
I command what it makes
