Blending elements of dream pop, neo-soul, acid jazz, disco and funk, Shluffy aka Ariel Pacanowski, crafts a sound that is both ethereal and groove-driven. His refreshing take on music submerges you in a sonic landscape, where lush melodies and rhythmic textures converge, offering an immersive and danceable experience. Haven’t heard of him? Do yourself a favour and go take a long, hard listen.
First up, can you tell me a bit about Shluffy and how it all started?
I’ve been making music all my life, so I suppose I’ve always been contributing to the project. However, officially speaking, I started Shluffy last year as a way for me to express myself through a personal body of work.
What does Shluffy actually mean? How did you come up with the name?
Shluffy is a Yiddish word meaning “to sleep”. It was initially the name I had for a DJ alter ego while I thought of a more “serious” name for my songwriting, but somewhere along the line I just decided to use it for everything. My grandmother used to tell me to have a good ‘Shluffy’ as a kid before going to bed. I like how it points to that sort of psychedelic/liminal dream state, but in a lighthearted and childish manner. I also liked how it somewhat sounded like a random German DJ from an old boiler room lineup.
Tell a bit about your debut EP, Sol Searching, and talk me through the creative process you followed in getting it all together
Throughout 2024 I tried to sit down as much as I could just to release ideas out in my home studio. After a few months of mucking around, I boiled it down to six tracks and put my head down to finish them off. The tunes all start off instrumental, after which I hum a lyric and try to come up with a melody. Across this project I found my lyrics have a quality akin to a ‘journal entry,’ given they’re an exploration of who I am as both an artist and individual.
I see you do your own production, do you find this enhances the music you create, or can you be your own worst enemy in the studio!?
Great question because it can be a blessing and a curse. Overall, it’s been fantastic as I love the process of trying to dial into the random sounds that I hear in my head. That being said, I can get very tedious and obsessive at times. Not that it’s uncommon to be like that in the world of production.
When you’re not making music, where can we find you?
I take my border collie, Zohan out a lot. I find it therapeutic, it’s great having a dog around as they force you to get into nature. I try to surf when I can as well, but could definitely do that a lot more.
What is in store for the rest of 2025?
I’m in the process of booking shows to support the EP and am really looking forward to bringing this batch of songs to the stage. Besides that, it’ll be back to the drawing board and writing music for the next era.
More about Shluffy…
‘Short and Sweet’ is your backstage pass to NSW’s Northern Rivers Music Scene, inspired by BayFM’s Ange Kent host of Northern Rivers Music Box and music journalist, Prudence Clark, from Off the Record.