Taroug is the solo project by drummer and electronic music producer Tarek Zarroug. With roots in the suburbs of the Tunisian desert and having grown up in Germany, Taroug‘s music fuses contrasting worlds into a singular sonic vision.
Pulsating organic drums meet rare and exotic instruments from across the globe, interwoven with field recordings, analog synthesizers and hypnotic vocals — transporting listeners to a world both strange and comforting.
After the release of Perpetual (EP, 2020) and acclaimed remixes for artists like Archive (UK), Taroug has continued to refine his musical aesthetic. This has led to a collaboration with Denovali for the release of his debut album Darts & Kites and performances at international festivals such as Tallinn Music Week in 2025.
Most recently, Taroug released the single Cicada, further exploring his signature blend of organic and electronic textures.
Questions and Answers:
3 FACTS
1: There are around 3.000 species of cicadas worldwide.
2: Build synths, not guns!
3: My right eye is an eagle eye – my left one almost blind.
11 QUESTIONS
1. What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
My biggest inspiration comes from environmental sounds and the gear in my studio. I love experimenting with field recordings, which often spark new ideas. It’s the interplay between electronic and organic sounds that truly satisfies my soul.
2. How and when did you get into making music?
I first picked up a guitar at age 10 because my older brother played, but after two lessons I knew it wasn’t for me. I switched to drums soon after – but in my teenage years I lost interest and got way more into gaming and doing stupid Jackass-style stuff. My mom wasn’t thrilled, and one day she showed me a newspaper ad: a local rock band was looking for a drummer. I agreed to check it out, almost as a favor to her – and it completely changed my life. I swapped Counter-Strike for Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and The Doors.
After school I went on to study jazz and popular music at the Conservatory of Arts in Arnhem in the Netherlands, and that’s when I really started my career as a professional drummer. My passion for electronic music – and obsession with synths and studio gear – came a bit later.
3. What are 5 of your favourite albums of all time? (yes we know it is difficult).
Radiohead – In Rainbows
Rival Consoles – Persona
Archive – Noise
Korn – Korn
Boards of Canada – Music Has The Right To Children
4. What do you associate with Berlin?
SchneidersLaden.
5. What’s your favourite place in your town?
Currently I live in Düsseldorf and my favorite place is Manooshe – delicious manaqish (Lebanese pizza), full of flavor and always a smile.
6. If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
Probably still trying to become a professional skateboarder.
7. What was the last record/music you bought or listen?
Recently I ordered a compilation LP called “Letters to the Sun”, which is based on poems from Fatma Al Jabari. I’m really looking forward to receive it. Best thing, it’s a funding project to help “Revive Gaza’s Farmland”.
8. Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Thom Yorke!
9. What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
I visited a concert of Caterina Barbieri with MFO last year in Brussels. It was stunningly beautiful.
10. How important is technology to your creative process?
It’s a huge part of my creative process and I couldn’t imagine a life without all the gear I use in my studio.
11. Please tell us more about the development of your new single/video “Cicada”?
My new track Cicada is based on field recordings I captured in Khao Sok National Park in Thailand a few years ago. The drum groove comes from me finger-drumming on dead stalactites in a cave, and many of the drones and melodies are made by bending and processing recordings of singing cicadas — there’s even a roaring elephant. Those organic sounds really shape the track. I layered some synths and the vocal harmonies kind of mimic a choir of cicadas.
For the video I worked with designer Marie Brosius, who also does my artworks. We experimented with some AI tools for fun and she started to generate wild textures from cicada wing close-ups. That lead us to collect thousands of images – natural shapes, geometric forms, weird stuff. We’ve combined these with real satellite imagery into a flickering composition with a strong focus on rhythm. It took us a year or so.
