Interview with Simbasōl, January 9th 2023
We sat down with Zak Lupu, also known as electronic music DJ and producer Simbasōl, to talk about what he’s all about, and what he’s up to. Influenced by melodic house and techno, he uses hard hitting baselines, groovy percussions and four-dimensional synths to create soulful musical adventures. His tracks are designed to trigger and release emotions, with a long list of new releases in the pipeline for 2023.
Tell us about all the exciting things you are working on?
The past few months have been devoted to some serious studio time. Well, not to sound too “serious”, but you know what I mean. Now I have created a deep well of material scheduled to be released each month leading into the summer of 2023.
I am really excited about my first stab into the Future Disco & Indie Dance scene with my first drop on KooKoo Records in February.
Furthermore, I am also working hard to incorporate live aspects of my songs into my performances. For example by using classic drum machines and sampling my productions to recreate them in unique ways each time. Bringing parts of my studio to the dance floors is on the top of my mind right now.
Do you have any pre-show rituals?
On “game days”, I often enter into a tunnel vision mode where nothing else exists except the set. This has served me really well, but I am also trying to work on letting go to experience everything around me as the day unfolds. Most of the time, my flow state comes somewhere mid-set, but why not enter the first track in complete full stride?
A funny habit I have picked up lately to help me do this, is getting one nail manicured before every show. Kind of weird right? But it forces me to just hang out, relax, spending 20-30 minutes accomplishing nothing truly productive. No movement, no scattered brain. Just hanging out with a stranger who’s fondling my hands.
Another rule I have for myself in the hours leading to my set time, is trying to stay clear of the type of music I will be playing that night. Instead I play some harmonica, throw an ambient pad loop from Ableton or listen to old records.
My joy and excitement on performance days is through the roof, which I love. But for me it’s all about balancing those feelings out and keeping my inner child in check to keep myself mellow.
How did you discover electronic music? Tell us about that experience.
Electronic music came like a hurricane out of thin air for me. I discovered it after my first year of university on the classic backpack Eurotrip. A lot of firsts came on this trip, but we can focus on the music part.
At that point, I was and had been a hip-hop head for almost a decade. Then one day on the beach in Barcelona, a last-minute plan came about to go to a festival called Sonar. I honestly was not that interested at the time, but ended up following the group.
My oh my, little did I know how this fork in the road was going to change my life forever. I walked into Pretty Lights absolutely shredding it on the decks and thousands of people feeding into a collective energy. I think it took me all of 30 seconds to realize that there was no looking back from then on.
You are asked to play at your absolute favourite event, and they have asked YOU to decide the rest of the lineup and create the timetable. What are you going to say?
My answer to this would be… YES PLEASE! I think deciding the line-up and order of a show is just like building a track or a set. It is building a story that will tie everything together. Stories that follow a clear order yes, but also that have interesting plot twists keeping the dance floor on edge.
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