AZRUM, "a multimedia anonymous artist project rooted in arcade nostalgia and video game lore," started producing electronic music in 2012 when his music teacher introduced him to deadmau5, and specifically "Some Chords."
"I was so fascinated by what I heard that I instantly knew this was what I wanted to do, even though I had no idea where to start," they say. "I feel like it's always been serious for me, but things really started picking up about five years ago when I began working on this project."
AZRUM describes the sound as, "contrastive, gritty, and carries a sense of nostalgia." Their latest release is The Collector of Souls EP.
"The Collector Of Souls is the culmination of my hobbies, interests, musical taste, and honestly, who I am as a person," they say. "The name refers to AZRUM, a character at the center of a fictional world I've been building. This release expands on the lore that was first teased last year with my single 'No Escape (Prologue),' which introduced listeners to this universe through a series of ARG (Alternate Reality Game) puzzles hidden across posts and websites."
As for gear: "I use Ableton Live 12 as my DAW of choice. A lot of what I work with comes from the stock plugins included in Live 12. Occasionally, I'll bring in my Moog DFAM and Mother-32, mainly when I want to shake up my workflow and keep things fresh. For guitar work on this EP, I used my trusty EVH Wolfgang Special. It's unbeatable when it comes to tone and comfort. I do most of my monitoring through Focal Shape 65 speakers, which deliver a beautifully detailed sound."
Looking ahead, AZRUM has plenty planned for the rest of 2025.
"I'm currently working with my team on something very special that we'll be giving away to a few lucky fans," they say. "More on that soon. I've also got a lot of new music in the works, including some exciting collaborations with incredibly talented producers. Plus, I have a guest mix coming up on Insomniac Radio at the end of the month."
