For Montreal electronic artist SimbaSōl, seriousness towards his craft has been his focus from the very beginning.
"Going all the way down the rabbit holes is part of my genetic makeup," he says. "Making music is about self-discovery, to fully know yourself and what you have to offer. I firmly believe that takes time. My wine cellar has been my dark studio for many years, and I am ready to open all the bottles."
Regarding his sound, SimbaSōl says that he wants you to feel his music deeply, and up close and personal.
"Complex and heavy low ends that avoid the need for high BPM," he says. "The intensity of the music is what gives the feeling of pace. Music that can envelop late-night dance floors that are sustainable both energetically and emotionally until past sunrise. Always a 5-10% of playfulness at all times."
SimbaSōl's latest reease is "Open Arms."
"It has been quite the summer for me with releases on Kinetika, Melody Lab & Sanctuary," he says. "Now the final project has just dropped on Shanti Mansion. 'Open Arms' is the most personal piece of music I have ever put out. 'Open Arms' is what I imagine it feels like to hug the entire universe. 'Open Arms' is A song that makes the sunrise during the dead of night. 'Open Arms' is an ode to tears of joy. 'Open Arms' is the feeling heaven gets when it looks down upon us and gets jealous. 'Open Arms' is the inner knowing we ALL have that 'everything is going to be okay!'"
"About a year into the massaging the track, I shared my work with my new friend Timo," he adds. "I saw his face light up, I guess it was at this precise moment that I knew the concept had legs. On our subsequent collaboration, Timo pushed the beauty of the original vocals into a rather laidback, deeply emotional journey. Have a listen, I dare you not to feel something deep in your heart."
As for gear: "The gateway to my live setup: the V10. Boring, you may say, and a club standard at this point, but so underutilized. In short, the 4th channel into the DJS. The midi trigger then feeds into my classic Moog rack (mother-32/DFAM/Labyrinth) on deck 5, and finally, I have the 6th track open on Send/Returns for your choice of external effect unit, which for me lately has been the analog heat FX. I kind of feel naked on stage without it."
Looking ahead, SimbaSōl has plenty planned for the coming months.
"At the end of the year, I have an exciting EP set to drop on Gardens of Babylon," he says. "Bomb tracks that have been lighting up my dance floors lately. In a few weeks, I am heading into a studio in the woods to record a full-length vinyl album. For the first time, I will escape dance floor-focused tracks. I aim to build a full-length musical story that can be digested outside the club while keeping my roots in electronica. Love Life Kiddos."
Photo by Shanti.
