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Techno innovation for himself and for others; Hybrasil talks about his journey and projects
The Irish DJ and producer has just released a new EP on UNCAGE
On February 17th, Hybrasil launched a new volume of his Hybrasil24 series by UNCAGE, a project that sees him improvise sounds for 24 hours during live transmission. On Beatport, this is synthesized in four original mixes ready for the warehouses, which we will hear throughout this article.
In a conversation that makes us think about human and superhuman aspects, we speak with Hybrasil. An Irishman based in Berlin, Hybrasil has made himself a prestigious name in the international scene, and with good reason. The conversation with him goes far beyond simply making Techno beats; the elements and technical apparatus he selects for his projects epitomize his appreciation for innovation.
Long before making the Hybrasil project official in 2016 (which happened during Sven Väth's tour) the artist found himself going away from radio shows to enter recording studios, already with a history stamped with training in audio technology and as an engineer at local studios, such as Temple Lane and Grouse Lodge.
Choosing authorship practically as a mantra for his career, Hybrasil uses a practical and free approach in his experiments, making it possible for him to compose entire shows for each context, like the presentation he made for Jeff Mills and Dublin's National Concert Orchestra.
His journey took on new perspectives in 2018, when he arrived in Berlin and was welcomed by labels such as Rekids, iconic clubs such as Panorama Bar/Berghain and a whole bunch of audio and video enthusiasts.
With such a history, Hybrasil's artistic maturity goes hand in hand with his constant search for evolution, a quality that is in line with a world that will demand constant awareness and adaptation to growing technological advancements from everyone.
In the studio and on the dance floor, Hybrasil is in the present moment. But his whole mentality is focused on the future and, when we investigate his sound conceptualization, it's even surprising that his artistic alias comes from his interest in ancient mythology – such reference is between the lines in his sound.
Hybrasil also looks to the future every time he can envision an artist going from point A to point B, then to C, D and so on, a work that he does at the Elevator Program, a company he founded in 2016 to foster the creative process of other electronic music lovers.
Today, the Elevator Program is an artistic hub in its own right, connecting creatives in a self-representative system; is an online learning, label and social media platform.
Hybrasil news pops up in droves in the same year, and every minute of his attention turns to projects that any artist would aspire to, like the opportunity to release the album "2051: Enter the Void" on Awesome Soundwave, Carl Cox's label.
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“Hybrasil continues his sonic explorations in sound drawing inspiration from his Irish heritage and his current environment in Berlin. Juxtaposing the ancient Irish landscape and history with the built environment of a modern European city, Hybrasil articulates a feeling of the ancient in a truly futuristic and electronic sound.
He brings to mind an idea of ancient technological beings being perhaps re-animated, not so much a Frankensteinian concept but rather an idea of perhaps ancient alien technology mixed with our own desire as a race to create some kind of sentient life through technology.” Awesome Soundwave
Hi, how are you? Well, as a Brazilian, I must ask: why Hybrasil?
I’m good thanks!! ‘Hy Brasil’ is a mythological island off Ireland’s West Coast, rumored to be an outpost of the Tuatha De Danann, a supernatural Celtic tribe of warriors, druids and healers.
I am heavily influenced by ancient mythology, archeology, technology and ancient Celtic culture. The Hybrasil concept is an outlet for me to merge these influences with minimalist Techno and music technology such as analogue drum machines, samplers, synths and sequencers.
Everything I create is rooted in this concept, merging a type of Techno futurism with the ancient world. This has manifested in a series of audio visual concepts in collaboration with Tom Hodgkinson, who has helped bring Hybrasil to life in a visual format. These are the foundation blocks of a future audio visual live show.
Why do you find the Live performance format so attractive and what is your current setup for performing as Hybrasil?
My journey in electronic music began with pirate radio and crate digging at record shops. I loved playing turntables and 3 deck mixing, but as DJing became more and more digitized, that craft and the culture changed for me, which is what pushed me towards music production.
When I began studying sound engineering at Temple Lane Studios and working with a lot of vintage analogue technology such as the NEVE VR Legend Console and compressors such as the 1176, this took my obsession with electronic music to a whole new level. I was able to record, build and sculpt records in a whole new way. This really was a turning point where my focus really turned to recording, mixing, mastering and learning a new language of frequency.
When I reemerged from this process performing live was the only logical route forward. By performing live we are making a statement and telling a story, taking ideas from the studio directly to the stage without the intermediary of labels or distribution. My first live performances were part of a series of Techno parties I ran where I wrote music for each show and performed those tracks live. It all evolved from there.
My current live set up is 2 Elektron Octatrack Samplers, a Roland TR8 (MK1) Drum Machine and 303 clone. I’ve gone through phases of working with lots of machines and computers on stage, but I made a decision to go DAW-less back in 2018, removing the laptop and building the live rig around the Octatrack. I like the idea of a stripped back set up, where everything is contained within the sampler. This for me offers a lot of flexibility.
Being a live performer and considering how advanced and accessible technology tends to be nowadays, do you believe that the future holds a revolution for DJs in that regard?
There have been incredible innovations in DJ technology. This has made DJing more accessible and it has allowed people to express themselves which would have been more difficult in the past. I have friends who have gotten into DJing as a hobby in their mid thirties, which is really cool.
It’s an expressive format. The next evolution of DJ technology is already taking place in the Metaverse, that's where I see a lot of innovation in the future. I think that will change how DJs are marketed, we are going to see more virtual/avatar DJs.
What do you consider to be the essential factors for an artist who wants to pursue a career in Live Performance?
It all starts with the craft, if you are performing live, you need to have something to say. It’s important to spend time on your music and to create a substantial body of work that is to a high standard. Nobody wants to watch you aimlessly jam with machines for 2 hours. As far as the audience is concerned you need to stand up against any DJ in terms of sonics
The good thing is, that if you set yourself up to play live and record in your studio, your performance skills will improve as well as your music production and composition. Performing and recording music should be a fluid and enjoyable experience. Press play, hit record and see what happens. Get hands on with your music and the results will come.
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In 2022 you released the album "2051: Enter the Droid" on Carl Cox's Awesome Soundwave. How do you explain this album's concept and what does it mean to be part of Awesome Soundwave?
I first signed with Awesome Soundwave in 2020 and debuted with ‘Dezik EP’. Working with Carl Cox and Chris Coe has been amazing. They have encouraged me to push myself to the limit creatively and conceptually. From day one, the Hybrasil concept has been a 100% live project, from performance to studio.
Capturing the moment through live recording and improvisation is central to how I work. Sometimes I will write a concept album for a specific show and perform it live, taking a concept from idea to studio to live in a few weeks. Awesome Soundwave not only understands this process, they encourage it.
2051: Enter the Droid was a breakthrough moment for me in terms of composition, production and concept development. It was a culmination of my composition studies at Berklee and a lot of time experimenting with synthesis and sound design during the pandemic.
The idea for this album is that it was set in the year 2051, post Singularity, where technology has surpassed human intelligence. It was really enjoyable to create an album with this concept in mind.
Among your recent releases, is there any that has a special meaning for you? Why?
In April 2022 I did my second Hybrasil24 broadcast with Beatport. Hybrasil24 is a live composition projection where I broadcast live from HBL Studios at Riverside Berlin for 24 hours, writing music on the fly.
Hybrasil24 is a test of endurance, creativity and improvisation. The idea behind the concept is to test the limits of creativity in a confined space for an extended period of time.
Hybrasil24 has been by far one of my most intense creative concepts of the past few years. The first release from that broadcast was released with Marco Faraone’s Uncage label in October, The latest installment (Hybrasil24.III) was launched on February 17th.
What was missing in the electronic music industry, in your view, that motivated you to create the Elevator Program?
I built Elevator Program as something I would hand to my younger self, it’s a product of my experience as an artist, navigating my way through the industry, the challenges I’ve faced and I wanted to make that process easier for others.
I studied Sound and Music Technology, I trained under other sound engineers for a number of years after that and I have distilled all of that knowledge into the ‘Elevator Method’ which guides people through the creative process and turbocharges their workflow.
When I returned from living in Ibiza in 2017, I made a decision to push my focus 100% on my studio. I ran a series of music production bootcamps at Dublin Institute of Technology and I encountered the same pain points coming up for music producers, struggling to get out of loop mode, struggling to get tracks finished and not knowing where to send or release music.
With Elevator Program I wanted to build an ecosystem where people can learn, connect with other artists and release their music under one roof. Even finding the right development team for this was problematic, so I had to learn these skills myself and build the ecosystem from the ground up.
This brings us to what it is today, an online platform for DJs and artists to take their creative process to the next level, through innovative learning programs and technology such as our inbuilt social media platform and user app.
The Elevator Program record label is where we see the results of this approach. We are a music first label, we are not concerned by trends or how many social media followers someone has, we only care about good electronic music that will stand the test of time.
It’s an evolving concept, but at the center of it is the artist. We speak with our members all the time and we are on a mission to deliver the best possible artist experience.
It's remarkable how you've been expanding the Elevator Program to be a self-reliable ecosystem and social platform. According to your experiences, what are the main advantages of this communal approach to online learning?
The pandemic has taught us one thing, that people need connection and this is why we have an inbuilt social media platform. Social media isn't for everybody. I felt it would be good for artists to have a space that's just for them, without the algorithms and advertiser noise.
Elevator Program allows people to focus on their craft while also connecting with like minded creatives, making connections and new collaborations. In an increasingly digitized and fragmented world, I felt it was important to create an ecosystem that is 100% centered around the artist and the creative process. This is where mentorship and community support also come into play.
Tell us about the artists in Elevator Program that surprised you the most so far and why.
Nobody has surprised me, because I’ve seen them grow over time, but I am blown away by music that is now coming out of the Program.
Particularly from artists such as REOSC, murademura, Olympias and KERZ who have all made the leap to the Elevator Program record label. We have some incredible music coming from them this year.
What was your ultimate lesson as an artist in these 15 years of your career?
Self care is a big one, being able to step back, take a break and rest when you need to. The past few years have been incredibly intense. In addition to writing albums and running a record label, I have built an eLearning ecosystem for music producers.
But the cost has been high at times in terms of burnout and exhaustion. Be sure to be kind to yourself, don't neglect your health or wellbeing. In this industry focus on what is important, and that is the music. The rest is just noise.
How do you see your artist career and your projects in the future?
I have two concept albums coming out with Awesome Soundwave late 2023/early 2024. The journey of an artist is an ever evolving one.
I am excited about pushing myself further into the realms of synthesis, composition, sound design, live performance and the overall mastery of the creative process.
Evolving my live show and audio visual projects will be central to the future of the Hybrasil story.
Follow Hybrasil and Elevator Program on Instagram
