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In the ever-evolving landscape of electronic music, few artists manage to strike a perfect balance between raw emotion and high-energy soundscapes. Marbs is one such creator, crafting music that resonates on both a personal and dancefloor level. From their journey of self-discovery in the studio to the influences that shaped their sonic identity, they share insights into their creative process, the evolution of their tracks, and their vision for the future of electronic music. In this conversation, we explore the inspiration behind their latest work, the challenges of knowing when a track is truly "finished," and the impact of running a label on their artistic growth.
1. Your sound has been described as a fusion of emotion and energy. How do you strike that balance?
- I used to go into the studio and just try to make dance floor bangers and I was left feeling like something was missing, through the pandemic and the years to follow I realized I wanted to enter the studio with more of a blank canvas while tuning into my current emotions, life experiences, and moods ~ finding that this yielded a more true look at who I was as an artist. I guess the way I strike this balance is just focusing on what makes me feel something both emotionally and energetically, instead of starting with the intention of something specific. Ever since I made that shift the process seems to yield a more unique and authentic sound displaying who I am, what I love, and how I’d like people to feel when they hear my music.
2. Breaking started as a personal project before evolving into a club track. How do you decide when a track is finished?
- Ufff that’s a tough question. Honestly whether its music or art, I don’t know if its ever ~finished. I think you just get to a point where it feels right to put it out and let it be what it is. I reach a moment with my music and art where it feels cohesive and where it accomplishes the emotion and message I’m reaching for, that’s when I consider it ‘finished’ - even though I could easily get lost in a wormhole of renditions, edits, reworks... I think you just get to a point where you’re content and ready to move on to something new.
3. You witnessed Lee Burridge and Plastikman live early in your career. What did those performances teach you?
- I was at lovefest in San Francisco, a bit off my rocker on LSD/Ecstasy enjoying the party. I got lost and couldn’t find the music I was looking for or my friends and I stumbled upon Lee Burridge. It was tribal, immersive, and encompassing of so many sounds from so many different genres I loved that it grabbed me by the neck, I couldn’t leave. This cracked my head open to an underground world I had never heard before ~ that feeling we all search for in music and art. Shortly after I stumbled upon Plastikman at Coachella and had a very similar experience that seemed to throw me deeper down the rabbit hole of experimental minimal techno and really opened my mind. Ever since then, I’ve been trying to reach for a sound that falls somewhere between these two experiences.
4. How do you incorporate new production techniques into your work without losing your signature sound?
- As an artist and musician I think new mediums, processes, tools, etc are integral to our evolution. No one wants to get stuck in a creation loop or formula, at least I don’t think so. I get excited for new plugins, new tricks, work flow shifts, and especially outside influences... but none of that ever shifts my core or the foundational energy I want to bring into my creations. I think all these new things actually magnify them because it gives me more flexibility in my creativity.I like to think of them as enhancements, not changes.
5. With so much change in the industry, what excites you most about the future of electronic music?
- It’s always the youth right? Without the young generations pushing sounds and interests into new areas the creations would get stuck. It makes music and art like a live organism always growing, evolving, changing. This keeps things interesting and pushes everyone involved to explore creation in new ways. Change is exciting, although sometimes difficult, but I think the best things in life usually have a combination of those two things. I also think the state of the industry is forcing things more underground, which I’ve always been more drawn to underground art and music scenes... and it is integral to the scene in every way, so when that channel of the industry gets pushed and activated its always exciting.
6. How has running a label influenced your growth as an artist?
- The label has been such a wonderful project. It’s taught me so much about the industry, intentions, vision, and foresight. Instead of just focusing on my creations its pushed me to think bigger and put out music from artists I believe in to create a sound and community that reflects what I love about the industry, which then provides feedback that influences my personal creations and work as well. Working with so many incredibly talented artists pushes me in my own ways to become a better artist and version of myself. I’m so grateful for the label and the journey its provided. It’s also helped my brand, my reach, and my standing in the industry, while providing all of those things to the artists I believe in, so it lifts us all up and creates community ~ which, to me, community is the most important thing in this industry.
7. If Tidal Break EP was a visual artwork, what would it look like?
- It would look like a Torus made by cymatics (the word and geometric structure that influenced the title of the lead track ‘Toroidal’). An ever revolving and continuous flow of energy, positive/ negative, up/down, in/out, above/below ... its a very psychedelic concept and Toroidal energy is found in everything ... the nucleus of an atom, the energetic field of the heart/earth/universe... this geometric and mathematical structure symbolizes the dualities of life while simultaneously symbolizing the ups and downs that make life whole.
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