QUARANTIME WITH UBBAH

QUARANTIME

AN INTERVIEW WITH UBBAH

By G-Mohris

Author

A CHAT WITH UBBAH

UBBAH is a name i have been following recently for what the artist behind it creates and delivers. Quality unique fusion between Indie and Melodic House & Techno..

The Argentinian music producer and DJ shared with me a lot of great insights, advises, and news. Watch out for what this amazing artist is unfolding in the near future..

Enjoy!

1. WHEN AND WHERE DID YOU HAVE YOUR FIRST RELEASE? HOW DID YOU APPROACH THE RECORD LABEL? DID YOU HAVE IN MIND THAT YOU WILL LATER ON RELEASE ON BIG LABELS LIKE AFTERLIFE AND DIYNAMIC?

My first release was in 2014. I’m from Argentina so reaching out to artists and owners from record labels was difficult because of the long distance. So I always ended up reaching out via email. It was always my goal to reach the biggest labels out there without changing my style. Expecting them to accept what I do without me having to renounce to my true sound

2. YOUR LATEST “SIGNS” COMBINES PROGRESSIVE ELEMENTS WITH MODERN SOUND TEXTURES, HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT YOUR PRODUCTION PROCESS IN GENERAL AND WHAT DAW DO YOU USE?

I see it more as a mix between 90’s elements with a more modern way of doing electronic music. I find myself very comfortable doing this music. My process is to sit in the studio and play the piano for a couple of minutes, until I find a main hook that I enjoy listening for hours without getting bored. Once I have that, it’s just about filling up other elements that help that main hook be bigger.

I use Ableton Live, which is fast to work with.

3. YOUR SOUND IS SPECIAL, HOW IMPORTANT IT IS FOR A MUSIC PRODUCER TO HAVE A UNIQUE SOUND SIGNATURE?

I think it’s everything, and nowadays it’s even more important. Most of the promos I receive now sound mostly the same; everyone is copying the top 10 best selling artists out there, thinking that doing that is a great strategy to reach big labels. What they mostly don’t get is that reaching big labels is also about surprising them with something no one is doing.

4. FROM A CAREER PERSPECTIVE, DO YOU MAINLY PRODUCE MUSIC TO BACK UP YOUR BEING A DJ? OR YOU FOCUS ON THE STREAMING/SALE ASPECT?

I’m first a musician, then a music producer, then a DJ. So I do music because it is what I enjoy the most. I do it without thinking how many sales or streams it’s going to get.

I do it for the pleasure of creating something new from scratch with the challenge of not sounding like any other producer out there. DJ for me is my way to show the music I do, that’s why in my sets I mostly play my own unreleased music

5. WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MORE, REMIXING OR CREATING ORIGINALS, AND WHY?

I prefer originals mainly because I like the feeling of creating everything from scratch. But it is good when you find something that motivates you to do a version with your own trademark. However, that can only be good when it’s not forced

6. IF YOU WOULD GIVE FEW ADVISES TO FRESH MUSIC PRODUCERS WHO HAVE DOUBTS THAT THEY CAN MAKE IT OUT THERE ONE DAY, WHAT WOULD YOU TELL THEM?

I would definitely tell them to be unique, to quit following trends. And if they do, I’ll then tell them to try to adapt the sound that makes them unique into different styles.

Doing that will enable you to be identified by the people as the artist that sounds like that. And of course, I’d tell them not to expect things to happen on their own. Work hard, put your career before almost everything and make a plan on how to reach your goals

7. WHAT ARE HIDING FOR THIS YEAR? ANY BIG ANNOUNCEMENT?

This year there will be a few announcements; the one I can talk about now is that I’m launching my own record label soon. So expect a lot of music this year

8. YOUR TOP 5 “NOT TO DO” WHEN PRODUCING MUSIC?

Avoid distractions of all kinds.
Try not to start new projects without finishing what you’ve started.
When you have something good, try not to listen the track a lot just because you enjoy it, focus instead on what’s missing for you to end the track. Sometimes this leads into a point of not knowing what is missing.
Don’t wait to have the right equipment to start, you will always be lacking something. It’s better to start with less. I’ve made big things with almost anything.
Never stop learning

9. YOUR TOP 5 “NOT TO DO” WHEN DJ’ING?

Try not to appear at last minute before your set. It’s always better to listen to whoever is playing before you and understand how the crowd is reacting.
Don’t use the volume too loud and, if you can, use some volume filters to preserve your hearing. •Don’t do prerecorded sets, people will notice and that’s also not smart. Learn how to DJ.
Try not to attach yourself to what you have planned to play for that event. It’s ok to have an idea on the path you want to go.
Read the dance floor to understand how the crowd is answering to what you are playing.
Don’t be a static zombie. Sometimes we are tired of long flights and touring, but people not only connect with you through music, they also connect with your body language. So try to have fun and show yourself enjoying

10. GHOST PRODUCTION HAS BECOME A TREND NOWADAYS, WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT IT FROM A PRODUCER POINT OF VIEW?

Ghost production… I’m not a fan of it to be honest. I think with this new wave of big Djs and new Djs that have some money and pay great producers to do their own music we are heading down the wrong path.

People should know and identify who the true artists are behind the songs and who are the ones building their careers using nothing but money. Because of this is that there are a lot of amazing producers that can’t make a living out of their craft.

And on the other hand you have a lot of people that name themselves “artists” by paying money to have their careers done. Lately I feel that these last ones are winning lots of slots in every big event

PER-VURT ?

” Per-vurt Studio ..

it looks pretty good, maybe next time I can visit it “