Isaac Gibson is a Northern Irish, award-winning
producer, songwriter and sound designer. He is commonly known for making up half
of electronic duo i’klektrik. He recently won the highly renowned ‘Demolition’
producer’s competition with his track ‘Dusk’ at the Amsterdam Dance Event 2016.
The judges included Don Diablo, Kölsch, Eats Everything and Dave Clarke.
Isaac’s electronic productions are hard hitting, however, feature a mix of
organic and raw elements making his music stand out against other producers. He
produces a wide range of genres including tech house, techno and progressive
house.
- Life: when was the moment you figured out that Dance
Music was meant to you?
My first actual experience with dance music was when I
was 12/13 years old. I was looking through YouTube and happened to come across
the song, ''Bromance'' by Tim Berg (Better known as Avicii these days). It's
hard to put into words just how euphoric and amazing that song made me feel
upon first listening to it, (I'm actually listening to it now as I type this!).
After begging my parents to buy me some music production software, I began to
create dance music. Whether it be day or night, producing dance music was all I
could do or think about. The moment I realised that Dance music was meant for
me was the time that I first played a track of mine to my brother Ethan. I had
told him prior to listening to it that it was ''Avicii's latest track'' and he
was eager to hear it. I wanted to get an unbiased reaction from him because I
didn't want him to lie and say that he liked it just cause he was my brother,
hence why I said it was made by Avicii. Even though my style of music
production has changed dramatically since then, seeing my brother's unbiased
reaction and smile to my music confirmed to me that Dance Music was meant for
me.
- Laugh: when was the last time you had real fun?
That's an easy one. I recently got the opportunity to
DJ on top of a roof overlooking the mountains of Brazil during the Rio Music
Conference 2017. I was more nervous than I usually would be. This was due to
the fact that I was in a foreign country completely on my own, where not that
many people can speak English, (My Portuguese wasn't exactly terrific either).
I was afraid that the crowd would hate my music and that I would essentially be
booed off. I walked onto the stage, took my shoes off, (A pre-set ritual I do
every time I play - inspired by Fatboy Slim), and started playing my music to a
rooftop full of people. Watching the people smile and dance to my music in such
a beautiful, but a slightly odd location for a gig, calmed me down instantly,
and my nerves went straight away. From that point on, I had a lot of fun
playing my music, interacting with the crowd and dancing. I really
lived in that moment. It's events like these that confirm to me that I'm living
the dream and doing what I love, and I'm extremely grateful for that...
- Love: name the one thing you love more than anything
– and why is that?
My answer is rather predictable but it has to be...
Music. There's nothing in this world that is as powerful and strong as music
itself. It has the ability to make people laugh, cry, smile and recall memories
pertaining to their life - Well, at least for me it does! I don't know what I
would do without it. People today are far too disposable with music and move on
from one thing to the next very quickly which I find quite sad. I'm able to
look back at Music that I loved 10 years and still listen to it as if I'm
hearing it for the first time - along with doing so come the memories that I
made during that time. For these reasons, this is why I love music more than
anything. When I finish this interview, I'm going to light the fire, sit down
with a book and stick on some old vinyl from the Ink Spots - Nothing beats it!
- Past: name a significant moment in your career in
Dance Music – and why is that?
Two very significative moments in my dance music
career actually happened on the same day. I was attending the Amsterdam Dance
Event (ADE) last year and for those of you that don't know, the Saturday of the
conference is called ADE Next, and it is dedicated to helping young and
upcoming producers. Throughout the day I was attending the talks and workshops,
but when I went for lunch in the Felix Meritis, (the building that the
conference is held in), I happened to spot the legendary House Music producer, Marshall
Jefferson just sitting in the corner. I plucked up the courage, went over to
him and asked if he had the time to listen to some of my music for 5 minutes.
He ended up spending over half an hour with me listening, (and dancing at
several points in a room full of people), to my music along with talking about
future collaborations and projects we could work on. It was an incredibly
surreal experience. As if that day couldn't get any better, I then went on to
win the highly renowned Demolition producer's competition that closes out the
conference each year with my electronic duo/alias, 'iklektrik'. The judges,
(Dave Clarke, Eats Everything, Kölsch, Marcel Fengler & Mason) choose
tracks from the audience, give feedback and pick an overall winner - which happened
to be me this year! I ended up gaining some incredible contacts and winning
some amazing prizes, but what was even more worth it for me was hearing the
extremely positive feedback about my music from some of the industry's leading
professionals. It was such a confidence booster that proved to a perfectionist
like myself that my music was to a very high standard. These were both
incredibly significant moments in my career that just so happened to occur on
the same day!
- Present: what do you think that is trending today in
music, clubs and festivals?
You might find this quite surprising, but I myself am
not a big club-goer. I prefer to be the guy behind the table playing music to a
room full of people opposed to actually being out in the crowd - so it would
not be entirely fair for me to comment on today's club culture. From a DJ's
perspective, I can tell that festivals, clubs and artists themselves are
becoming a lot more brand-orientated. I'm not saying that this is particularly
a bad thing but it seems to be that nowadays, less focus is on the music and
more so on the event itself - even in small clubs & festivals. It's cool to
see all of these elaborate stage set-ups and the amazing pyrotechnics that come
along with it that the audience can then record with their phones and upload to
their social media pages, (I would be lying if I said that I didn't also do
this). People focus less on the music that's right in front of them and more of
the impression they can have on social media. This is why I appreciate clubs
like the Berghain in Berlin. With a strict no phones/photo policy, you are free
to be who you want in there. You can go and listen to amazing techno music from
some fantastic artists, dance and not be judged for who you are and what you are
doing - This is something I feel clubs and festivals nowaday lack...But at the
same time, I also enjoy both sides and appreciate the current trends of today.
- Future: where is industry heading in the
years to come?
I prefer to live in the moment opposed to looking too far into the
future. I try not to worry about where the industry is heading because
ultimately, I can't change the outcome, and worrying about these inevitable
changes will only do me more harm than good. Instead, I'll just continue doing
what I love - and that is to create amazing music, for amazing people. I know
if I do this then I'll be prepared for however the industry is heading in the
years to come!
