SIMULA Onboard for Season 10
Sample Genie is now rolling ten years deep, and to mark this formative decade of doing our thing we are making this next season something really special… As always, each artist on the team will be bringing their own unique stamp, but this season it’s about full on intensity and energy in an upfront way, each artist working with us is at the pinnacle of the area of D&B they are creating in.
We make our first announcement exactly as we are to continue: Will Ryan AKA Simula is one of the six. He’s an artist we’ve been keeping an ear on for a number of years, and watching his sound develop and push boundaries has been so fascinating. Right from the beginning to today his tracks are so clearly ‘his’ but at the same time it’s been like watching a big piece of granite get refined down over the years, it’s still the same raw material…. but that technical polish though….
He very clearly has a brilliant mind for sound design and this is probably the primary reason we’ve been keen to work together – as it’s cornerstone interest of the Sample Genie ethos – but he’s highly accomplished in all areas of production: rhythmic creativity, mix engineering and arrangement too. He’s all about upfront music that brings a rave to life and it’s for all these reasons that we are massively excited to be working together for the next season. Our decade season.
/// We asked Simula a few pre-season questions…
A warm welcome to the team, Will! It’s really awesome to be working together for our new, and extra special 10th season! Your whole aesthetic is just what we are about: where strong technical abilities match with just as strong creative ideas. How easily do each of these areas come to you? How long have you been producing DnB, and how long did it take to arrive at the ‘Simula sound’?
Thanks guys, glad to be a part of it! I’ve been producing for around 12 years now, and for me it’s all about mixing good sound design with a good vibe, something you can get lost in. I’ve always felt technical and creative ideas have come quite naturally to me, and I suppose it was never really a goal to create my sound. I just love making music!
From chatting we were hyped to hear you have been a member of Sample Genie before! We’re constantly getting inspired by who uses our site, but the fact we are working together now makes it feel extra special. What kind of role have online sources in general played for you in terms of learning production? And do you work with samples in your productions?
That’s a nice sentiment guys thanks! When I started making music I watched so many tutorials on how to make bass sounds, and it was always so inspiring because I could mess with these patches other people made and create my own sounds! Over the years I learned more about the fundamentals of sound design and sadly I don’t watch as many as I used to, but it’s been a breath of fresh air to use sources like Sample Genie which I feel offer a more direct approach to learning. As for using samples, I use them all the time, sometimes as placeholders or to process to make new sounds. I love sampling a lot of stuff myself!
These will be your first ever tutorials right? We are really excited and delighted to be hosting them! What would you say are your strong suits with production and can you give any clues about what kind of areas you are thinking about teaching for these (while keeping it a surprise too!)
Yeah it’s completely new to me! I feel like my strong suit with production is definitely sound design, I just love it! I think I’m definitely going to teach a lot about how to approach synthesis and sound design, and how to structure tracks in effective ways to create energy, power and a good vibe.
We are always fascinated and impressed by your sound design and no doubt your bits will get ideas firing for people! What can our members expect from your sample contribution for this season?
Definitely a lot of drums and synths! I also like creating abstract effects and atmospheres so be sure to expect some of those as well…
Which DAW are you on? What did you start off with??
I’m currently using Ableton. I started on FL Studio and used it for many years, many of my early releases were made on FL. I’ve also used Logic and tinkered with Pro Tools. I think Ableton is the one for me though!
What are your top 4 bits of studio kit?
Serum is my go-to synth so it definitely deserves a mention. I use a lot of of u-he and waves plugins too. I also find my Launch key really helps the creative process.
Can you shout out off the cuff 5 tunes from recent years (not your own) that you still love and play out?
Time Tripping is in every set. To be honest I couldn’t name many other tunes, I like to constantly play different things.
What are your interests and hobbies outside of music & Djing??
I love cooking! Whenever I’m not making music I’m probably making something in the kitchen.
If you could live anywhere else, where would it be and why?.
I would love to live in the US or Canada. It’s intriguing to see how diverse and different the electronic music is across the pond.
Can you give us a non-dnb album that has got you inspired? (Can be from any point in history!).
The first ever album I heard was Green Day American Idiot. I think it started my love for music so it deserves the mention.
So you heard it first!
The new season of Sample Genie begins on 1.7.22. More announcements coming soon!
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