Interview: Ias Ferndale

Based in Berlin, Ias Ferndale has a sound that sits comfortably in the space between progressive house and melodic techno. It’s a sound that has led him to releases via Elastic Dimension, Gentlemen Lounge Records and most recently Soundteller Records, where he contributed a track to the label’s popular ‘Vibrant Vibeland’ series. Now continuing to build momentum, Ias steps up for his first Polyptych release entitled ‘What We Are’. We had a chance to catch up with Ias for an exclusive interview just prior to the release. Enjoy!

Hi las, thanks for joining us. What is your current mood and what was the last piece of music you listened to?

I’m really happy in this moment, lot of track are previous for realized in the next month on some good labels. The last track that I listened today was Lyra (Extended Mix) by Matt Fax.

What are your plans for the coming week?

I love to stay in studio and produce some news track so I think with the actual sanitary context I will not change my habit ;)

Talk to us about living in Berlin, how has it affected your musical taste and the music you make?

Berlin is the city where you have to be to compose electronic music and meet a lot of people who share the same passion. There are a lot of parties organized, of all styles of music with the biggest artists and electronic music labels. When you come home, it gives you new inspiration.

How would you describe the music you make and what do you want it to convey to the listener?

My music is just how I feel at the moment. I like all kinds of electronic music in general. I just want to convey my emotions to my listeners. Make sure they have a good time listening to one of my songs, Whether it's techno, progressive house or techno-house I try to position myself as listeners when I compose my music.

Which producers impress you most at the moment and why?

There are a lot of producers who impress me but at the moment the one I love is Yotto. I really like listening to his productions. His music is fresh, very detailed, very groovy with very beautiful synth pads and each part is in its place. it is great work.

Looking back over your discography, your first releases came out in 2016 but then there was a gap of around three or four years before the next ones, why such a long gap and how have your productions changed in that time?

haha. Indeed, there was a nice break with the music. I started producing music almost 20 years ago, and I was able to do many great projects with another artist name and songs that have over 1 Million listeners today. Then, because of my personal work and for other reasons I gave up a bit. And I was able to see a very good producer friend who I had known for a very long time and he made me want to start over as before. And there have also been events in my life that have inspired me a lot in recent months.

You have a new EP out this week on Polyptych, tell us a bit about the release and how it showcases your individualities.

I'm really happy to release my first EP on polyptych this week. This label is very professional and I immediately sent them some demos. Mikhail answered me and accepted the tracks.

Walk us through the production process on the first track ‘Lost In The Dark’.

I think it's one of the fastest and easiest songs I've produced. I found a synth sample that I found really cool and decided to build around this sample. This is how Lost In The dark was born.

Was there anything that inspired these two tracks? And where does your inspiration come from generally?

It's a bit strange but it's a bit thanks to Covid-19 that I was able to take the time to start music production again. It's very difficult because we can't do anything since we are in this context, there is no more party, no more festival, nothing at all. So I can spend a lot of time in my studio making music.

What does your set-up like? Do you favor physical gear over digital? And what studio tools featured heavily in the writing of this EP?

I use an Apple iMac and a lot of virtual synthesizer like Nexus, Native Instrument Komplete with the native controller, Serum, UHE diva and Podolski, Spectrasonic bundle or ANA 2.

Would it be safe to say this is the biggest release of your career thus far? And what made Polyptych the right home for these tracks?

I think this EP is one of my best released on a label, Polyptych is a very good label and I discovered them on internet, I immediately liked their outing and their way of communicating. So I wanted to send them a demo to get their feedback.

How have you been dealing with COVID-19? How has it affected your daily life, music production and overall inspiration to write new music?

yes of course, the covid-19 to change my life as for many people in the world I think and in particular of musician. The concerts stopped, the clubs closed, so I had more time to produce new songs in my home studio.

What is the current situation with the pandemic in Germany?

Actually all is closed in Germany, the club, the theaters, restaurants, bars… We have to stay at home ;)

Once nightlife eventually resumes globally what kind of effect do you think this period in our history will have on the clubbing experience?

I think when this is all going to end people will want to party all the time haha. Maybe this period will give a new idea of evening to the organizers of the whole world. For the moment it is difficult to say what will happen unfortunately.

Is there a movie you would have loved to have produced the soundtrack for? And if so why?

I'm not really a film music specialist but if one day someone asks me for one of my music, I would like it to be for a car advertisement for example because I find that electronic music is well suited for this kind of music. context.

What does 2021 hold for you? Anything you can share with us?

I hope that the clubs, festivals and theaters will be reopened in 2021. This will allow us to make some gigs for this summer. I have a lot of songs in progress. I also have 1 Ep which will be released in April on Mistique Music the label of Stiven Rivic, a track with 4 remixes for Massive Harmony records and other projects will be released in 2021 on other labels. So stay tuned ;)

'What We Are' is out now via Polyptych: https://bit.ly/3vnI72a