Karim Alkhayat, Who Is Hush: it's all about creating experiences and building connections
June the 4th meet a collaboration of two artists - Karim Alkhayat and Who Is Hush to deliver their three-tracks releasee "Diss You" to CODEX Recordings!
This release features a diverse exploration through sound.
"Join Me" ventures into new found sonic grooves. "Gen X" is a peak time anthem pays tribute the the classic rave sounds of the past. "Diss You" is a floor stomping mover will get anyone moving while.
Radio Intense had a pleasure to talk to two talents about the release, their experience in music industry and future expectations. Check it out below!
This release features a diverse exploration through sound.
"Join Me" ventures into new found sonic grooves. "Gen X" is a peak time anthem pays tribute the the classic rave sounds of the past. "Diss You" is a floor stomping mover will get anyone moving while.
Radio Intense had a pleasure to talk to two talents about the release, their experience in music industry and future expectations. Check it out below!
— Hi guys! How is everything going? Thanks for answering these questions.
— Hi Olly ! everything is going great here, thank you for having us.
— Tell us more about yourself speaking individually and artistically. Karim, can you define "Karim Alkhayat" and Stuart, how can you define "Who Is Hush"?
— Karim Alkhayat represent who I really am, a guy who always have the urge to create, to have experiences and to share those experiences with others and make new connections. I have been into music for as long as i can remember and creating music has always been my safe place. Techno is the best experience i have ever had and i consider myself lucky to be able to share it with others.
— Who Is Hush started as a masked anonymous project, focusing mainly on heavy, darker techno. The original concept, where I concealed my identity and hid my face, was to create a faceless environment where the crowd would just focus on the music. However, after a year and a half of playing shows in different countries, I found that the mask concept disconnected me from the crowd. I missed the eye contact with the crowd, locking in those moments right before the kick drum came in. The whole reason I started to produce music and DJ was to share those magical moments with the crowd, to be the catalyst for those in the crowd who were there to escape the outside world and transcend through music. Even after revealing my face, the reason why I chose to stick with "Who Is Hush" is because I feel "who" we are as people changes daily. We have the power every day to design or redesign our mindset and outlook, taking steps towards our ideal life. So who I am changes daily, as life lessons are learned through every experience and relationship.
— Who Is Hush started as a masked anonymous project, focusing mainly on heavy, darker techno. The original concept, where I concealed my identity and hid my face, was to create a faceless environment where the crowd would just focus on the music. However, after a year and a half of playing shows in different countries, I found that the mask concept disconnected me from the crowd. I missed the eye contact with the crowd, locking in those moments right before the kick drum came in. The whole reason I started to produce music and DJ was to share those magical moments with the crowd, to be the catalyst for those in the crowd who were there to escape the outside world and transcend through music. Even after revealing my face, the reason why I chose to stick with "Who Is Hush" is because I feel "who" we are as people changes daily. We have the power every day to design or redesign our mindset and outlook, taking steps towards our ideal life. So who I am changes daily, as life lessons are learned through every experience and relationship.
— How did you become interested in electronic music? Is techno your only priority?
— Karim Alkhayat: coming from a background of a totally different music genre (rock and Metal music) i will never forget the day when i was properly introduced to electronic music, it was 2017 at a Psy-trance festival in Goa, India. after that i started to experiment with different electronic music genre until i came across techno an it just felt natural. End of 2018, after going through a rough patch and trying to find my identity, i dropped out of everything in my life and started the journey of becoming who I really am through techno. So yes i guess techno is my priority.
— Who Is Hush: I first got into music production around 2005 when you could build a Hackintosh. I couldn't afford a real Mac and wanted to run Logic 7, so I learned how to build a hackintosh PC to emulate a Mac. I had an Akai S2000 rackmount sampler and turntables and started making some sampled hip-hop. Techno wasn't my main focus until about 3 years ago. I have gone through all the genres, from pop, to trance, to dubstep to hip-hop. Techno is the energy that excites me when I DJ, but I also get just as much enjoyment when I'm working on a pop song for a potential radio placement. It's the creative process that is the magic for me, the end song can drastically vary but the journey and the moments along the way there are what it's all about.
— Who Is Hush: I first got into music production around 2005 when you could build a Hackintosh. I couldn't afford a real Mac and wanted to run Logic 7, so I learned how to build a hackintosh PC to emulate a Mac. I had an Akai S2000 rackmount sampler and turntables and started making some sampled hip-hop. Techno wasn't my main focus until about 3 years ago. I have gone through all the genres, from pop, to trance, to dubstep to hip-hop. Techno is the energy that excites me when I DJ, but I also get just as much enjoyment when I'm working on a pop song for a potential radio placement. It's the creative process that is the magic for me, the end song can drastically vary but the journey and the moments along the way there are what it's all about.
— Your mutual release "Diss You" is coming in June on Codex Recordings. Is it your first collaboration? How did you decide to team up for the release?
— Karim Alkhayat: I remember when me and Who Is hush (Stuart) connected through Instagram maybe late 2019 or early 2020 and we decided to give it a shot and see what comes out, and since then we released together on Say What? - Reload - Voltage and now Codex, with a lot more to come in the future I have always enjoyed our process and the way develop each other's ideas.
— Who Is Hush: we have actually worked a lot together over the last year or so, with releases on Say What, Voltage, Reload and now Codex. We connect via Instagram but have never met in person. It's a great creative chemistry, we both work really fast and are open to any changes it takes to make the best outcome for the track. In collaborations it's important to not get too attached to any ideas because the other person hears and creates differently and may just know exactly what the track needs to make it an amazing track.
— Who Is Hush: we have actually worked a lot together over the last year or so, with releases on Say What, Voltage, Reload and now Codex. We connect via Instagram but have never met in person. It's a great creative chemistry, we both work really fast and are open to any changes it takes to make the best outcome for the track. In collaborations it's important to not get too attached to any ideas because the other person hears and creates differently and may just know exactly what the track needs to make it an amazing track.
— There are 3 tracks on the release: "Diss You", "Join Me" and "Gen X". Do you have a favorite one? How did production process look like?
— Karim Alkhayat: since we finalized those 3 tracks I changed my mind many times on which one is my favorite ! Now im in "Join Me" phase as I love the polyrhythmic groove, the drive of the track and definitely those glitches in the breakdown.
— Who Is Hush: I would have to pick Gen X, the synth in the breakdown and drop has a special sound that reminds me of going to raves as a kid. That iconic synth stab that can take you back in the day.
— Who Is Hush: I would have to pick Gen X, the synth in the breakdown and drop has a special sound that reminds me of going to raves as a kid. That iconic synth stab that can take you back in the day.
— Industry is moving forward more or less despite the pandemic. Do you already have any upcoming gigs or ideas about it?
— Karim Alkhayat: Gigs in Dubai and Lebanon are on the table, and hopefully will be having another tour in India by the end of the year if the situation there helps.
— Who Is Hush: I have an upcoming tour in the works with a record label that I will be releasing with soon. Can't really say too much about it because so many things are constantly changing with this pandemic, but if it all works out, it will be about 6-8 shows across the states in November. Outside of that, just working away in the studio on a bunch of upcoming new releases.
— Who Is Hush: I have an upcoming tour in the works with a record label that I will be releasing with soon. Can't really say too much about it because so many things are constantly changing with this pandemic, but if it all works out, it will be about 6-8 shows across the states in November. Outside of that, just working away in the studio on a bunch of upcoming new releases.
— Any other news you would like to share?
— Karim Alkhayat: I'm excited about a lot of projects I'm working on, a new collaboration with Who Is Hush, Kreecher, Lampe, Mushroom Cake and planning a very interesting one with Sam Wolfe.
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