Samplifire, known by his friends as Samy, is a producer from a town called Brest in the west of France. After discovering FL Studio around 7 years ago, the talented artist has never looked back, and cites his father as the reason for his passion for music, as he was always playing techno and modern electronic music around the house. In high school, Samy started the Samplifire project, where he dabbled in techno and electro, before witnessing the legendary Rusko live and turning his sights to die-hard bass music. Since then, he has continuously evolved his sound design to complex, industrial and energy driven sounds, which has landed him releases on bass music’s biggest labels such as Disciple Records and Never Say Die.
We had the opportunity to catch up with Samplifire about his journey as a producer, as well as about his newest Mancubus EP released today on Never Say Die: Black Label and everything in between. Check out the interview below.
Who were your biggest inspirations when you started? And now?
When I started it obviously came from Rusko, and a bit after that Doctor P and the Circus team. Shortly after I’d say Skrillex, Noisia, Amon Tobin or Feed Me. Year after year, the inspirations got more underground and I think I grew as an artist with the 2015 underground dubstep movement.
How is the bass scene in France? What would you improve, if you could?
The French Bass scene is doing well! The main cities in France (Paris, Lyon & Toulouse) throw the biggest events like Ambassad, Animalz, EZ and Skurt. I love it here and the vibe is well alive! If I could improve it, I’d throw a BIG, bass-only event outdoors like they have in the US or in Canada! I think these kinds of events really help bring the scene to a totally new level and give dubstep a place in the big world of electronic music. Here in France, techno/house are the main electronic music movements, but with the help of these festivals it would help the scene grow and actually compete with those primary genres.
BUT, I have to say that I’m throwing my own show on Oct 5 in Brest, France with my team Westsound. Ganon, AnswerD, Redpill, GFT and I will play on the bass stage that I run. So stoked for that, hopefully it will help grow the scene here in France.
Have you considered moving to the US, where the bass scene is more prominent?
YES, of course! Being European, I need a special Visa to be able to perform in the US. I have been working on getting the visa for a few months now, I am aiming early 2019 for my first US show! Can’t wait guys!
Your first work with MVRDA dates back to about two years ago, but has evolved into the highly-regarded (and somewhat meme-worthy) TOOG & GOOT collaboration project. How did that come about?
Ok, so this all started as a joke! Tommy – MVRDA – made some riddim tunes on his alias TOOG when we started this Skype call where he’d show me the new one he was working on. I loved the vibe, the essence of simple yet groovy dubstep – “riddim” – was there. I asked him to collab, which we did, and I called myself GOOT which is the reverse of TOOG.
The first idea was to maintain this secret and build the hype. Eventually, Tommy did announce publicly that he was actually TOOG and so I did for GOOT. We then released the tunes and played a show in Amsterdam as TOOG & GOOT for Shiverz Birthday Bash X Ignition – sick show btw!!
Most of the time a main idea is laid down by one of the collaborators and then we swap the project back and forth until we get a final version of the track.
From TOOG & GOOT to FOUR HORSEMEN, you’ve also collaborated with a ton of heavyweight bass artists in the last few years. What’s your collaboration process like?
Yes I think I did a bit of collabs – that’s why I’m trying to focus on more solo tunes now. Most of the time a main idea is laid down by one of the collaborators and then we swap the project back and forth until we get a final version of the track. It can be a one shot thing, but sometimes it takes a bit more!
The Four Horsemen Track ‘ANIMALZ’ was the second 4-way collab I did (the first one was Gypsy Killers with UBUR, Zaita & Rekkles). Graphyt & IVORY made the whole intro, ECRAZE & I did the drop part using some stuff from IVORY & Graphyt. It was a bit rushed due to label deadlines, but I play it at every show!
What makes you want to collaborate with someone?
Often it’s the production level they have that makes me want to collab. It’s always more fun to work with other people when you learn and share at the same time. Getting the opportunity to work with guys like Downlink on tracks was a huge motivation too!
Do you prefer collaborating or working alone?
Both are required to progress I’d say. If I had to choose only one I’d say collabs 😉
The last twelve months have been a massive year for you in terms of releases and shows (congrats, by the way). You’re also showing no signs of slowing down, as you just released your Mancubus EP on Never Say Die: Black Label today. How did the transition of a couple of collaborations to a full project with NSD happen?
Good to read that! This year I was also completing my math/computer science degree, which took a lot of time. I got it a few weeks ago and decided to take some time to focus solely on music! It’s a new start for me and hopefully more and bigger releases will come this year! I’ve been making the tracks in my own spare time since around April 2018, so it was work in parallel with my degree and the shows.
On this particular release Mancubus, I’m trying to show a more complex sound design with a darker tone on every tune.
It seems like your sound design is evolving with each and every release. What was your goal with this latest EP in terms of engineering and production?
Thanks, that means a lot! I try to evolve my sound design with every new project. On this particular release Mancubus, I’m trying to show a more complex sound design with a darker tone on every tune. It’s a club based tune with a general structure that suits DJ sets too, so it was made for shows and high energy sets! Stoked for the release!
Finally, if you could warn someone’s grandmother prior to listening to the Mancubus EP with one short sentence, what would you tell them?
I’d tell her to blast the sound at full volume before playing it, as that’s how it’s meant to be played haha!
Cheers to Samy for taking the time to talk with us. Don’t miss the monstrous Mancubus EP below, available for purchase here.
