IGNACIO ARFELI

Tell us a bit about yourself. How long have you been pursuing your artistic career, and who have been your musical influences over the years?

It all started between 2016 and 2017 when I finished high school. I always had inclination towards arts, but I wasn’t sure where to begin. I enjoyed everything: painting, playing the drums, piano, sound design. I wanted to do a bit of everything, haha, but obviously, time wasn’t enough for it all. So, I immersed myself fully in electronic music. My influences were undoubtedly Skrillex and Deadmau5. They were the starting point, and over time, curiosity led me to discover incredible artists along the way like ANNA, Wehbba, Victor Ruiz, Matt Lange, among others. These artists have also been and continue to be references in my production journey.

We want to learn more about your upcoming release on Monika Kruse’s ‘Terminal M’ label. Could you give us a preview of what to expect? What can you share about the creative approach or inspirations behind its creation?

I feel this EP is one of the best I’ve done so far. It draws heavily from influences like Wehbba and sounds like Afterlife, with a touch of Future Rave, a style that emerged almost two years ago with David Guetta and Morten. Lately, I’ve felt more confident combining different styles within the same genre without worrying too much about whether record labels will like it or not. I try to be as authentic as possible. While this is a business, and there are some rules to follow in production, the freedom to express myself artistically is always there, and Monika Kruse is someone I respect not only for her career but also for the artistic freedom she allows me.

Over the years, you’ve had the pleasure of releasing on renowned labels like Drumcode, Volta, Terminal M, We Are The Brave, among others. What challenges have you encountered along the way, and what message can you convey to your audience about them? Has your approach towards production changed as a result?

The biggest challenge is initially finding contacts and then getting responses… haha. When I started, I didn’t know anyone connected to the nightlife scene, let alone the techno world. I had zero contacts, so it’s quite prideful for me to say that everything I achieved was 100% through my music. Along the way, you naturally build contacts, and the better these become, the more demanding your career gets, without a doubt.

Every time I release an EP or a single, I give my best to make it a bit better than the previous one. Sometimes I succeed, other times maybe not, but the hunger to improve and be a little better at what I do every day is always there. As I’ve repeated several times, the key is to have patience, work A LOT, and dedicate hours and love to what you enjoy doing. I had to take the longer path.

Tell us about your first Sold Out event in Amsterdam for KRAFT Premium Pounding Techno on March 2nd this year. How are you preparing for it?

I’m thrilled to have achieved such a feat; honestly, I didn’t expect it! I’m preparing a lot of new music for the event: mashups, VIP edits, and IDs, so I’m very excited about what’s to come. Amsterdam is by far one of my favorite cities. In fact, my largest audience is there, and I have friends, acquaintances… maybe one day I’ll live there for 2 or 3 years, I would love that!

We’d like our audience to know more about your upcoming projects besides the ones mentioned earlier. Is there anything particular on your mind that you’d like to develop during this year?

Well, by the time this interview is out, I’ll already be releasing the first EP of the year on Terminal M, as mentioned earlier, and hopefully, I’ll get to release EP on Drumcode, which is my goal for 2024. I also started giving 1:1 techno production classes a few months ago, and it’s been a total success. I never expected to share my knowledge with so many people, so this is a project that will continue for a long time. I plan to produce a lot of music this year, much more than the previous year, and perhaps a big collaboration is on the horizon, but I can’t say much about it yet…

If you want to add something else, what would it be?

If you can support my new EP “Salvation” on Terminal M and follow me on social media: Instagram, Spotify, Soundcloud, I would greatly appreciate it!

Thank you very much for the space :)