Raves, Resilience and Rapture: How Ray Volpe Overcame His Lowest Second to Produce a Sport-Altering Document
They are saying success is not about luck, connections and even cash. It is the self-discipline to outwork everybody round you—a tenet which Ray Volpe has lengthy been tethered to.
The byproduct is Legend of the Volpetron, his new EP, out now by the use of Disciple. The ingenious report successfully pours gasoline on the broiling profession of Volpe, who was named to EDM.com‘s Class of 2022 earlier this 12 months. It is a dazzling showcase of his generational manufacturing skills, which prolong far past the confines of his breakout hit, “Laserbeam.”
“It sounds tacky, however it means every little thing to me! It is a second in time that I’ll look again on years from now,” Volpe tells EDM.com of his new EP. “I actually needed to mash every little thing I liked about music into one physique of labor.”
Legend of the Volpetron is a microcosm not solely of Volpe’s tireless grind, but in addition his resilience. If there’s anybody who exemplifies the “laborious work pays off” mantra, it is Volpe, who says he skilled an id disaster within the throes of his struggles to seek out success navigating the tortuous world of EDM.
“Admittedly it’s been a protracted highway—2019 was a low level for my profession and shortly after my psychological well being as properly,” Volpe remembers. “I felt like everybody was in opposition to this mission and that I wouldn’t ever achieve success beneath ‘Ray Volpe.’ That harm lots. Particularly as a result of this isn’t just a few alias—that is my actual identify. That is who I’m to my core. I couldn’t assist however really feel hopeless at some factors.”
“However I knew that if I have been to actually simply sit down and push myself, then I’d be capable to escape of that mould and alter everybody’s minds,” Volpe continued. “And that’s doable for anybody. Consider in your self and be according to every little thing you do. Be open to suggestions and have moments of reflection.”
And whereas the EP is a giant second for Volpe, it additionally moonlights as a prophecy for a shiny way forward for bass music.
Whether or not or not you are prepared to confess it, dubstep has grown stagnant. Mired in a 2022 scene devoid of innovation, the style wants new pathfinders. Volpe steps into that function with Legend of the Volpetron, a tour de drive with sufficient versatility and imaginative and prescient to resuscitate a beloved cog within the EDM wheel.
“I wish to positively be one of many faces of ‘you may make a couple of form of music and achieve success,’ as I do know it may be extremely intimidating as an artist to really feel such as you would possibly want to stay to at least one factor,” Volpe continued. “Earlier than ‘Laserbeam’ for instance, my largest tune was melodic! And the one earlier than that heavy, and so forth.”
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He will get proper to the purpose with “Screechy Music,” kicking off Legend of the Volpetron with cinematic rave leads that culminate in a shrieking dubstep drop. Volpe flexes his transformative method to manufacturing within the tune’s dreamlike coda, the place spacey synths float atop syncopated percussive components earlier than he brings the association residence with one other searing dubstep sequence.
Volpe then follows with “Elbow Grease,” a collab with fellow dubstep trailblazer Soltan, whose Center Japanese influences run roughshod via Volpe’s frenetic sound design. Sum 41 drummer Frank Zummo options on the following “Afterlife (I am going to Dream of You),” a euphoric Wave observe with a punk twist.
Then comes “Laserbeam,” which wants no introduction because it continues to rain hellfire on the world’s largest raves and digital music festivals. And that was by design, in response to Volpe. Waxing poetic about his breakthrough hit, he says he owes a debt of gratitude to some elite artists who helped break it.
“I wish to say that it has been the laborious work of manufacturing and simply attempting to make cool music, however truthfully it actually all got here all the way down to the vitality of the observe and the reside playability and viral points,” Volpe explains. “On the vitality facet, having it really feel fast-paced even being on the identical tempo as 90% of dubstep provides a lot energy to any room you hear it in. Simply doing that with quick baselines like I did right here or having fixed switch-ups to maintain issues going.”
“The reside play-outs although completely elevated this tune to the following degree,” he continued. “I’ve so many pals to thank for making this doable for me—particularly Excision and ILLENIUM. With out them jumpstarting it with their excessive manufacturing units to truly use lasers in, this wouldn’t be occurring. I’m so, so, so grateful for them. I’ll always remember listening to X drop it at Thunderdome in particular person for the primary time. Then the TikToks and Reels beginning to flood in.”
“I knew at that time this tune could be completely different,” exults Volpe, who stated he gave himself a pat on the again for conceptualizing the tune’s epic pre-drop vocal, which has been doubling because the starter pistol for probably the most epic laser barrages festival-goers have ever seen.
Volpe ties a bow on Legend of the Volpetron with the incandescent “Rising Wild,” an aching swan tune that includes Myah Marie. Serenaded by lush pads, Marie candidly muses concerning the effervescent emotions that include discovering an individual who accepts your flaws. Volpe followers the flames of the tune’s emotive nature by the use of its crescendoing drop, which works haywire by interpolating ferocious dubstep wobbles.
You may stream Legend of the Volpetron here.
FOLLOW RAY VOLPE:
Fb: facebook.com/rayvolpemusic
Twitter: twitter.com/rayvolpe
Instagram: instagram.com/rayvolpe
Spotify: spoti.fi/3dqG1WH