Photo Credits: Anushka Menon
Dualist Inquiry returns with Get You Back, a single that marks a refreshing turn in his musical journey. Known for his signature electronic sound, he shakes up his creative process by starting the track with a bass guitar riff and acoustic drums, evoking the spontaneity of a jam band, before layering in an energetic electronic kick for the chorus. This blend of organic and electronic elements captures his drive to both surprise listeners and make them move.
While his last album was deeply personal, Get You Back doesn’t take itself so seriously. Dualist Inquiry is in a creative phase of experimentation, inviting us into a new soundscape. We’re tuned in!
What was the starting point for your new music?
When I started working on Get You Back, I wanted to make a dancefloor tune but also wanted to shake up my approach. So instead of starting with an electronic beat and synth bassline, I pulled out my bass guitar and recorded a riff to an acoustic drum kit. This almost felt like a jam band playing a loop, which was refreshing and interesting. But as the track progressed, I couldn’t resist throwing in a proper electronic kick for the chorus, which sort of catches the audience off guard and adds a good dose of fun and energy to my sets.
What sort of music do you consume to keep creating, and what stimulates you?
I spend about half my time listening to dance music in all its forms - since that’s my space as a producer. There’s so much within that narrow categorisation that it’s tough to even scratch the surface in one lifetime. And the other 50% of the time I’ll listen to genres that are not electronic; indie, jazz, hip hop, R&B, ambient etc. And I’ll invariably end up taking inspiration from these other genres back into my electronic production. Though what I find most stimulating is music that creates new genres from old ones, like new branches of a family tree.
In the vast landscape of emerging DJs, electronic artists, and mixers, what do you believe truly defines a good track?
I see music as an emotional language; it’s a very potent tool that a musician can use to form a direct connection with the listener’s emotions. It always blows my mind how direct and subconscious the connection between music and one’s emotions is. I think a good track succeeds in eliciting a strong emotional response in the listener.
How do you approach translating the emotions and energy of your electronic music into a live performance setting?
When I’m translating my studio productions into a live set, a couple of important things happen. I disassemble the track and give myself room to rearrange the pieces live, and I also subtract several parts to give myself room to improvise live. Even though I’m playing electronic music, I want my sets to feel live, and that mostly has to do with the human imperfections that show up when instruments are improvised on stage.
Your last album was very different from your new music, inspired by fatherhood…
When We Get There was me processing and making sense of a lot of changes in my life, fatherhood being the biggest one. It was a cathartic experience, and now I’m in a different place as life moves forward. Get You Back, being a single, is a lot more self-contained and doesn’t take itself so seriously.
How do you think you have evolved as a musician in all these years?
That’s a big question! I feel like my foundation is still the same, but just about everything else has changed. I’m reminded of how our skin cells are constantly being shed and replaced, and we have a whole 'new' layer of skin every 30 days. I still feel like myself from all those years ago, but I’m aware that many parts of me were shed and new parts that didn’t exist earlier have emerged.
What is it about music that still evokes emotion in you?
It’s mostly the raw human-ness of music that touches me the most. Even though, as musicians, we need to be technically proficient, I think technical perfection is overrated. When a song manages to capture the performer’s emotional state in recorded form, that’s what makes a track stand out for me.
What’s next for you?
I’m in a very curious, creative and open mindset these days. I’m writing a lot of new music and exploring other creative aspects of myself without any agenda. I don’t know what’s going to emerge from this body of work or this phase of exploration yet. I am enjoying it though, and that’s usually where my favourite work comes from.
Words Hansika Lohani
Date 6-8-2025