Behind The Sound: HIFEELINGS
HIFEELINGS’ connection with electronic music runs deep. Originally from Poland and now based in Southampton, his dedication began through the internet, production culture and the bass heavy music that defined a generation.
Over the past year, his releases have shown an artist in motion, drawing from personal experience, the people around him, and UK dance music culture without being to one genre or lane.
We caught up with HIFEELINGS to talk about his early connection with electronic music, the moments that inspired him, the personal experiences behind his recent releases, and what comes next.
“this could be me if I put in enough hard work as they do.”
Can you remember when you first connected with electronic music, and what inspired you to start producing?
I kind of always had an interest in electronic music, rooted in me, with Skrillex being my biggest inspiration. About 10 years ago, when I was a kid, I discovered a YouTube channel, “Kaskobi,” and I loved watching his launchpad light show covers he did, specifically Skrillex’s ‘First of the Year’ cover. It’s like the guy would press a button on his MIDI controller and a light animation would appear along with the sound; it was super fascinating at the time.
The very next week, I went ahead and bought the same MIDI controller he had and downloaded Ableton and some of the projects he had been sharing, and since then I kind of naturally found motivation to learn the program and naturally dived into music production with time.
Was there a moment where UK dance music started to feel like the direction you wanted to take?
I think I gotta give credit to all the people who I went with to Boiler Room Liverpool in 2024, where I got to witness some of the greatest in the scene currently, such as Saint Ludo, Bakey and Skream & Benga. That honestly was the starting point for me where I became hooked and thought to myself ‘ah, this could be me if I put in enough hard work as they do’. It just felt so fresh, and seeing the crowd reactions became very motivating to start doing something.
“Having a mature crowd of genuine, grounded people who also happen to love UK music is, I think, what everyone needs”
Do you feel like you have a defined sound now, or does it still feel like something you’re evolving release by release?
My sound and new avenues I’m exploring are constantly evolving, and I don’t think I have found ‘the sound’ I want to stick with. I love Dubstep, I love UK Garage, I love Techno, and sometimes I have a battle in my head if I should keep experimenting or stick within a certain field. But also I feel like I should just not give any thought to it because every release I put out does contain a feeling and message in the tracks, and that kind of became my priority for the things I want to put out.
What non-musical influences (everyday life, art, club spaces, films, cities) work their way into your productions most?
Honestly, my northern crew of friends are the best thing in the world and keep me so inspired and full of energy (Shoutout Sazza, Hamez, joegarratt and my skrillcord crew). Having a mature crowd of genuine, grounded people who also happen to love UK music is, I think, what everyone needs. I love the fact they keep me humble and accountable and that we all can have deep talks about anything in life, and I guess I take bits of these experiences and put these types of messages in my music.
“These releases unveil a deep meaning to my experiences and personal events in the last 9 months of my life, mainly to do with breakups, being blindsided and not feeling like enough.”
With tracks like “FRIENDS?”, “STAY” and “feeling more”, there seems to be a personal or emotional thread running through them. Are those tracks usually connected to real experiences, or does the meaning develop as the music comes together?
1000% these releases unveil a deep meaning to my experiences and personal events in the last 9 months of my life, mainly to do with breakups, being blindsided and not feeling like enough. It will all start to make sense soon, as they are planned to be a part of a bigger project I will be set to drop by the end of this year, so keep your eyes peeled.
Are there sounds, genres or ideas you’ve been wanting to explore that haven’t fully come through in your releases yet?
I definitely want to show off my heavier side of production within the Dubstep and UK Bass space, but I have no idea when I will be able to with the amount of sick collaborations I have ready to unveil within the rest of the year. But what I will say is there is a dope heavy one coming later this year with an upcoming LA producer, Martha, which has been getting rinsed already in the city, so we are stoked to unveil this!
Looking ahead, what’s the dream milestone you'd love to achieve in your Career?
Getting to play a big festival in the UK like Parklife or Creamfields would most definitely be the top of the list for me. I feel like it would solidify me as a name here in the scene and maybe get me some opportunities I can’t even predict yet hahah.
When you’re producing, what techniques, plugins or tools do you keep coming back to?
I love to stick to the default stock plugins for mixing as I think they are good enough straight out of the box. But my favourite plugin of all time that isn’t stock has to be the delay plugin called Comeback Kid by Baby Audio. Overall, the rule I stick to in production is ‘less is more’ in terms of cluttering the mix with elements that aren’t needed. You don’t need much to make good music these days.
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A big thank you to HIFEELINGS for taking the time to speak with us, offering insight into his journey, creative process and the ideas behind his recent releases. Make sure to check out his latest single, “Take U There”
Stay connected with HIFEELINGS, and keep an eye out for his upcoming projects.
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