Gib The Rocker On the Making Of “Sonic Assault”
What was the creative process like for this particular single?
I wrote the main riff almost by accident. One night I was jamming on my own, in my room, and I was thinking about all the times that I heard “Rock is dead”, and how I was sick of it, because although rock music might not be as popular or mainstream, there are so many people in the world who still love rock music and embody its ethos!
Out of that frustration and the love for rock music, I came up with that riff and I remember immediately thinking “I love this, it’s so POWERFUL!”. I recorded it knowing that one day it would be part of something.
Fast forward, in 2022 I released my first EP, Alive. It was a classic rock album that paid homage to a lot of my influences, it has good music in it, but it doesn’t have an identity and it’s not heavy. Because of my love for heavy music, not too long after the release, I felt I wanted to make another album, this time harder, louder, more powerful, and I would call it “Sonic Assault.”
When it was time to start working on that project seriously, the first thing that I did was going back to that riff, and write a song off of it that would blend the two ideas: a song about the love for rock and how rock never dies, and a song that would sound loud, hard and fast, like a…Sonic assault!
How does "Sonic Assault" fit into your overall artistic vision and what can listeners expect from you in the future?
“Sonic Assault” is the first single of my next EP, half of which is already recorded. If everything goes according to plan, I will release everything before the end of the year. The EP is going to be a mini concept album, where all songs explore a common theme from different angles and showing different emotions, but all should sound very hard rock – “Sonic Assault” is a statement of intent!
I can also tell you that as I was writing the EP, I came up with material that didn’t fit too much into the same album, so I have an idea of making it a trilogy! Three mini concept albums on different topics! But this will take quite some time, energy and money, so it might be a few years before everything is completed. In the meantime, I might release self-produced instrumental tracks that are not hard rock.
In any case, there will be plenty of releases coming in the future, as long as life doesn’t get in the way (the pandemic has slowed down all my projects!).
What did you enjoy most about making this track?
Everything! Haha, I don’t want to sound obvious, but I love this song. I remember feeling electrified when I was in the studio recording it, it just has a vibe that is so energetic. And the fact that, after my first album, I felt I was doing something more original and closer to my current identity, with more of a message.
Can you tell us more about you as an artist?
I am a rock guitarist at heart, although I listen to stuff that ranges from jazz or funky to classical Indian music or psybient. I like rock music from the 50s to today, and it’s not just about the songs, but about what that music stands for: rebellion, freedom, self-expression, enjoying life to the full. This is how I feel and who I am, even when I’m not playing or not listening to rock music.
I have a degree in physics, I like philosophy, I have studied music theory, and that reflects in my music, in that you will sometimes find songs that have references to certain scientific or existential concepts, or that go beyond the usual 2-3 chords, I like to have a bit of depth and sophistication at times.
Finally, I am noticing that lately, I feel more compelled to inspire and make people think or feel something deeper with my art, whether it is related to general life and emotions or even socially or politically. My next album might have more of that.
What role do you feel emotions play in your music, and how do you channel them into your performances?
Emotions are the reason why we listen to and play music, aren’t they? They are the most important thing! The reason why I became a musician is that I came across artists that made me feel in a certain way. When I write music, it’s all about expressing my emotions, that’s the whole point. Before I finalise a song, I would listen to the demo or read the lyrics and wonder “does it express my feelings and ideas as best as I can?”.
When it comes to performance, it’s the same but at the same time it’s a bit different, because you need to add a bit of entertainment: in my previous band, we had a song where me and the other guitarist played a solo with the guitar behind our head, and people loved it! It’s not necessarily something deep or emotional, but you need to give people some fun and entertainment when live, you don’t want to be like playing a CD in front of an audience! So, on a stage, emotions are still paramount, but I like to add energy and entertainment to engage the audience.
