Matte Blvck - Soulless
Alex Gonzales from Matte Blvck talks about their new song “Soulless”
We’ve always built our music on a dance-driven backbone. From there, we pull in modern textures and ideas to keep everything feeling fresh. Long-time listeners know we often move between genres, but the foundation stays intact; no matter where we go, it still feels like Matte Blvck. Soulless is no exception. It expands the palette without losing the core.
The main vocal idea for Soulless lived in my voice notes since 2023, the first demo buried in a Dropbox folder, waiting for the right moment. Late one night, while digging through old sessions, it resurfaced. Slower, raw, but full of potential.
When we were invited to contribute to Breathing Records’ Inhale Vol. I, Bidi, and I began from a blank canvas. We had just finished writing a new album, and honestly, we had zero intention of starting another piece. After several days of striking out, we went back through our archives, and there it was: Soulless.
We rebuilt it in Ableton, leaning into traditional drum programming while weaving in modern “In the box” synths like Serum, Diva, and Nexus, letting arps and atmospheric textures guide the track’s movement. The song is driven by tension and release: slow-burning builds, rhythmic detail, and layers tucked between drum patterns and melodic threads. It’s one for fans of melody and producers who like to look under the hood.
Lately, I’ve been deeply immersed in melodic techno, progressive, deep house, and Techno: Eric Prydz, Carl Cox, Umek, Yotto, Lane 8, Anyma, Tales of Us, Rüfüs Du Sol, CamelPhat. Their sense of space, emotion, and energy helped shape the approach here. Our earlier records pulled from Aphex Twin, The Prodigy, Justice, Gesaffelstein, and Daft Punk, that DNA still lives inside the walls, but Soulless reaches into a new corner. If we don't have producers scratching their heads, saying, “ How the f**k did they do that? “ We didn't do a good job.
As always, we wrote from instinct, from whatever felt real. And no, Matte Blvck didn't change its style. This is simply another nod to the styles we love. The new material we’re working on leans heavier and more aggressive - honestly, Soulless might be the softest moment you’ll hear from us for a while. Hold onto it.
