Following a slew of critically-acclaimed EP and single releases on the likes of Trippy Code, Take My Space and Area Verde over the course of their collaborative musical career, I Know marks the first full studio long-player from partners Amos Chalfon and David Semo, who have been producing and performing together under the Y do I moniker since 2019.
Purveyors of their own unique brand of ‘future techno’, Y do I have been on a prolific run of form over the past few years, with their avant-garde productions resonating with a growing legion of loyal fans across the globe. Perpetually striving to deliver an unmatched sensory experience for the listener – both in their eclectic studio releases and hard-hitting live performances – Y do I have an innate ability to fuse multiple genres into a sum much greater than their constituent parts, reimagining a close affinity for trance, minimal, progressive and techno within a uniquely gripping and original paradigm.
Now ambassadors for the Israeli electronic music scene on a global scale, Y do I’s wealth of inimitable productions project a forward-leaning sound infused with deep musicality and raw, stripped-back minimalism. Continuing in this vein, I Know is the work a hyper-focused and extraordinarily skilled duo, intent on pushing the envelope to a whole new level – a duo that has been hailed as one of the most exciting electronic acts to emerge out of Israel over the past decade. We caught up with Amos and David ahead of the release of their new album this Friday to discuss studio gear, life during lockdown, the current nightlife scene in Israel, and other upcoming projects…
Hello Y do I, great to speak to you! How’s the last year been for you?
Hi there, thank you for approaching us, we love to share our ideas and thoughts with your followers. We have been more than good actually, COVID times did good for us. Finally we had full studio time to maximise our project, and quality time with the family.
Can you tell us the story behind your name?
“Y” stands for “Yarin” David’s kid, and “I” stand for “Ilay” Amos’ kid. So Y do I it’s basically Yarin & Ilay. It was coming to us very naturally
You’ve had some great releases recently, we especially enjoyed your ‘I Don’t Know Y’ EP. What’s it been like producing during COVID?
Great pleasure to hear that you’ve moved my out recent releases. COVID time has actually been a blessing for full time producers. No gigs, so a lot of spare time to be at the studio, thinking of new ideas and new directions, without any stress of time limit or other long term duties like tours and such.
Besides music, how else have you kept yourself busy during Covid?
That’s easy, when you’ve got kids and family, you simply enjoy any moment of it.
How’re things looking in Israel for events now? Is there finally some light at the end of the tunnel?
In Israel everything is open completely, many parties every weekend, we just hope it will keep on that way, and won’t get back to quarantine or some limited restrictions.
Congratulations on your new album on Area Verde. What’s the inspiration behind the project and how did it come together?
We didn’t plan it actually. We did this album in amazing 4 months during COVID lockdown. We tried to do something that no one has done before, with a huge success in our opinion. We fused techno, psytrance, progressive house & minimal to a musical quest into the unknown. You simply have to hear it, to get the effect of it. Every track is different then the other, but still maintains the same energy as the other.
What can we expect from the album?
The energy and the “in your face” mix, really give this album its own unique character in the techno world. We kind of like to call it “future techno”. It’s more complex then usual, less organic and more manually edited.
Has it been strange not being able to road test your tracks in a club environment?
Yes it is! But luckily we have huge monitors in the studio, which feels like a club haha, but now all the tracks have been tested and it’s kicking the dance floor.
What gear did you use in the studio to create it?
Owww… we have a long list of gear 🙂 We’ll short things out. The main character of this album is a lot of percussions and tiny glitch elements going into Thermionic Culture Vulture for saturation & distortion, followed by Looptrotter Monster Compressor.
What have you got coming up in the future, after the album?
We are about to finish our ethnic future techno fusion EP, which is a concept EP of our interpretation for ethnic fusion music. It’s going to be huge.
Finally, if you could collaborate with any artist in the world who would it be?
Probably Artbat.
Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions guys, we really appreciate it! Good luck with the release of the album!
Thank you, we hope you enjoy it!
