[Alexandria, Virginia‘s] Rising Electronic Bass Music Producer KALIBR Chats w/ Us About His Futuristic Cyberstep Remixes Of Heavy Metal Band FRSTMRNE‘s Recently Released “Hello Nightmares” & 2022’s “Bright Lights“
☀ Written by: Monsoon Season’s EDM Weather Reporter, Garth Jones ☀
It’s no secret that metal, rock, and electronic music like dubstep or house mesh and merge so perfectly. To us headbangers, we share that commonality with our rocker/metalhead counterparts. This emerging alliance of genres could be considered musical matrimony.
Dubstep/bass artists like KAYZO, Yultron, SLANDER, Sullivan King, and many others, have all taken their jab at the fusion frenzy with big-ticket metal bands like Underoath, Bring Me The Horizon, Blessthefall, and Asking Alexandria, and the results are flooring.
Up-and-coming producers have also taken their turn in the tune torrent with collaborative efforts, remixes, and features to bring that very same vision to life in their respective releases.
Which leads us to why we are here today. KALIBR and FRSTMRNE have done it again!
● FRSTMRNE, (pronounced FROST-MOURNE), a burgeoning five-member hybridized metalcore/electronic band has not one but two official remixes of their releases from Michael Evans, a dubstep music producer known as KALIBR from Alexandria, Virginia.
One remix is of FRSTMRNE‘s wildly alluring single “Bright Lights” from 2022 and the second is for their newest single – “Hello Nightmares“ which was released three weeks ago.
KALIBR, surely ahead of his time, compliments FRSTMRNE’s original sound in each fiery remix by accompanying them with his signature aggressive bass-laden style and futuristic soundscapes cohesively and seamlessly. The band’s vocal screams, deep growls, and nasty guitar riffs play a major role in the remix’s identity and construction.
▼ As KALIBR‘s 2nd Official Remix For FRSTMRNE, Let’s Take A Listen and Closer Look At Both, “Hello Nightmares” & “Bright Lights”
⋅Listen on Spotify⋅
Remix #1 – [2022’s “Bright Lights” KALIBR Remix]
Here at Monsoon Season HQ were initially introduced to KALIBR‘s remixes for FRSTMRNE shortly after the “Bright Lights” official release in 2022 and have been hooked ever since.
Hooked on his remixes, his originals, and his brand/vision. It’s all so good and wickedly impressive.
KALIBR calculatingly creates a fierce and aggressive reiteration for FRSTMRE with his first swipe at remixing for them. “Bright Lights” brings the best of both worlds together in a wildly cohesive fashion and reminds the masses why metal and bass music work so well together under one roof.
While FRSTMRNE excels in its electronic background, usages, and respective position, KALIBR wastes no time elevating soundscapes, accentuating their quarrelsome lyrics/vocals, and highlighting “Bright Lights‘” noteworthy and standout instrumental sections.
His ending results leave his fans and listeners shaken, ready for more of his neo-militaristic sound, and with serious neck pains the next day (headbang overload?).
Remix #2 – 2023’s [“Hello Nightmares” KALIBR Remix]
⋅Listen on Spotify⋅
In KALIBR‘s newest remix of FRSTMRNE‘s “Hello Nightmares“, we witness the dynamic range and creative capability of the rising producer as he puts his cybernetic spin on the rowdy release.
In its totality, this variation holds more melodic undertones in its vocal works from FRSTMRNE and emotive soundscapes. The crunchy basslines bring the softer sections to life and under a new light from the creative processes that KALIBR effortlessly lays down in textbook fashion.
Ultimately, the acoustic ecology, and harsh screams from the band’s vocalist and guitarist’s breakdowns, and immersive drum patterns from their drummer all work in synchronicity with KALIBR‘s stylized vision of a neo-militaristic dystopia.
Check out both remixes by KALIBR, and you can tell us which one you like more, or if you like/love both.
Show your support on social media by following them both, and streaming/downloading their music on your preferred listening platform.
Let’s catch up w/ KALIBR and chat about his two remixes and what he has planned for the rest of 2023 and beyond.
[Interview with KALIBR]
Q1: Welcome to our storm KALIBR! How did you and the five-piece band FRSTMRNE first get connected to do a remix? Give us a snapshot of that exciting moment!
KALIBR responds:
FRSTMRNE was introduced to me by my friend David, owner and operator of Pewtrid Records. He suggested that I reach out to his friend Nick (lead singer and guitarist) for a potential remix opportunity. I reached out and was immediately greeted by a group of friendly individuals who were very supportive of my project. We agreed that I would do a remix for them, and that is how the Bright Lights remix was created. I have nothing but positive things to say about FRSTMRNE. They were extremely nice to work with, and I am hoping to work with them again In the future.
Q2: Between FRSTMRNE‘s “Bright Lights” and “Hello Nightmares”, which remix was the most fun to make and which one presented the most challenges, and ultimately how did you overcome them?
KALIBR responds:
That’s a great question, and honestly, it has a very challenging answer. I would say that my favorite remix to make was Hello Nightmares, simply because I was able to try new techniques that I had been learning about, and had multiple opportunities to try to work with the metal genre. I also had way more stems for the Hello Nightmares remix so that made building that puzzle extremely enjoyable.
My musical knowledge of production had increased significantly since the Bright Lights remix and I just felt more comfortable creating, and shaping a remix that I felt encompassed more of my style and abilities at that later time. The Bright Lights remix was a great stepping-stone for me to learn and find out how I wanted to create future blends of metal and electronic music.
So overall, an absolute pleasure to make both, but my favorite is and will probably always be the Hello Nightmares remix.
The biggest challenge with these remixes was probably finding out how many of the stems I wanted to use, versus recreate altogether. I think the Hello Nightmares project started with over 200 stems and I condensed it to about 50. I found other elements to replace those other stems while also creating a different vibe to the song.
Q3: As metal and bass music become more popular and accepted by both respective communities as a feral fusion phenomenon, where do you see the future of the merging genres? More or less?
KALIBR responds:
I think that the future of different genres coming together is going to be huge. So many people love EDM, but it’s not for everyone. I think that we will see more experimentation with genre-merging in order to bring new audiences to the scene and allow for different walks of life to be able to appreciate our EDM culture in a way that also speaks to them.
My personal favorite genres to merge are metal mixed with dubstep and synth-wave mixed with dubstep.
Q4: Can we expect another FRSTMRNE remix or even a collaboration?
KALIBR responds:
I have been working with Nick from FRSTMRNE for a while behind the scenes about potentially doing some additional work or collaborative projects. Nothing is set in stone yet, but it is always a pleasure to get to work with the band. I would say there is a high possibility that we could see something cool between the both of us in the future.
Q5: What’s next for KALIBR? Let your fans know what/when they can look forward to more music, events, and announcements!
KALIBR responds:
Some of the big things I have coming up in the future that I want to talk about, I can’t just yet. Although, I can say that they will be worth waiting for!
I can say that I have a bunch of new music in the works, I am working with some amazing and talented artists on collaborations, and I think that catalogue will be some of my best work to date.
I have a new merch line that I am working on that falls very heavily under the “cyberpunk” and techwear vibes. This line will be a way for me to showcase the other side of my project which is heavily focused on the visual side of KALIBR.
As far as streaming goes, I have taken a bit of a break from the Twitch streaming life and turned my time over to focusing on music production and working to make music that makes me happy, but also so that I can focus on myself and my growth as an artist. There will be popup streams from time to time, so don’t worry, just keep an eye on the socials for set announcements!
/// THANK YOU, KALIBR ///
With releases on labels like THE GOBLINS LAIR with “Mistakes“, and Rough Records via his collab with Triggabyte titled “Inferno“, self-released material such as his single “Gryme Tyme” and his Nightride EP, KALIBR is undeniably forging a path with his music, vision, and brand to the masses while showing no signs of slowing his ascension.
Keep those eyes peeled for more KALIBR coverage here on Monsoon Season.
⋅Listen on SoundCloud⋅
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➦ Follow KALIBR
linktr.ee/kalibr
➦ Follow FRSTMRNE:
withkoji.com/@FRSTMRNE
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