“On one level, I'm still making dance-floor Neurofunk - music for people to go crazy to at a party, cranked up loud. But for those who listen deeper, I leave messages in there. A mood…”
Soul Chemical chats with the legendary Tobax about modern neurofunk, music production, and fatherhood, for an in-depth look at the life of Alex tobax.
It's great to be able to host your music on the label. Where did you draw inspiration from for this release and how does the Tobax signature sound play a part in that?
Artist Background
The way my music sounds has always been the digested result of everything I take in from the world around me, from music, books, film, and current events that stick with me. But at the end of the day, it's still Neuro DnB. It's still ideas that come straight from my own head.
We haven't seen the same volume of releases come from you in the past couple of years. Are you taking a more targeted, methodical approach to writing music as opposed to focusing on volume?
My approach to making music hasn't really changed. I work the same way I always have — except that over the last five years, my life went through some massive upheavals. COVID, relocating from Russia to Germany, a jaw injury from an accident, and losing my mother. All of that hit the pace of my output hard. But I'm finding my way back to my old rhythm. I never stopped releasing music, I just put things out less frequently. What did shift significantly is that I stopped releasing on big labels, because I couldn't deal with the creative restrictions they impose or the endless waiting lists. These days I'm either self-releasing or working with labels that give me real creative freedom, and big thanks to Warlock for being one of them.
Grab this amazing background art on a T-shirt here
We see you’ve been sharing a lot of cooking content lately. What inspired you to start posting those videos?
Honestly, two things have fascinated me since I was a kid: music and cooking. Music I eventually figured out. But at some point I realized it was time to dive seriously into the art of cooking. I grew up glued to cooking shows on TV, and what I'm doing now is basically that same thing. I even spent a year working as a cook at the busiest, most popular restaurant in central Dresden, just to get that professional foundation. It was brutal, physically demanding work, but I sharpened my skills through it. Before that, I felt like I had no business starting a cooking channel without real professional knowledge and restaurant-level technique. So once I put in that year, I knew I had what I needed - I quit, and that same day I launched my first cooking pages.
People are excited about this release. Will we see more Tobax music coming this year?
Yes, at minimum, there'll be another release on Warlock Audio this year, plus various self-releases. Keep an eye on our pages for updates.
First release here:
Life Outside Music
The Creative Process
What’s something you’re doing differently in the studio now compared to your earlier work?
Warlock Audio Release
Who are the artists that you think are killing it in the Neuro scene right now?
The veterans like Audio, Prolix, and Ed Rush are genuinely remarkable, because they've stayed relevant and interesting for such a long time. Very few producers manage to hold onto their sound and their edge over that kind of run. That commands real respect. From the newer generation, I'd highlight Enta from the UK and Finalfix from Belgium. Enta brings this really interesting blend of Neuro and Jump Up. Finalfix has that old-school Neurofunk spirit wrapped in a modern sound. I think they're both seriously strong musicians with real potential to lead the scene going forward.
Do you see any parallels between cooking and producing music?
Absolutely, there are a lot of parallels. Both are creative work that gives me genuine pleasure in the process, and even more satisfaction when I see that what I've made moves people.
How has being a family man shaped your priorities and your approach to music?
It reshapes everything. The moment you become a father, you start cutting out anything in your life that doesn't serve a real purpose — anything that gets in the way of building a stable future for your kid. A good childhood. A real shot at something. A father worth looking up to. When I found out I was going to be a dad, I dropped out of university in my second year. And honestly, I have zero regrets about that.
I'm doing things the same way I always have — and truthfully, that's part of the problem. At some point I stopped keeping up with where music production was heading, and now I'm playing catch-up on a lot of ground in a short amount of time. For example, I only recently updated my FabFilter bundle, while a lot of my peers had been upgrading with every new release and growing their sound as a result. So in a way, I've got some leveling up to do.
Did any new tools, techniques, or workflows play a key role in shaping this new material?
No, not really — and the answer to the previous question explains why.
Can you walk us through the concept or vision behind this release?
Distorted Minds is a critique of everything happening to us right now — the way we let information and world events pull our minds in the wrong direction. And this isn't just about people around me. It includes me. So in a way, it's also self-criticism.
How do these new tracks represent where you are artistically right now?
Looking Forward
On one level, I'm still making dance-floor Neurofunk — music for people to go crazy to at a party, cranked up loud. But for those who listen deeper, I leave messages in there. A mood. A direct reflection of where I am, what I'm going through, what moment in time I'm living in. Even in something as raw and strange as Neuro DnB, you can feel that if you're willing to go there. And I'm genuinely glad that some people have picked up on what I was trying to say in these tracks. These aren't songs in the traditional sense where the meaning lives in the lyrics — it goes much deeper than that, and sometimes you really have to dig to find the true mood underneath. That's exactly why I love drum and bass. Nothing is laid out on the surface. You have to fully surrender to it.
What can listeners expect from Tobax moving forward? More music, more cooking content, more live sets,or a combo of everything?
Expect both. I plan to stay active in both worlds. Though I won't rule out that at some point I may have to choose — whatever best fits where I am creatively, financially, and in terms of the actual value I'm putting out into the world.
You mastered these tracks yourself, and they sound exceptionally polished. At what point do you decide a track is ready to move from mixdown into mastering mode?
I am normally very fluid with my mixdown process and often mix a track as I produce it, which blurs the edges of when the mixdown process starts and ends. However, mastering comes about when:
- I am happy with a song structurally and conceptually.
- I have no, or very few (normally less than 3) identifiable issues with the mix (the mix can always be endlessly tweaked, so a line has to be drawn somewhere).
- The song has good translation across multiple different speakers and with headphones.
Can you walk us through your mastering chain in detail; EQ, compression, saturation, limiting, and what you’re listening for at each stage?
1. EQ: Deliberate but small boosts and cuts to subtly shape the tonal balance. A low-cut on the side signal somewhere around 100hz to negate any phase issues with the sub frequencies when listening in mono, and subtle shaping of the side signal in the remaining unaffected area above the low cut.
During this step I am listening for areas (not individual elements) in the mix that are slightly too busy or that stick out of the mix in an unintentional and undesirable way. On the contrary I am also listening for areas in the mix that are not as pronounced or apparent as I would like them to be. Using a gain matched reference track that has the desired sound helps massively to achieve the intended tonal balance and side image.
A key thing to bear in mind is that EQ at this stage should not be used with the intention of affecting individual elements in the mix. EQ at the mastering stage should be about shaping the track as a whole by boosting or attenuating relatively broad frequency ranges. If I’m finding that I need to boost or cut anything by more than around 3dB then it tells me that I need to go back into the mix and fix it there.
2. Top-end compression: The Glue by Cytomic. Long attack and short release to preserve transients, with a high pass around 300hz so the kick and sub stay largely uncompressed, and light gain reduction (just enough to smooth everything out slightly).
This coheres the top end of the track, primarily affecting the tops of the drums to keep them consistent but also slightly taming any harshness in the FX, keeping them sounding refined.
3. Low-end compression: Izotope Ozone Dynamics. Using only the compressor, with auto gain on, a low pass at around 200hz to isolate the low end, light gain reduction (I normally end up at around 2dB (peak) of GR). I don’t normally touch any of the ratio, attack, release, or knee settings. This keeps the sub frequencies consistent and ensures that the kick and the sub aren’t hitting the clipper too hard at the end of the chain. This allows for full usage of the available headroom and therefore increases the amount of gain that can be added using the clipper.
4. Clipping: Soft clipping with as much gain as can be added without unwanted distortion, and a ceiling set at a maximum of -0.3dB to avoid digital clipping and potential distortion introduced by the format conversion and lossy encoding done by streaming platforms.
How do you approach loudness and impact in mastering without sacrificing dynamics and depth, especially in bass-heavy, dramatic music?
Most of the loudness of the elements in my projects comes from the individual tracks themselves in the mix stage. I push each element (especially the drums and the basses) as hard as they can go, as early in the signal chain as possible. I try to have the signal coming out of Serum fairly hot and then soft clip the individual tracks, adding as much gain as I can get away with. This ensures that I am squeezing as much energy as possible out of a sound before it comes to any group processing or the master.
This approach preserves dynamics and depth in the mastering stage because the loudness has been built into the mix and I’m not relying on heavy processing to create loudness at the end of the chain. I tend to steer clear of limiters as I have never liked how they affect transient heavy sounds. I much prefer the sound of clipping as it retains the punch and impact of transients while still controlling peaks.
Looking Ahead
Finally, what’s next for Alias? Any upcoming releases, collaborations, or shifts in direction that fans should keep an eye out for in 2026?
Looking ahead into 2026 I’ll be focusing mostly on refinement and keeping consistent. There are a few releases that I’ve got lined up and I’m planning to keep up a steady output. One of the most important things for me is continuing to develop my sound and moving closer to the vision I have. I’ve got some collaborations in the works, one of which I’m particularly excited about, and I’m looking forward to sharing more on that when the time comes. Alongside label releases, I’ll also continue to put out music independently as well.
We’re stoked to be able to bring you this interview, and we have many more on the way. Check back for more Meet The Artist interviews and some Tech Talks are also on the way!