Dive Deeper Into the ‘Legacy’ of LEViT∆TE

After the release of his debut LP, Legacy, we caught up with LEViT∆TE to get a look into his creative mind that blends audio and visuals together.

Over the years, LEViT∆TE has been gracing the scene with his unique, compelling sounds. The audiovisual designer has become renowned for his impeccable sound design and ability to pair them with visuals that add extra depth to make his projects even more memorable. Now, he’s delivered his debut LP Legacy, and it’s nothing short of incredible. True to form, LEViT∆TE created visuals for the 10 tracks that are immersive and pleasing to the eye, so buckle up and get ready for this epic audiovisual journey.

Legacy begins with “96,” an emotional track that features Kody Ryan and foreshadows what is to come. The visuals that were paired with this track were breathtaking as the three main characters, two humans and one AI, travel through a gorgeous mountain landscape with trees as far as the eye could see. Following “96” is “Among Trees.” The track starts off slow, as Percy (the AI) walks through the forest before foreboding bass plays and cuts to a scene of it being engulfed in flames.

As the story continues, the music and mood changes. “Protectors Story” mellows out but quickly switches to grittier sounds with “Protectors Story Pt. 2,” where LEViT∆TE pushes musical boundaries. This comes just before he dives into different genres like drum and bass on “Harbinger” and delivers hard-hitting, distorted bass in “For Your Life.” This is a great example of the mind-bending talents that LEViT∆TE has in the studio, and ushers in the darker part of the Legacy story as one of the characters is running for his life through the forest.

“Casualties” is a reminder that “Although some days may be darker than others, just know however dark it gets, the sun will eventually rise.” And throughout Legacy, we see and hear the tragedy that humanity is going through – fire, destruction, fear, and uncertainty. But as it wraps up with “Brighter Horizons” there is hope for a better tomorrow as the protagonists walk through the mountains and the sun shines amongst the trees. Sad, yet beautiful, it’s a wondrous display of all that LEViT∆TE can do.

It’s clear that LEViT∆TE put so much time into Legacy and the result is simply stunning. Check out the full story on YouTube or listen to it on your favorite platform, and read on as we explore the mind of this creative audiovisual artist!

Watch LEViT∆TE – Legacy on YouTube:

Hi LEViT∆TE, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us today. Congrats on the release of Legacy, it’s an absolute stunner. Did you create all of the tracks with the project in mind or did it draw from other work as well?

Hey, of course, thank you! All of the songs besides the opening tune “96” were made specifically for the album in the context of the storyline, I believe even in that order.

“Protectors Story Pt. 2” has that signature LEViT∆TE bass, what is your production process like when creating these heavy bass fueled tracks?

Hell yeah, I mean it’s all about tension and release. After the scene has been set and I have room to really punch shit, I try to do that with as much intent as possible. Another thing I try to do is leave a lot of room for the frequency spectrum to really drop. Leading into that kind of thing I want the song to feel like it’s completely composed of midrange and high end, then when the time comes, I overcompensate filling the low end on the drop and make sure everything sounds “pitted.”

You paired this album with some stunning visuals for each track that tells different parts of the Legacy journey from start-to-finish. What were some of your influences in creating these digital landscapes? Did specific movies or places inspire you?

Yeah! A big one was “Tales From The Loop” and as an extension of that, the art of Simon Stålenhag. Besides that source, there are things I grew up with like “Ghost In The Shell” and later, “District 9” anything that doesn’t romanticize a technical future. Things that are inherently not pretty but still post-modern.

When you’re preparing for an audiovisual performance in front of a live audience, what sort of planning takes place ahead of the show?

Oh so much. [Laughs] A lot of it is mapping my visuals to be able to play the same way I would play a part of my music. All of the songs are broken into four stems then organized in a way I can play them on the fly. Then the clips that will signal the corresponding videos also have to be organized intelligently so I can keep up and know what is going on without having to look at the screen or the computer that’s hosting them. It gets so nerdy and so technical.

During the pandemic, many artists have expressed that they’ve experienced swings of creativity. How has this affected you and your work?

It’s hard to say, I was on the middle-tail end of this whole album project when lockdowns started happening, so I had a pretty concise to-do list throughout, and still do actually. Strangely enough, though, something about the pandemic inspired me to routinely start working out and fix my sleep schedule for the first time in around five years, I don’t understand why, but it worked and I’ve physically felt wonderful since.

Beyond your own releases, you also created the soundtrack for The Tax Collector. Since your music already carries a cinematic feel to it, does your mindset change at all when producing music for movies?

Well, I definitely didn’t create the whole soundtrack, [Laughs] they had just used a song of mine. Which was incredible to see! It was very unexpected actually. That being said, I have written pieces for cinematic things. Mostly trailers. It’s a completely different ballgame. The biggest thing I’ve learned is, with most music as an electronic artist, you write to deliver a specific message or moment. Everything leads to this one drop, or hook, or whatever main focal point.

With cinematic stuff, it’s not like that at all, it’s much more about giving the listener these doses of different feelings throughout in one motion, like really taking them on for a ride. Often times they are not satisfied when it’s finished, which is the exact opposite of most electronic music. Usually, electronic songs are all about satisfying the listener.

For artists who may just be in the beginning moments of their career or are looking for some guidance, if you could give them one piece of advice what would it be?

Yeah, there’s really one thing that has been outstanding through this whole thing for me, like, actually one single best ideology that has worked over the past ten years. And it’s to do whatever you feel like doing with your art. Simple as that. Criticism is often an ill-fitting glove. If you want to drop a 30 track beat tape of un-mastered songs, tonight, then do it. If you want to start a mix series of death metal mixed with IDM, then do it. I promise you, you will come out the other end in a better, happier place.

Now that the year is nearly over and your debut album is in the rearview mirror, what can we expect from the LEViT∆TE project in 2021?

I literally have no idea. But whatever it is, it will be whatever I want to do. [Laughs]

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