Blending live instrumentation with electronic production, ARKADYAN have quietly carved a distinctive path through the global scene. Known for their genre-fluid approach and the strong communal energy of their shows, the trio’s residency at Surf Club Dubai has grown from small gatherings of friends to major monthly events.
Recent moments – from playing sunrise sets over the desert to viral collaborations with names like Hugel – underline a project built on organic growth rather than quick wins. In conversation, they reflect on the role of consistency, the balance between planning and improvisation in their performances, and how cultural memory shapes the music they create. With their first album and new collaborations on the horizon, ARKADYAN’s next chapter looks set to push their hybrid live-electronic sound even further.
You’ve built a huge following through your residency at Surf Club in Dubai. How did those early events with just friends evolve into something that now draws thousands? What lessons did you take from that growth?
Even if we are positively surprised by the success of “ARKADYAN Voyage” at SurfClub Dubai, we work a lot for this event. It is just a monthly residency, but we work all the month with our team to make it great. Is challenging but fun at the same time. We repeat often that for the first parties 3 years ago it was just 15 friends and now 3000. So that gave us the lesson that as soon as you start something and you keep going with consistency, then this something grows and people adopt your idea or concept or party.
Your sound blends live percussion, wind instruments, and electronic production — how did that hybrid approach come together, and how do you balance spontaneity with structure in your live sets?
3 of us have a 20 years musician background and perform in many live projects in many genres, so we are very comfortable on stage and it’s natural for us to improvise regarding crowd reactions or to build up emotions. Marina, as a DJ and Benjy and Gabriel instrumentalist in love with electronic and repetitive music, it was natural to create this hybrid blend of live instruments and electronic music. We usually plan 50% of our set in advance and anyway 75% of our live set is made with our own productions, so we know by heart what is playing, so we know exactly what we are doing and where there is space for improvisation.
You recently played a back-to-back set in a hot air balloon over the Dubai desert — wild. What was the concept behind that, and how do you see performance spaces evolving in electronic music?
Yes, it was “wild” and emotional. Our friend Dj Mrgoodalf invited us for that, we said yes before he finished his question (hahaha). You can play music wherever you want, on your airpods or playing a live set. Is just experimenting with unusual places. I think there is no limit. And the more unexpected places, more unique will be the experience for the people at that place or for the people watching later on the video contents.
Your track “Iag Bari” with Grossmodo has taken off before it has even dropped, thanks to Hugel’s support. How do you navigate virality — does it change the way you approach your releases or how you measure success?
It definitely helps to identify success or buzz when a big name like Hugel plays your song. Actually it became viral on Hugel’s TikTok and Instagram with more than 10 Millions views and counting…, and that’s why Hugel asked us if we were ok to release it on his Label MakeTheGilrsDance Record. This example will not change our way of producing, but will definitely change our way of posting on socials 😉
You’ve been backed by big names like Bob Sinclar, and played globally at venues like Scorpios and festivals like Tomorrowland. What’s been the most formative moment on that journey so far?
Everything is formative actually. But as you talk about Bob Sinclar, when we sent our song for the 1st time by email to his label, and he replied that he wants to talk by phone, and then your phone ring, that was a cool moment 😀 It also shows us that our songs can get interest from “the big guys” which means a lot to us and proves we have to keep doing what we do, as is not that bad at the end. This example helps us to grow and be more confident in front of our own ideas in the studio.
Your music pulls influence from Latin and Balkanic sounds — how do your cultural backgrounds shape your production and the stories you want your music to tell?
We believe that we have to produce the sounds of our life, from childhood to life experience from any period of time. Our parents’ music heritage, what he listened to on CDs when we were teenagers, music we listen to in the streets when discovering the world or music we dance on during wild parties, this is what we are all made of. We simply produce all our influences and memories, because it’s part of our DNA, this is what makes us vibrate and happy. We really often realise that turning old music from our past into its electronic version will touch people the same way we were touched by this style years ago.
With such a strong live element in your sets, what does your creative process look like in the studio? Do you start with a rhythm, a melody, or something more abstract?
Exactly, in the studio we very often start by jamming and see what’s cool, then Benjy’s percussion pattern gives the first step, we add a kick and then we loop to play some melodies on top. Once we are happy with this first “block” then we start to create the structure, some breaks, some build ups…etc…
What’s next for ARKADYAN in 2025 — are there new collaborations, residencies, or concepts you’re exploring that you can share with us?
We’ve been producing a lot, and we will try to release more often, also we are working on our 1st album. We are working now with singers such as Enrico Macias from France, Ajda Pekkan from Turkey, Anne Tello form U.S. or Raluka from Romania, all these collabs are gonna be very cool. Scorpios gave us a summer monthly residency in Scorpios Mykonos and Scorpios Bodrum.
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