• “Disco Boi Beirut” revisits a song you first created in 2017. How has your artistic perspective evolved since that original version?

Since 2017, my perspective has changed drastically. I’ve gained a lot more confidence singing in Arabic, learned how to make songs more concise, and refined my production and mixing. Revisiting “Disco Boi Beirut” now feels like bringing the original idea into its most focused and authentic form.

• Your music blends NYC energy with Beirut nostalgia. How do these two worlds shape your identity as an artist?

Beirut and NYC both live in my music, but in different ways. NYC gave the original groove, while Beirut shaped how I express it, adding soul, rhythm, and a connection to my roots. This blend defines my sound and identity as an artist.

• Your grandmother played a meaningful role in inspiring the faster, refreshed version of the track. How does family influence your creative process overall?

My family brings me joy and inspiration. Seeing them enjoy my music motivates me, and my grandmother in particular has been a guiding influence throughout my life. She inspired this refreshed version, and I hope to honor her further with a dedicated album in the near future.

• You’ve lived and created music between New York, Boston, Providence, and Beirut. How have these cities contributed to your sound and artistic growth?

Each city shaped the project in its own way. New York brought inspiration from friends like Joe D. Providence gave me the chance to go deeper and connect with collaborators like Aleks K, Isabelle Malhame and Matt Hatch. Boston helped me perfect my craft while meeting amazing people, Matthew Deluccia, Jihad Milan, Gabi Carvajal Poisson, and Karl Deek, who became part of this journey. This project is really a product of all the incredible people I’ve met along the way.

• The track merges English and Arabic to express infatuation and longing. What does this linguistic blend represent for you personally and culturally?

Mixing English and Arabic reflects who I am and where I come from. It’s a way to honor my roots while sharing my story with a wider audience. Culturally, it bridges two worlds, capturing both nostalgia and contemporary experience, and personally, it allows me to express emotion in the language that fits the feeling best.

• The Arabic line “صبية منبعيد ، غنّيلي وتعيد وتعملي حركات” – “Sabiyye mnebeed tghanille wou t3id wou ta3melle harakeit” captures a very specific, poetic moment. What inspired this imagery, and what does it symbolize in the context of the song?

Honestly, the music came first, and I already knew the song would be about her. “Disco Boi” is about trying to get the girl. This lyric came naturally from a specific moment in time. She was visiting Lebanon, and we were dancing at Decks on the Beach at Beirut Sporting Club. She was singing to me from afar, calling me to join the dance. The imagery captures that playful, intimate moment.

• The recording process involved revisiting your earliest studio sessions in Providence and blending them with new Boston recordings. How did it feel to literally merge your musical past and present into one track?

It was a surreal and exciting experience. Listening back to the earliest sessions in Providence reminded me of where I started, while the new Boston recordings reflected who I am now as an artist. Merging them into one track felt like connecting past and present, giving the song a sense of growth and continuity.

• You reunited with long-time collaborators like Matthew Hatch and Isabelle Malhame for this release. How did their contributions help bring this new vision to life?

Working with Matt and Isabelle was incredible. They understand my vision and bring their own creativity and energy, helping me expand the song’s sound while keeping its original spirit. Their contributions were key in turning the refreshed version into something alive and vibrant.

1. In such a fast paced AI digital era, how do you see the future of the music industry and its impact on indie artists?

For me, music is about joy and connection. I make it for myself, my family, and friends, and to bring a little vision to life. I hope AI can help with the boring stuff, like taxes or paperwork, so we can spend more time creating things we enjoy but overall I think the future of the music industry will be more appreciative of the unconventional.

• Finally, tell us more about your 2026 plans.

For 2026, I’m really excited about a couple of projects. First is our upcoming album, Kite Without a String, set to release around March or April. It’s definitely our strongest work yet, guitar-driven folk-pop with strong lyrics, great hooks, and, as always, crafted with love and care. I might even play the title track live acoustically at our December 23 show in Beirut.

Beyond that, I’m also working on an album dedicated to my grandmother. This one will lean more into Arabic language and Middle Eastern sounds, celebrating her influence and the music of my roots. Both projects feel very personal, and I can’t wait to share them with listeners.

With “Disco Boi Beirut,” John Lebanon delivers far more than a nostalgic dance track — he offers a heartfelt tribute to memory, identity, and the moments that shape us. His ability to merge languages, cultures, and eras into a seamless sonic experience reveals an artist deeply connected to both his past and his future. As he prepares for intimate performances in Beirut and a major concert in Boston next spring, it’s clear that John Lebanon’s musical journey is only gaining momentum. For listeners around the world, “Disco Boi Beirut” stands as both an invitation and a promise: the best of what he has to offer is still unfolding.

The song’s bright rhythmic sway is shaped by a blend of shimmering synth touches, soft acoustic layers, and crisp, steady drums; a rounded bassline lends an anchoring warmth, creating a smooth foundation for the melody to breathe. Above it, Anjalts’ distinct vocal tone remains the guiding force: airy yet centered, carrying the emotional thread with a clarity that makes the nostalgia feel close without overwhelming the listener.

There’s an elegant balance between movement and stillness here. The arrangement feels intentionally open, allowing her voice to sweep gently over the retro-rock pop textures while leaving space for reflection. As the chorus blooms, the track leans into its brightest colours, capturing that lingering sweetness of a memory that refuses to dull with time.

Working once again with IXO Music engineer Acen Sinclair, Anjalts embraces a lighter, quieter atmosphere than some of her more intensely charged earlier releases. Summer is Gone arrives as a soft exhal; a melodic pause between seasons, warm enough to hold onto even as the cold settles in. As a preview of her upcoming album Northern Lights, the track lingers with a delicate glow, offering a reminder that even fading moments carry their own kind of brightness..

The band’s new self-titled album, Sexy Mathematics, is a testament to their evolution. It delves into themes of personal relationships, loneliness, despair, existential crises, and the anxiety about an uncertain future. This record represents a significant leap for the band, who decided to hire producer Stephen Krecklo and mixer Jordon Zadorozny to elevate their music to new heights. The result is a compelling blend of their rock foundations and modern digital synthesizers, creating a rich, atmospheric sound that is both intricate and powerful.

“Responsory” draws stylistic inspiration from The Cure’s “Lovesong,” while its lyrics reflect the resentment we often feel when forced to navigate societal pressures alongside those we disagree with—or even loathe—despite being unable to fully express ourselves, even to those we hold dearest. No matter how close or distant we are, an invisible barrier always seems to obstruct true understanding. Each generation grapples with these struggles, only to pass the burden to the next without any lasting resolution. Even in the face of existential crises like climate change, the cycle persists.

We spent our time working on and refining these songs to bring them all to a level that exceeds the work we’ve done previously, and I believe we’ve succeeded in that respect. The sound is more cohesive, the arrangements are tighter, the melodies are more interesting, and the performance is more polished. At the same time we’ve retained many of the core elements that make the music unique in the first place related to the style of the performance and lyrical content. – Chris Daviduik

Sexy Mathematics‘ journey started in Saskatoon with the release of their Integration EP, followed by their debut full-length album, Future Nights, in 2011. This period marked their transition to Toronto, where they recorded their sophomore album, Electronics, in 2014. The path to their latest self-titled album, Sexy Mathematics, was not straightforward. The band faced delays and challenges, including the global COVID-19 pandemic, but these obstacles only deepened their resolve to refine their sound and vision.

Despite the challenges and changes, Sexy Mathematics remains true to their roots. Their music is a reflection of their personal and collective experiences, a testament to their enduring connection as a band. For listeners who believe in the transformative power of music, Sexy Mathematics offers a profound, immersive experience – a record that demands repeated listening to fully appreciate its depth and nuance.

Auteur Research

Lunar Decay opens with Passion Fall, a mellow tune with a groovy flow and fluid melodies. It engages in a smooth progression that softly moves forward with a dreamy sound as atmospheric elements are added as the song’s deep emotional vibes escalate, creating a hypnotizing organic structure with diverse synth, dream pop, and subtle post-rock influences all fused creating something really original. Luma Fade steers into a more psychedelic sound in Nove Sunshine. They cleverly crafted its sound with resonating deep bass and ambient guitar melodies that slowly build the song’s melancholic sound and reach its peak when met with this heart-hitting vocal melody, keeping the listeners hooked on its touching nature. Spring Sobriety comes next building on its predecessor’s sound, while experimenting with a slightly faster pace and more dynamic structure. It has balanced layering and arrangement that allow him to deliver tight sound shifts, creating smooth escalations and powerful melodic streams with multiple elements where each element is well heard and digested.

Monsoon Morning sends some doomy/goth vibes within its dreamy core, showing another side of Luma Fade‘s writing. It has a surrounding dark sound with hard-hitting bass and a fuzzy atmosphere, deepening its emotions. Autumn Endings picks up Monsoon Morning’s mood and builds upon it, introducing some catchy, open-sounding melodies with heavy, energetic strumming while keeping the mysterious, dark vibes intact and even more powerful as they added fast heavy riffing to their mix that shook the dynamics off. Dimmer Summer keeps the melancholic mood going with some heavy influences and raw riffing mixed with Luma Fade‘s dreamy fluid sound and ambient surroundings, giving the song a mix of progressive, psychedelic, and stoner rock tastes. Loop Analog comes with a groovy flow and melodic riffs that introduce a sweet chill sense to Luma Fade‘s dark sound, and as it moves forward those melodies guide the song’s progression toward a big spacious sound without compromising its mood as it takes different shapes throughout its subtle twists and turns. Getting a more upbeat treatment as we get closer to the end of the record, comes Twilight Hours following its predecessor’s melodic riffing and flow while taking it to the next level within a spacious structure with a dreamy atmosphere filled with fat enjoyable basslines. Its sound seamlessly escalates with an inviting flow, keeping its psychedelic vibes intact while steering towards catchy, poppy twists. Winter Warming ends the record on a high note, nearly mixing every part of this journey and leaving us with a taste of Luma Fade‘s original elements from the atmospheric mood and the deeply emotional psychedelic touch to big progressions, open-sounding riffs and solid mood, all in an extremely interesting structure with a lot of exciting sound shifts that leave the listeners playing the whole record again from the top.

Lunar Decay is a great introduction to the world of Luma Fade, it shows his seasoned writing skills and well-knowledge of his sound and direction as he kept his mood and vision uncompromised throughout the whole record while freely moving between different elements and sounds. Looking forward to more from Luma Fade, keep on rocking man. Cheers!