Solasta Festival is leaving its original grounds in northeastern Tennessee for the misty, hill-bound Deerfields Retreat in southwestern North Carolina. The event is known for its niche curation, booking the cream of the contemporary crop in psychedelic broken beat music. Unlike their location, this ethos hasn’t changed. Our Sound of Solasta interview series investigates the back stories of artists on the lineup, and this year we’re focusing on the ascendant audio alchemist Pathwey from the nearby city of Asheville, NC.

The experimental hip-hop and R&B producer RudeManners follows the axiom that a diverse portfolio is a stronger portfolio. Pegging this New York producer with one style is hard. He makes jazzy work, boom-bap tunes, “phonk” and trap beats, a bit of lo-fi house, and a ton of spacey trip-hop-influenced songs. But in comparison to his peers, his catalog has a distinct and recognizable sound that’s defined by a lounge aesthetic.

If you trace back the career of the Fort Knox Five, you’ll also discover the evolution of the musical style commonly known as electro funk. Almost 15 years ago they found their way from Washington D.C. to British Columbia, Canada and Shambhala Music Festival, and they’ve made it their home ever since. More recently, Fort Knox Five began performing with fellow DC DJ Qdup, and soon the duo will funk Shambhala for the fifth year in a row.

Channeling New York City's undeniable hip-hop legacy, nick tesla reinvents the relationship between sampled gold and head-nod rhythms. His style absorbs the melodic sensibilities of soul, jazz, blues, and disco wrapped up and delivered in a Lo-Fi veneer.

The backstory of Austrian producer Voljum is a novel one. He’s a 19-year-old classical pianist who produces electronic music in his spare time, and offers ghost production across several genres of music. He’s released six original tracks to date, and each one demonstrates extraordinarily advanced sound design. Little else is known about the producer beyond this, although perhaps more will come to light following the release of his first EP, Cyberglobe, which is available today through the experimental outlet VALE.

Telemakus is a 19-year old producer from the Bay Area who is skilled beyond his years on the piano and in the digital audio workspace. His first productions appear to come from three or four years ago, and his most recent work came earlier this year; Calantha Vol. 2, the second of his two LPs. On this record from Inner Ocean Records, you can hear Telemakus truly indulging his jazz sensibilities.