Irrupt launches as new source for 'sound elements'

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  • With a team including a number of Beatport's founders, the website will sell libraries made by world-renowned producers and sound designers.
  • Irrupt launches as new source for 'sound elements' image
  • A new online source for production sounds, Irrupt, has just launched. Irrupt is effectively selling sample packs, though the new company says there are some key differences between their products and what you'll find elsewhere. For one, their sounds are all exclusive, and they've been created by renowned sound designers and producers. The identities of the creators, though, won't play into how the sounds are marketed, nor will any information that suggests a genre for the sounds. Rather, the idea is to offer "high quality, creative sound elements" as a kind of "granular audio format" for producers and DJs. The team behind Irrupt includes veterans of music distribution, music production and online commerce: chairman Eloy Lopez and A&R rep Brad Roulier are two of the three founders of Beatport, and Jay Ahern, Irrupt's CEO, is a veteran of Hard Wax, the techno duo Hauntologists and many other production projects. Irrupt is currently operating in beta but will expand to the general public later this year. We caught up with Ahern and Lopez to find out more about their concept and future plans.
    What inspired you to start Irrupt? Our mission is to respectfully disrupt the current marketplace with something truly original and different, as well as extraordinary—to inspire new sound and production while respecting the creative energy of new and veteran talent. Our desire is to create and curate exclusive sound elements for electronic music producers and performers that will inspire them to push the boundaries of normal and innovate to make something extraordinary. There are lots of sample libraries and online shops selling samples for download. What are some of the key differences between those and Irrupt? The differences will be realized in the quality of our sound, product formatting, product presentation and overall branding of the service and features. For example, the term "sample pack/library" is a dirty word—it's a thing of the past. So we refer to [what we sell] as a "sound product." Our curated collections represent what we believe is a new digital audio format of a more granular nature, where creatives can engage with each element of sound or building block to shape exciting new studio compositions and real-time performances, or bring a DJ set to the next level. Doing something which may seem as simple as redefining a term internally has a huge impact in how we approach creative, production, marketing and even business development. Another example is product presentation and the use of the website. We will not use a top sales chart of any kind, and we won't force upon our users a list of what others purchase—doing so would eliminate the discovery and exploration experience we want to deliver to our users. We understand that top sales charts help identify trends, but we also know it aids to exploit trends to the point where uniqueness and innovation suffer. Who are you targeting with Irrupt? Is it just producers, or do you see a wider market for your product? We aspire to engage musical creatives at all levels, be it producers, sound designers, performers, DJs or anyone wishing to express themselves with sound. The sound designers behind your products are anonymous. Why is that? Without linking anybody to any specific product, can you give us a sense of who's involved in creating your sounds? A&R is one of our greatest strengths, and we believe it to be absolutely essential to offer "real deal" rather than "approximations" when it comes to any given genre. We are fortunate to be working with a team who all have significant musical backgrounds, deep connections and the respect of their communities. This reverberates in the authenticity of our products. With that said, tools are never greater than the complete musical work or performance, so any given producer is not the point. Instead, the point is the achievement of the creative end-user.
RA