New Noise: How Loudness Became a Creative Tool

On an overcast Wednesday in May, a room full of people at South London venue Ormside Projects break into a sweaty moshpit, moved by thunderous bass frequencies and bursts of screams emanating from the stage. A heavy, thrashing sound fills the air: guts shake with low-end vibrations and wailing distortion rattles teeth. Speakers clip and briefly cut out, while the mixing desk groans under the weight of its redline limit. It's so loud you can barely hear your own thoughts.

The person responsible for this maelstrom was aya, the Huddersfield-born producer and performer who broke out with a run of dynamic club records in the late '10s, and has leaned further into uncompromising electronic music since the release of her debut album, im hole, in 2021. "I play at a consistent volume throughout," she told me after her set, "because people want to be physically moved by the sound when they hear me." With a mischievous look, she added: "And I want to be battered by noise."

Read the feature on Resident Advisor.

[This piece was published on 16/10/25]