Folktronica Archives - Hot Soap Recording Studios

Pinwheel Valley – Going Away (Single)

Manager — Sun, 25 May 2025 06:54:34 +0000

Recorded by Qais Khoury & Tal Arditi / Mixed by Andreas Matheou – at Hot Soap Studios in Spring of 2025.
Mastered by Robb R
Release: Single ”Going Away”
Written by Pinwheel Valley & Tal Arditi
Cover Art by Alex Pap

“Going Away” by Pinwheel Valley is a slow-burning, gut-wrenching, soul-surrendering kind of indie song. Co-written with Berlin-based guitarist and composer Tal Arditi, it’s not some overproduced radio bait. It’s vulnerable and real.

The song moves like a spiritual journey, starting in the dark, tangled corners of self-doubt and societal pressure, then gradually moving toward something softer, freer, more open. Arditi’s guitar work ripples with warmth and precision, while Qais’s voice carries a fragile strength that sounds like it’s lived a thousand lifetimes. Together, they build a soundscape that’s cinematic without being over-the-top, intimate without feeling small.

“Going Away” is about letting go, not just of someone else, but of everything you thought you had to be. It’s about peeling back the noise, the ego, the weight of performance, and finding something quieter and truer underneath.

The post Pinwheel Valley – Going Away (Single) appeared first on Hot Soap Recording Studios.

Tea Dragon – Tea Dragon (EP)

Manager — Fri, 25 Oct 2024 04:52:04 +0000

Recorded by Andreas Matheou / Produced and Mixed by Qais Khoury – at Hot Soap Studios in Spring of 2024.
Mastered by Robb R
Release: EP ”Tea Dragon”
Written by Tea Dragon
Cover Art by @Artcohr

Tea Dragon Orchestrated a Symphonic Parable of Dualism with the Instrumental EP, Tea Dragon

Qais Khoury continues to be an incalculable entity in the music industry; the fluidity of their creativity refuses to be dammed, evidenced by their panoramic symphonic narrative of an instrumental 2-track EP, Tea Dragon.

The prelude piece, Void, eases you into the profoundly unexpected EP; the opening chapter of a story told in melody, set in the dusk of desolation arrests through the tenderly ruminative guitars filtered through ambient reverberations, intersected by classical strings and electronica aesthetics of cinematic serenity.

The title single contrasts the quiescence caged within Void; lush tonal transcendence precedes the art-rock crescendo which unflinchingly extends throughout the intricate rhythmic visceralism of the release, the contorting time signatures become emblems of fortitude as they meet resistance with resilience.

Side by side, Void and Tea Dragon become a manifestation of the dualism between introspection and action.

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Pinwheel Valley – Live from Hot Soap Studios (EP)

Manager — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 04:38:23 +0000

Recorded by Andreas Matheou / Mixed by Qais Khoury & Andreas Matheou – at Hot Soap Studios in Spring of 2023.
Mastered at CPS Mastering
Release: EP ”Live from Hot Soap Studios”
Written by: Pinwheel Valley
Cover Art by Alex Pap

Having long found inspiration in the likes of Jeff Buckley, Thom Yorke and Fink, singer-songwriter Qais is a white-heat intensity in Pinwheel Valley’s panoptic sound, as the rising dynamo in the making (with Stef Meletiou on drums & Max Daniels on bass) strike both sonically & lyrically with iridescent and pastel aural-tones. As do Palace, Half Moon Run or Art of Sleeping, the cluster melds the genre blends of Indie Soul, Mellow Alternative Rock and Folktronica with fingerprint intricacy. A group that has evolved profoundly over the years, having toured throughout Vancouver, Toronto and Seattle in 2016 and 2017, received numerous accolades such as a Canadian Best Out of Province nomination at the 13th Toronto Independent Music Awards, and landed acclaim in the archives of pivotal blogs like Clash Magazine, Earmilk and Music News, Pinwheel Valley holds firm in belief. In 2020, they joined the London Indie sync licensing roster, North Note, and in 2020 were invited to a prestigious show by BBC Radio London host Robert Elms for their seminal 2018 single, Take Me Home. Currently, the group continues to work on their profoundly explorative music out of their home base island in the Mediterranean. A place encircled by water on all sides, their only wait out proves to be none other than a steady rise up.

The post Pinwheel Valley – Live from Hot Soap Studios (EP) appeared first on Hot Soap Recording Studios.

Pinwheel Valley – Willow (EP)

admin — Wed, 31 Dec 0498 23:01:52 +0000

Recorded, mixed and produced by Andreas Matheou, Qais Khoury & Sam Royo Varela at Hot Soap Studios in Winter of 2022
Mastered at CPS Mastering
Release: EP ”Willow”
Written by: Pinwheel Valley (formerly known as KAIS)
Cover Art by Alex Pap

Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Pinwheel Valley (Qais Khoury) takes the complexities of the human condition as inspiration for his fusionist sound that sonically melds the realms of indie soul, neo psychedelic rock and folk. At the outset of his music career, he addressed global topics before turning his attention to the drab difficulties and profound beauty of being human and lyrically dipped into meta poetry. 

Clash Magazine praised him for ‘working on different dimensions, pushing himself further and tapping into uncharted emotions.’ As a lover of the metaphysical, Pinwheel Valley’s work consists of finding balance between natural inclinations and the demands in an ego-driven late-stage capitalist world, and his wanderlust tendencies have seen him gracing global stages since the early 2000s as an independent artist. Since honing his craft in the early 2010s, he has been well-accoladed and featured in pivotal blogs such as ‘Music News’ and LA’s ‘Buzz’.  In 2020, Pinwheel Valley joined the London Indie sync licensing roster, North Note, and in 2021 he was interviewed by BBC Radio London host Robert Elms for his seminal 2018 single, Take Me Home. 

Currently, Pinwheel Valley works out of Hot Soap Studios, his personal and commercial recording studio in Cyprus, where he continues to hone his profoundly explorative music.

“In a time when it is impossible to hear anything but aggravated polarised opinions, Pinwheel Valley’s intellectually humanistic approach to music is the breath of fresh air that our souls are crying out for.” Amelia Vandergast – A&R Factory.

The post Pinwheel Valley – Willow (EP) appeared first on Hot Soap Recording Studios.

Pinwheel Valley – Her Majesty’s Window (EP)

admin — Wed, 31 Dec 0492 23:01:35 +0000

Recorded, mixed and produced by Andreas Matheou & Qais Khoury at Hot Soap Studios in Summer of 2021
– Spell – Mixed by – Andreas Matheou & Qais Khoury
– Abduction – Mixed by – Andreas Matheou & Qais Khoury
– Healing – Mixed by – Matthew N
– Her Majesty’s Window – Mixed by – Andreas Matheou
– How We Die – Mixed by – Jim Mc
Mastered at CPS Mastering
Release: EP ”Her Majesty’s Window”
Written by: Pinwheel Valley (formerly known as KAIS)

Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Pinwheel Valley (Qais Khoury) takes the complexities of the human condition as inspiration for his fusionist sound that sonically melds indie, psych, soul-infused blues, rock and folk. At the outset of his music career, he addressed global topics before turning his attention to the drab difficulties and profound beauty of being human and lyrically dipped into meta poetry.

As a lover of the metaphysical, Pinwheel Valley’s work consists of finding the balance between natural inclinations and the demands in an ego-driven late-stage capitalist world. His wanderlust tendencies have seen him gracing global stages since the early 2000s as an independent touring artist. In 2014, he took part in the Mayor of London Big Busk and graduated with a diploma in Music Production and Sound Engineering from Point Blank Music College.

He toured Vancouver, Toronto and Seattle with a full band in 2016 and 2017, received an honorary mention in the 2016 International Songwriting Competition, a Canadian Best Out of Province nomination at the 13th Annual Toronto Independent Music Awards and a Lyrics Finalist position in the 2017 USA Songwriting Competition.

In 2021 he was interviewed by BBC Radio London host Robert Elms for his seminal 2018 single, Take Me Home.

Currently, Qais works from his personal and commercial recording studio, Hot Soap Studios, in Cyprus, where he continues to work on his profoundly explorative music that challenges society’s constricting constructs that inhibit actualization.

“In a time when it is impossible to hear anything but aggravated polarized opinions, Pinwheel Valley’s intellectually humanistic approach to music is the breath of fresh air that our souls are crying out for.” Amelia Vandergast – A&R Factory.

The post Pinwheel Valley – Her Majesty’s Window (EP) appeared first on Hot Soap Recording Studios.

Pinwheel Valley – Healing (Acoustic) (Single)

admin — Mon, 31 Dec 0491 23:01:57 +0000

Recorded and mixed by Andreas Matheou & Qais Khoury at Hot Soap Studios in Summer of 2021
Mastered at CPS Mastering
Release: Single ”Healing”
Written by: Pinwheel Valley (formerly known as KAIS)

Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Pinwheel Valley (Qais Khoury) takes the complexities of the human condition as inspiration for his fusionist sound that sonically melds indie, psych, soul-infused blues, rock and folk. At the outset of his music career, he addressed global topics before turning his attention to the drab difficulties and profound beauty of being human and lyrically dipped into meta poetry.

In 2021 he was interviewed by BBC Radio London host Robert Elms for his seminal 2018 single, Take Me Home.

The post Pinwheel Valley – Healing (Acoustic) (Single) appeared first on Hot Soap Recording Studios.