Musician And Youtuber Hainbach On ‘breath Of The Wild’ And Swiss Army Knives

Stefan Paul Goetsch, amended known arsenic Hainbach, is simply a German experimental composer, artist, and YouTuber who is possibly astir celebrated for making euphony pinch laboratory instrumentality and technological instruments. He describes it arsenic being for illustration nan “Dark Souls of synthesis.” Despite utilizing “hard mode” accumulation techniques that often trust connected telephone statement testing instrumentality and cogwheel salvaged from atomic testing facilities, Hainbach is besides incredibly prolific, releasing six albums successful 2025 alone, on pinch a fistful of singles and EPs. His latest, Gentle Hum, is simply a collaboration pinch Ah! Kosmos (Turkish composer, Başak Günak). The medium is simply a melancholic postulation of unconventional percussion, droning analog synths, processed vocals, and, of course, burbling trial equipment.

His award-winning composing profession and predominant philharmonic collaborations would beryllium capable to support astir group engaged 24/7, but Hainbach is besides a successful YouTuber. His channel explores experimental euphony techniques, obscure vintage gear, and moreover modern oddities for illustration nan Bastl Kalimba. As if that wasn’t enough, he besides often collaborates pinch companies for illustration AudioThing to bring nan principle of his arcane music-making setup to modern DAWs. (I personally ain respective of them, including nan astonishing Wires plugin.)

With truthful galore projects going connected each nan time, we wanted to cognize what Hainbach was astir proud of and what nan glue is that’s holding his intimidating workplace together.

What is your astir indispensable tool?

A Nagra reel-to-reel portion recorder. I usage these for my unrecorded shows, successful nan studio, for euphony and sound design. A wonderment of technology, nan absolute high-end of its time, and still sounding awesome galore decades later.

What is nan first app you instal connected a caller telephone aliases computer?

Gauss Field Recorder. It’s an app I made pinch Bram Bos to lick a problem I ever had: I made a batch of section recordings pinch nan phone, reasoning I would usage them astatine immoderate point. I ne'er did, and ended up pinch a immense room of unsorted and unnamed sound memos. With Gauss, I tin instantly move immoderate signaling into euphony and prevention and stock nan session.

How galore tabs do you person unfastened correct now?

Since it’s morning, only my 2 Gmail accounts and this questionnaire. Later successful nan day, that mightiness move into 20-plus, particularly if I do research.

Which societal media level do you usage nan astir (if any)?

It is beautiful evenly split, arsenic I station to all. But mostly it’s work, I americium not location for recreation.

What is your happy spot online?

My Patreon. I emotion nan organization and nan information it brought me. I could not person embarked connected my oddball philharmonic travel without it.

What is your favourite gadget you’ve ever owned?

Definitely nan Swiss Army Knife. Both arsenic a kid and arsenic a dada now, it has travel successful truthful useful. Even connected stage, I usage it to hole my Swiss Nagras, arsenic they activity perfectly together. I person forgotten that I had them connected maine connected flights, though, truthful I had to message them to maine from airports crossed nan world. That is why I sadly don’t transportation them connected maine anymore, for fearfulness of losing them.

Which was nan astir disappointing?

Anything that tried to switch nan Swiss Army Knife. Like those stupid in installments card-sized tools.

What crippled do you person nan fondest memories of?

Playing Breath of nan Wild for my kids during nan pandemic. They were riveted, and we suffered and felt joyousness passim nan game. When it was finished, they burst into tears, and I had to committedness that we would replay it. Which we did, this clip getting nan afloat ending. After that, my oldest played it, and she did 100 percent shrine completion connected maestro mode. In nan end, she was doing worldly for illustration changing weapons successful betwixt strikes to harm max, which was chaotic to me.

Which tech inclination do you wish would spell away?

AI euphony and sound generators. Slop machines for technocrats that ne'er felt nan joyousness of getting bully astatine something.

What creation are you astir proud of?

My bid of Destruction Loops. An installation euphony portion that destroys itself complete time, which I utilized to exorcise online hate comments, regrets of viewers and listeners, and far-right speech.

What’s nan champion portion of proposal you’ve ever received?

Stand still. My woman was watching 1 of my early unrecorded shows arsenic Hainbach, and I still had each nan movements successful maine that I learned from playing years upon years successful stone and physics bands. Those movements did not correlate pinch my euphony astatine all, it was conscionable a habit. Now I curate each movement, location is not 1 unconscious point I do connected stage.

What is your existent obsession?

Passive Bandpass Filters. I americium conscionable astir to thrust to East Germany to get a group that utilized to beryllium to Deutsche Reichsbahn, nan GDR train service. These filters often sound wonderful, and I person rather nan postulation now. I conscionable turned 1 of them into a plug-in pinch Irish institution AudioThing.

What do you do erstwhile you request to focus?

Not much, conscionable a spot of time. I tin area successful fast, thing I taught myself during nan small clip I had erstwhile I was doing my mandatory authorities service, and still felt nan absolute request to create euphony successful nan short breaks I got.

What do you do erstwhile you’re emotion stuck?

I spell for a locomotion to reset. Back successful nan studio, I situation my assumptions connected what it is I americium moving on. Oftentimes, nan culprit is nan portion that I build a way around, nurturing it by giving it each these supporting structures. But past everything is playing together, and it’s conscionable not happening, not evoking a feeling, world, aliases story. Maybe that portion has served its usefulness, and it tin discontinue to nan background, aliases conscionable disappear. It was possibly conscionable nan muse, not nan point itself.

If sidesplitting darlings was a crime, I would service aggregate life sentences.

When was nan past clip you went location without your phone?

The spa area successful a edifice successful Karlsbad complete nan Easter Holiday.

What’s nan past portion of beingness media you bought?

Daniela Mars Heartweaving connected vinyl connected Bandcamp, from nan creator herself. Astonishingly minimal and beautiful music.

What do you deliberation is worthy splurging on?

A decent bed, pinch a bully mattress and pillow. Important for semipermanent health, particularly arsenic a touring musician.

What would nan tagline for your biopic be?

In Germany, we for illustration to adhd wholly over-the-top taglines to nan title, moreover to American movies. Top Gun - Sie Fürchten Weder Tod Noch Teufel (“They Fear Neither Death nor nan Devil”). So maybe: Hainbach - Cold War Confidential. I usage Soviet service ligament recorders and American atomic and subject investigation instrumentality to make music, truthful location is immoderate truth to that astatine least.

What’s nan past GIF aliases meme you used?

I don’t deliberation I ever utilized a meme, though I person seen memes of myself. And now it’s 8 tabs by nan way, and you should wholly bargain my caller medium pinch Ah! Kosmos that is playing successful 1 of them.