Rolbac Live At Moga Festival | ONE Podcast (#108)
Rolbac Channels the Raw Resilience of the Lebanese Underground
Middle Eastern electronic music producer Rolbac has delivered an exclusive live performance mix for the latest edition of the True Underground audio series. Recorded live at Moga Festival, the session features a curated selection of unreleased regional edits alongside his debut single on Yousef’s Circus Recordings. The podcast episode lands on 26 June 2026 to showcase the ongoing artistic resilience defining the contemporary Lebanese underground scene.
Key Takeaways
Rolbac developed his musical foundations in the mountain landscapes of Zahle, Lebanon. Raised by a drummer father and a DJ uncle, his childhood home provided constant exposure to rhythmic experimentation and diverse record archives from the 1980s and 1990s. Classic driving rock arrangements, alternative pressings, and formative tracks like Rare Earth’s ‘Get Ready’ served as primary creative catalysts, shaping how he approaches modern sound design and linear track arrangement.
To protect his creative process from industry distractions, Rolbac maintains a highly disciplined schedule. He treats studio production hours as an official employment commitment, forcing himself to show up consistently to discover unexpected sonic pathways. This systematic isolation from short-form digital marketing trends allowed him to log the hundreds of solitary hours required to build his complex electronic signature.
This technical framework relies heavily on intentional contrast, balancing intense dancefloor momentum with quiet moments of psychological introspection. Rolbac structures his arrangements to mirror human complexity, utilizing shadow and tension to ensure his tracks carry physical weight. This deliberate juxtaposition prevents his sound from feeling flat, creating an engaging experience that resonates far beyond standard club environments.
This production methodology directly guided his debut single, ‘Where Is My Love’, dropping on Yousef’s Circus Recordings on 26 June 2026. The initial track concepts emerged during an isolated music retreat surrounded by nature, entirely detached from urban pressure and daily industry routines. Label boss Yousef heard the early instrumental drafts and secured the track for his imprint, establishing an international platform for the Lebanese artist.
“‘Where Is My Love’ came out of a music retreat. We were away from our usual routines, surrounded by nature, and creating without any pressure, which really shaped the energy of the track. Yousef heard it and loved it, so we were able to collaborate.”
The single seamlessly blends futuristic, late-twentieth-century synthesiser lines with classic house piano stabs and a driving club groove. Achieving this frequency balance required weeks of exhaustive trial and error rather than standard mixing equations. Rolbac constantly restructured the drum parts and auditioned different hardware emulations to ensure the heavy bassline remained completely clean without crowding the low-end spectrum.
A defining characteristic of the single is the complex synthesiser progression positioned immediately after the main arrangement drop. Rolbac applied heavy manual modulation and filter movement to this specific sequence, transforming it into the central melodic identity of the project. This meticulous attention to synthesis detail ensures the track delivers high-tier clarity on expansive warehouse sound systems.
This studio milestone directly informs his contribution to the ONE Podcast series, catalogued as episode 108. Recorded live at Moga Festival, his ONE Podcast mix provides a definitive snapshot of his technical approach behind the decks. While his studio compilations adhere to a highly rigid narrative flow, his festival performances remain entirely reactive to immediate crowd energy.
The recording captures the precise momentum of his open-air performance, translating his reactive club energy directly into a structured home listen. The set list features an exclusive selection of unreleased original material, specialized edits, and upcoming project previews tailored for Middle Eastern crowds. These tracks reflect his ongoing mission to project regional electronic identity onto the global music market.
By integrating distinct local motifs into a contemporary house framework, his selections bridge the gap between regional club spaces and international networks. The inclusion of these exclusive regional revisions ensures the mix functions as an authentic overview of his current musical direction. Listeners gain exposure to the specific underground frequencies driving dancefloors across the Levant.
Operating as a professional musician out of Lebanon requires navigating immense structural disruptions and severe geopolitical instability. Despite the ongoing wars and economic hurdles currently affecting the Levant, the underground electronic community in Beirut continues to organise events and maintain creative spaces. This localized defiance positions the dancefloor as a vital sanctuary for human connection and mutual survival.
Beirut-based producer Rolbac channels the raw resilience of the Lebanese underground every time he performs. The current conflict heavily impacts daily operations on the ground, yet the culture consistently adapts, carrying that heightened intensity onto the dancefloor. This environment alters the sense of purpose behind the decks, turning electronic music performance into a form of cultural preservation.
“The scene is still very resilient, even in difficult times. There are always challenges, but the culture keeps evolving and adapting, and that energy carries onto the dancefloor. When I play, it reminds me how important connection is, especially when people come together despite what’s happening around them.”
Securing international bookings remains an uphill battle for Levant-based artists due to systemic visa restrictions and a historic lack of infrastructure investment. Rolbac actively pressures international agencies for structural reforms to dismantle the systemic visa barriers blocking Middle Eastern talent from the global circuit. He emphasizes that regional music creators require direct structural access rather than temporary token exposure to compete globally.
“There needs to be more equal access to platforms, lineups, and industry support for regional artists. It’s not just about exposure, but about building real long-term pathways so talent from the Middle East and Africa can compete globally.”
If completely freed from commercial deadlines and electronic genre boundaries, the producer intends to apply his engineering skills to acoustic arrangements. His long-term creative ambitions include writing complex live jazz scores, producing underground hip-hop, and composing cinematic soundtracks. This commitment to artistic authenticity ensures his catalog continues to expand while remaining rooted in his Lebanese heritage.
Rolbac continues to drive the Middle Eastern underground movement forward, demonstrating that artistic expression remains unstoppable despite regional conflict.
Check out all editions of ONE Podcast here.
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Key Editorial Takeaway
Rolbac continues to pioneer the Middle Eastern electronic movement from Lebanon, using his debut on Circus Recordings and the ONE Podcast to showcase regional artistic resilience amidst ongoing conflict.
