Ahead of the ‘Moonbeams In Dub Part One’ release, we caught up with Ibiza-based producer George Solar and chatted about all things downtempo, Ibiza and more.
Far away from the towering superclubs, VIP culture and endless social media snapshots exists another island entirely. One built around sunsets, stillness, strange cosmic energy and music designed not for peak-time excess, but for reflection, connection and escape. It’s a world of hidden beach bars, remote hillside homes, slow mornings and late-night conversations under starlit skies. A quieter Ibiza. A spiritual Ibiza.
Few artists embody that side of the island quite like George Solar.
Over the last decade and beyond, the Ibiza-based DJ, producer, percussionist and longtime musical wanderer has carved out a unique space within the Balearic underground, moving naturally through downtempo, dub, ambient textures, cosmic grooves and sunset soundscapes. His music feels less concerned with trends and more focused on atmosphere, emotion and place. Or perhaps more accurately, places beyond place altogether.
Following the release of his deeply immersive Moonbeams EP on Phil Cooper’s NuNorthern Soul, Solar now returns with Moonbeams In Dub, a sprawling reinterpretation of the original material featuring remixes and dub excursions from names including Ken Fan, Marshall Watson, Tribilin Sound, Dubvisionist and more.
What could have easily become a standard remix package instead unfolds more like an expansion of the Moonbeams universe itself. Cosmic, nocturnal and endlessly exploratory, the project drifts somewhere between dub philosophy, Balearic freedom and pure sonic storytelling.
We sat down with George Solar to discuss the real Ibiza, dub as a spiritual language, musical freedom, journalism, Café Del Mar culture and why music still remains one of humanity’s most powerful forces.
People outside Ibiza often associate the island with superclubs and excess, but your music feels connected to a much older and more spiritual side of the island. What does the “real Ibiza” still mean to you in 2026?
For me personally, it defo is all about the unique peace & tranquility in nature here. Which is owed a lot to me coming to Formentera somehow unexpectedly, long before I moved over to Ibiza, and healing from big city media life burnout amidst the slow zen vibe of Playa Migjorn. Any Ibiza hassle was as far away as the main land or other parts of the real world – but I admit I got a tad bit compromised along the way haha. Ibiza is made of extremes!
Now I live somewhere remote way up north of the white island, because it has a similar amount of Middle Earth-like tranquility, which causes me to feel as much inner peace as possible. That’s the goal. It somehow becomes addictive over time, you know. The hashtag I came up with some years ago, #ididntcometopartyicametochill, thats probably describing it best.
You’ve become closely associated with the sunset, downtempo and Balearic side of Ibiza culture. Do you feel that world is still thriving beneath the noise of mainstream tourism and big club culture?
My feeling always was there’s room enough for both sides, even if in a lot of cases they seem like polar opposites.
When I moved over here from Formentera 15 years ago, I considered myself a downtempo sunset dj with firm dub, jazz & funk roots. Ibiza was far & not on my list then!
However I come from urban soundsystem club culture, and in my hometown Cologne that merged organically with the rise of electronic club music. That fusion is my roots, one way or another. And while I’m definitely still a downtempo dude much rather, I do like to play some assorted club sets here & there, like in the bathtub of Pikes or the backroom of the worlds’ first hyperclub 🙂
So I became a bit of a mediator between the two poles over time. Much to my own surprise!
Back when I came here first, I definitely was a hardcore downtempo activist, and by now that might have morphed a bit into being increasingly mid tempo overall haha. By popular demand, let’s say.
After all I think the most important thing is the right music at the right time at the right place. Adapting to any given situation & vibe. That’s no rocket science really, it’s more about perception & focus. And in my view thats our responsibility as Ibiza resident DJs – to be able to provide whatever the place & the time given needs in that very moment.
There’s a really strong sense of place throughout Moonbeams. Were these tracks consciously written with Ibiza landscapes, sunsets and atmosphere in mind?
Not necessarily, no. Although I admit the Balearic moon is a pretty strong force, so of course the place I happen to live in naturally has an influence on me in whatever I do. But Moonbeams intentionally was & is more about the moon looking at us rather than the other way round. The vibe is supposed to be nocturnal in general – and now Moonbeams In Dub is taking it into space. That whole thing just feels rather cosmic, at least to me.
The new Moonbeams In Dub releases feel less like traditional remix packages and more like an expansion of the original record’s emotional world. Was that always the intention behind the project?
See above – it’s meant as an expansion into space. Into the unknown, into the sky, maybe even underwater at times… by night, that is. For me, a remix needs to tell a good story in its entire being. Just changing a bit of the beat for commercial purposes won’t cut it in our world – at least in my humble opinion. It’s more about a friendly abduction, a reinterpretation into the remixers own sonic space.
Dub has always been about space, reinterpretation and atmosphere rather than simply reworking music for dancefloors. What personally draws you towards dub as a musical language?
For me, dub is the freedom to go anywhere while still having a vague stylistic framework/road map – maybe even more so than Balearic. So in order to expand even that vast amount of freedom already existing, it somehow seems logical (at least to me) that we would aim at a sort of fusion, in a respectful way for both complex genres (or let’s rather say approaches) of course.
Fact is: for me it all comes naturally, and I tend not to overthink about genre politics or other folks’ expectations too much anymore. In the end, it’s all a momentary manifestation of things, sounds & vibes that we love. Being in that moment of creating a vibe with love. Simple as that.
How did you approach selecting remixers like Ken Fan, Marshall Watson and Tribilin Sound for the project? Was it important that they understood the spirit and atmosphere of the original EP?
This might sound strange, but everybody involved selected themselves more or less. Because they all automatically understand that spirit, and that’s why I totally trust in them & whatever they do musically.
Ken was heavily involved in the original production & originally we wanted to do all dubs of the whole album together over winter – but we didn’t find the time so to let him do at least one was a given. Plus the one he dubbed, Lunaticotina, was his fave original track anyway.
Marshall Watson is an NNS label mate whose sound I deeply respect, and he had feedbacked positively when the original album dropped two years ago, so Phil suggested to bring him in – Mr. Watson even has another remix on part 3 of Moonbeams In Dub. Because his energy & cosmic feel is very very special.
And Tribilin Sound is another truly special case, as I am one of his biggest fans ever since he started out to become the king of digital cumbia & tropical bass (from Lima/Peru) a decade ago. I’m playing some of his stuff out every single gig still! So we are indeed quite honored to have him on board as yet another supersonic force.
Same counts for all the other remixers on MBID part two & three by the way. The Dubvisionist is Germany’s trailblazing dub engineer & my long time collaborator, Razoof is the drummer of the band I play in since 1994 and provided the original Moonbeams riddim. Roots Artefact is an uprising labelmate from Estonia with a deep love for dub, Mike Alcaras is my sound engineer & co producer for a lot of Solar projects – and Silvio Astier from Buenos Aires is a guitar genius with an impeccable & very unique production style!
Long story short: I’m everybody’s fan!
Your music carries echoes of classic Café Del Mar compilations and early Balearic culture. Which artists, records or moments first opened that world up to you creatively?
Actually I’m rather considering myself “Balearic by accident”. The simple fact that I live & work in Ibiza seems to make everything I do musically that way more or less. At least for most people. It’s okay with me, I made my peace with that.
But I never set out to do or create something specifically “Balearic” in the classic sense to begin with. Maybe it’s just what happened to/with me here over the decades. The fact that whatever we happen to create is Balearic by default somehow. Living in Ibiza & “being Balearic” all year round was never the plan originally. When I grew & developed my musical roots, I mean. It just happened to me. I make downtempo music because that’s what I feel, and try to mix in whatever vibe I see fit. Because that’s the only way I know how.
What I do like about “Balearic” is the freedom after all. I do feel a responsibility & loyalty towards that freedom. To take it further while the going is good. Yet to me it’s rather about expansion & sometimes also taking risks.
Moonbeams moves naturally through dub, ambient, global rhythms and ritualistic percussion without feeling tied to one genre. Do you consciously think in genres when writing music, or is it more instinctive than that?
See above – thats because of my musical roots. A percussionist who grew up on funk, dub/reggae & jazz. Then became a soundsystem DJ, at a time when people like Massive Attack or Kruder & Dorfmeister shaped the blueprint of a new sound. The essence of all those genres & styles we loved, melting into something new. Something bigger than the sum of all its parts. That energy is why I do what I do, and although there was a lot of sonic evolution ever since, I still feel the same at the core. It’s about steadily refining that fusion of all the things we love. Even if it’s just to our own standards. Thats Alpha & Omega of what we do really.
Ibiza has always had these hidden musical communities operating away from the spotlight. How important have people like Chris Coco, Ken Fan and Phil Cooper been in your musical journey over the years?
Without them there probably wouldn’t be a Solar sound nowadays. Or at least a rather much smaller, more limited one.
Chris suggested a collaboration a few years back after we had met because of a famous reggae singer who came to Ibiza. So we just wanted to make a little dub tune together, and it escalated quickly from there haha. At a crucial time for me musically. Chris restored my belief in the independent music biz & shared songwriting, with his brilliant vision & instinct for all things Balearic & chill. Plus both his on point British humor & musical street cred are completely off the hook too. We’re like Waldorf & Stadler from the muppets show on that balcony, watching the scenery (lol). Highbrow opiniated commenting non stop! It’s a bit of a contemporary ongoing Steely Dan thing. Pure bliss.
Ken & I just happened to hit it off well while playing the same spot like a decade ago… and haven’t stopped giggling since. We have a lot of common ground sunset- and dubwise of course & we’re still exploring that. Turns out I was super blessed to have him as the original co-writer and -producer of the Moonbeams album. The force is with him, and I’m a fan (too)!
As for Phil, I am eternally grateful for his A&R vision. Without him kicking my butt to send him original Solar material, most of my songs would probably still sit on my hard drive as unfinished demos. Phil’s determination & musical understanding is just as limitless as his hearing/listening abilities are. When he’s on his cuffs as a DJ, I always think he’s on the phone to god somehow. And who knows – he maybe is!
We understand that before fully stepping into music, you spent time as a music journalist interviewing some major artists. How did that experience shape the way you now approach creativity and communication as an artist?
Well let’s just say I can still always feel the pain on both sides (haha). Seriously – it was definitely the best school for what I do now, because I learned such a lot along the way. I’m just a big fan of music itself since I was a kid, so it was fascinating & humbling to meet & talk to most of my childhood heroes & favorite musicians /producers along the way. They all helped me to understand, to go deeper with music itself. Even the biggest names are only human after all. They shared a lot of special moments & thoughts with me because we’re all just total nerds, total suckers for the sound we love & how it’s created.
No matter if it’s Prince, D’Angelo, George Clinton, Sly & Robbie, The Wild Bunch, Pat Metheny or Herbie Hancock – they were/are all totally about the music. With every cell of their body dedicated to it.
That was my biggest lesson. You gotta become “it” over time. Maybe you automatically do even. Joy in repetition, like in that Prince song.
Also, some of the people I interviewed became friends over time. DJ Ease aka George Evelyn aka Nightmares On Wax is the best example. Without him, his special love for music & his expertise, I wouldn’t even be in Ibiza nowadays, let alone do what I do. We sat down for interviews so many times we just started to hang out at some point. Because we share the same love for music & its values.
So I’m super grateful for all the inspiring people I met because of music in general. It made me who I am today for sure.
Having once sat on the other side of interviews yourself, what do you think makes for a genuinely meaningful music conversation today?
The backgrounds & stories to go with every song. Or even just with the beat or the bassline. That feeling music causes, both creating & listening to it. Music is a higher force, it has a certain spiritual value that is often forgotten about in this day & age of content overwhelm & digital abundance.
We need to teach the young people not to forget about the stories & feelings that caused the music out there to exist. There’s a constant volcano of the hottest lava bubbling under the surface. The spiritual power that is underlying all good sound. Something undeniable.
Music a life force, we are responsible for it, and the darker the times the more we need it!
Finally, with the Moonbeams In Dub series rolling out across the summer, what kind of setting do you ideally imagine people listening to these records in?
Well that depends on which dub or remix we’re talking about of course haha… but in general I guess it’s safe to say a hammock on a night time beach with headphones on watching the night sky comes pretty close.
That certain feeling of drifting off to a vibrant, inspiring & hopeful place somehow. If we can manage to help each other to get there collectively one way or another, then there’s always hope. Music, in my humble view, is the best way to get there. Our common ground on a global scale. We need to make the world a hopeful place again. We owe that to her – and to each other. Let alone to ourselves!
Moonbeams In Dub lands via NuNorthern Soul across June, July and August 2026. Part One lands on June 24th, pre order it here.
