Marvin Hoyer, aka Vanta, moves through sound like a force shaped by friction. Based in Leipzig, his roots in metalcore and hardcore bleed into his productions—raw, physical, but tightly controlled. Drawn early on to the possibilities of electronic and experimental sound, his work teeters between pressure and precision, always chasing what lies just beyond the known. In late 2024, five years deep into his sonic practice, he joined Munich’s IO Records, finding a creative home and a like-minded collective.

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IO is a Munich-based audiovisual label and artist collective known for genre-spanning releases across the deeper edges of techno, bass Music, and house. Defined by striking sound design and visual storytelling, its ethos embraces everything between I and O — alpha and omega.

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Between Life and Death marks Vanta’s debut on IO, a record that explores emotional contrast and personal transformation. It reflects his navigation through change, tension, and release, tracing the line between melancholy and hope. The album’s rhythms and nuances express a charged emotional volatility, moving through states of conflict and resilience.

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Minimal Collective’s spotlight falls on A Place Between Life and Death, a title that precisely anchors the album’s central tension. Emotion converges in a bassline that rises from below, unfolding as distant drums edge closer. In the stillness, a piano introduces slowly building rhythms. Clicks scatter across the audio field, guided by a restrained melodic undercurrent. Looping chords suspend time before the track returns with greater density, textures thickening, pressure mounting, revealing just how deeply electronic sound can resonate when feeling takes the lead.

Full tracklist

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1. Dissociative Drift

2. Intrusive Thoughts

3. A Place Between Life and Death

4. Manic

5. Void

6. Blackout

7. This Is Where I Lay To Rest

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Between Life and Death will be out on May 13th, 2025. Pre-order a copy via Bandcamp. 

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Written and produced by Marvin Hoyer (Vanta)

Mastered by Niklas Bühler (Klangstellwerk)

Artwork by Lindsey Wang (Polygonia)

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