Matte Blvck’s new single “Soulless” began in a moment that did not feel creative at all. Alex Gonzales remembers sitting with a growing sense of disconnect, unsure of himself and unsure of the beliefs he had carried for years. He tried recording a vocal idea anyway. What came out surprised him.

“It started during a weird time where I felt disconnected from everything, from myself, from what I believed in,” Gonzales said. “The song came out of that space. It was like tearing everything down and trying to remember what’s real underneath it all. The first vocal take felt almost like preaching to myself.”

The San Diego industrial and darkwave trio is known for mining the line between light and shadow, but “Soulless” pushes that tension further. Released through Breathing Records as part of the Inhale Vol. I compilation, the track joins a curated mix of avant-garde and underground electronic artists. It arrives as the band continues its run of sold-out U.S. shows on the HOLYWARS tour and moves deeper into a sound built on industrial grit, darkwave texture and a modern pulse.

Gonzales has called the single “faith freed from illusion,” a phrase that reflects the personal questions behind the writing. Much of that work began with a reevaluation of what faith means after years of holding it at a distance.

“Honestly, I’m still trying to figure that out,” he said. “I’ve carried a spiritual void for a long time. Growing up Catholic, faith was something pushed onto me, not something I discovered on my own. And now, as an adult, life feels confusing. The pain, the pressure, the rat race, the heartbreak, it all feels so heavy.”

Writing helped loosen that weight. Gonzales said certain moments in the studio created a surprising sense of familiarity, as if the music pulled him toward something he had forgotten but always known.

“When we’re writing or when we’re onstage, something shifts,” he said. “I get these moments of déjà vu, like I’ve lived parts of this before. My voice cracks in a way that feels older than me, like something deep inside is trying to remind me of who I was before the world got loud. Almost like the light we’re born with gets buried, and art is the thing that helps you uncover it piece by piece.”

He now describes faith as a quieter form of awareness.

“For me, it’s that quiet remembering. It’s not tied to religion or rules. It’s the feeling that there’s something true underneath all the noise. Something I’ve carried my whole life without knowing it. Faith reborn. Light becoming flesh again. I think I’m finally starting to reconnect with that part of myself.”

That sense of tension and release guided the way “Soulless” was built. The track moves through slow-burning builds, tightly arranged percussion and layers hidden between drum patterns and melodic threads. Gonzales said the emotional structure shaped the arrangement.

“It was pretty intentional,” he said. “We wanted it to feel like you’re being pulled apart and then slowly finding air again. The layers build, fall apart, then explode. That back-and-forth mirrors what we were feeling, losing yourself, then finding something stronger on the other side.”

Themes of illusion run throughout the song, especially the illusions tied to religion, relationships and personal expectations. One idea stood out more than the rest.

“The illusion of control,” Gonzales said. “Thinking you can plan how things will go, with people, with success, with yourself. You can’t. This song was kind of us admitting that. When we stopped trying to control it, the song found its shape on its own.”

The group’s sonic foundation draws from industrial and electronica influences as well as the moodier corners of 90s electronic music. Gonzales said the balance between nostalgia and a contemporary feel comes naturally.

“We don’t try too hard to sound modern,” he said. “We just build what feels good. We love old synths, distorted drums, that 90s mood, but we produce it through today’s lens. It’s like building from memory but keeping it alive, not frozen in time.”

Matte Blvck has built a reputation for high-intensity live shows that combine older analog gear with newer digital tools and heavy visual production. Gonzales said performing “Soulless” at its first shows in Colorado Springs and Denver changed the way the band understands it.

“Rebuilding it for the stage is always a challenge, but it’s also the part we love most. It never sounds exactly like the recording,” he said. “Live, the song doesn’t feel like it belongs only to us anymore. You can feel the crowd connect with it, almost letting go of whatever they walked in with. Something that feels heavy on the record becomes more freeing in the room. That’s why we love performing it.”

For the mixing process, the band returned to Aaron Short, known for his work with The Naked and Famous and So Below. Short also mixed their earlier release “Vows,” which pushed the group further into darker, more textured territory.

“Aaron worked with us on Vows, and he just understands what we’re going for,” Gonzales said. “He keeps the grit and the heaviness, but he knows how to make everything breathe a little more. He brings clarity without taking away the edge. It’s rare to find someone who can push your sound forward without changing who you are, but that’s what he does. Working with him feels natural. It’s rare that we have any notes on mixing. He hears what we’re trying to say before we even explain it.”

“Soulless” appears on Inhale Vol. I, a 10-track compilation featuring 11 artists who work across experimental, industrial and underground electronic scenes. The release is now available, with a dark cherry vinyl pressing and an accompanying artist booklet expected in December.

Gonzales said the compilation reflects a creative landscape that feels authentic to the band.

“It’s inspiring,” he said. “Everyone on Inhale is doing something from the gut. No rules, no trends. That’s the world we want to live in. It’s not about chasing mainstream; it’s about creating something that feels alive. Being surrounded by that kind of energy keeps us moving.”

The single arrives as the band continues to grow its audience, passing three million streams and expanding its touring schedule. Their debut album “I’m Waving, Not Drowning” introduced listeners to a sound built around shifting moods and electronic experimentation, and “Vows” pushed those ideas into more aggressive territory.

“Soulless,” Gonzales said, returns to a more internal place. The track points to the emotional core of the band’s music, a space where introspection and intensity merge.

He hopes that listeners who hear the song during a difficult time find something steady in it.

“That it’s OK to fall apart,” he said. “You don’t have to hide the dark parts. Sometimes, breaking down is how you find yourself again. If someone listens and feels less alone in that process, then the song did what it needed to.”

As Matte Blvck moves deeper into its next chapter, the band continues to build from that same place: a willingness to confront uncertainty, strip away illusion and create something honest enough to hold its shape.