Biography
Multi-instrumentalist Luis Vasquez channeled existential dread through the Soft Moon by merging industrial textures with post-punk urgency. Hints of that volatile fusion of industrial and EBM first surfaced on the murky electronics and riffs of the project’s self-titled 2010 debut, then crystallized across the cathartic releases Deeper in 2015 and Criminal in 2018. On 2022’s Exister Vasquez expanded the Soft Moon into a more collaborative, open sonic space while retaining its visceral emotional force. At his death in 2024 he left a body of work defined by its raw honesty and occasional beauty.
Raised in Oakland, California, Vasquez received a guitar from his grandfather at age twelve and began composing within months. By fifteen he had formed his initial group and continued performing in punk ensembles through his teenage years. At twenty he stepped away from bands, eventually establishing the Soft Moon during his time working in San Francisco. Captured Tracks issued his debut single “Breathe the Fire” in March 2010; Parallels appeared that September, followed by the self-titled album in November. The darker Total Decay EP arrived at the end of October 2011. While touring, Vasquez wrote new material and enlisted engineer-producer Monte Vallier to shape the more electronic-driven songs of October 2012’s Zeros. That same year he collaborated with synth-pop pioneer John Foxx and his band the Maths on the track “Evidence.”
After the Zeros tour Vasquez relocated first to Venice, Italy, then to Berlin, drawing on his isolation and outsider perspective to explore themes of despair and recovery. At Hate Studios he worked with producer Maurizio Baggio to refine his vocals and craft 2015’s Deeper, among the Soft Moon’s most affecting recordings. Early the next year a pair of remix EPs showcased reinterpretations by Ancient Methods, Trentemøller, and Blush Response. For the fourth album, Criminal, released in February 2018, Vasquez again partnered with Baggio to examine his abusive upbringing and its lasting effects. Seeking further introspection, he issued A Body of Errors—a largely instrumental collection reflecting on bodily entrapment—under his own name in January 2021 on 2 Mondi Collective.
During the COVID-19 pandemic Vasquez left Berlin for Joshua Tree, California, where the open landscape and lack of neighbors let him record drums and vocals at full volume. This setting informed September 2022’s Exister, another emotionally charged collection featuring guest appearances by fish narc and Special Interest’s Alli Logout. The Soft Moon performed at the 2023 editions of Roadburn and Cruel World festivals while supporting the album, and an instrumental edition of Exister followed that December. Vasquez died in January 2024 at the age of 44.
Raised in Oakland, California, Vasquez received a guitar from his grandfather at age twelve and began composing within months. By fifteen he had formed his initial group and continued performing in punk ensembles through his teenage years. At twenty he stepped away from bands, eventually establishing the Soft Moon during his time working in San Francisco. Captured Tracks issued his debut single “Breathe the Fire” in March 2010; Parallels appeared that September, followed by the self-titled album in November. The darker Total Decay EP arrived at the end of October 2011. While touring, Vasquez wrote new material and enlisted engineer-producer Monte Vallier to shape the more electronic-driven songs of October 2012’s Zeros. That same year he collaborated with synth-pop pioneer John Foxx and his band the Maths on the track “Evidence.”
After the Zeros tour Vasquez relocated first to Venice, Italy, then to Berlin, drawing on his isolation and outsider perspective to explore themes of despair and recovery. At Hate Studios he worked with producer Maurizio Baggio to refine his vocals and craft 2015’s Deeper, among the Soft Moon’s most affecting recordings. Early the next year a pair of remix EPs showcased reinterpretations by Ancient Methods, Trentemøller, and Blush Response. For the fourth album, Criminal, released in February 2018, Vasquez again partnered with Baggio to examine his abusive upbringing and its lasting effects. Seeking further introspection, he issued A Body of Errors—a largely instrumental collection reflecting on bodily entrapment—under his own name in January 2021 on 2 Mondi Collective.
During the COVID-19 pandemic Vasquez left Berlin for Joshua Tree, California, where the open landscape and lack of neighbors let him record drums and vocals at full volume. This setting informed September 2022’s Exister, another emotionally charged collection featuring guest appearances by fish narc and Special Interest’s Alli Logout. The Soft Moon performed at the 2023 editions of Roadburn and Cruel World festivals while supporting the album, and an instrumental edition of Exister followed that December. Vasquez died in January 2024 at the age of 44.
Albums
