There’s a quiet tension that lives inside all of us, the part that craves structure and the part that wants to let go of it entirely. One side tries to make sense of everything, while the other is drawn to getting lost in the feeling. At the core of anything we build is an idea, a line drawn between what exists and what could. Over time, that line begins to soften. The shape of things shifts, the ground beneath it feels less certain, and before you know it, you’re standing in a version of the world that no longer looks the way you once imagined.
It’s in that shifting version of the world that Blood Vision’s latest release, Altered Reality, takes shape, leaning into contrast, tension, and the unsettling beauty of not knowing where you stand.
We connected with Brandon Dodds and Sean Jarvis, the duo behind Blood Vision, to explore the ideas behind Altered Reality, their creative process, and the world they are continuing to bring into form. Fresh off their latest release on HypnoVizion, they reflected on what it means to land on a label that has played a meaningful role in shaping their sound.
“It feels really special. Rezz and her team have built a label that genuinely supports darker, experimental music, and it’s exciting to continue being a part of that vision. Rezz is our biggest midtempo inspiration, so getting to release our second midtempo song on her label is a proud achievement.“
That sense of alignment gives Altered Reality added weight, placing the track within a space that already feels deeply connected to who they are as artists. At the same time, its foundation reaches inward, shaped by a period of uncertainty that left a lasting imprint.
The concept behind the track is rooted in personal experience, yet reflective of something many have lived through. It took shape during the lockdown stretch of the COVID pandemic, when the world felt disorienting and strangely unfamiliar for so many of us. The duality woven through Altered Reality emerges from that haze, from a time when the world collectively slipped into something unfamiliar. Life moved through screens, remote work, virtual classrooms, and distant connections, creating a version of reality that felt slightly untethered from what we once knew. It was a strange, shared experience, where uncertainty was no longer distant but something we were all living through in real time.
“We made this towards the tail end of the COVID [pandemic], during the lockdown when nothing in the world really felt real. But it also came at a moment when we were starting to take music more seriously, and wanted to prove to ourselves that Blood Vision could be a real project.“
That uncertainty is woven into the foundation of the track, shaping the emotional core of Altered Reality and the way the duo brings it to life. It lingers in the pacing, unfolding with intention and restraint before gradually revealing its full weight.
“We always try to incorporate mystery into our tracks and keep the listener guessing where the journey goes next. With the strings we really wanted to build maximum suspense before the haunting vocals and dark drop. Creating contrast and duality is something we always think about in making music.“
The way they guide the listener through the pacing and structure of the track feels deliberate, with each moment placed with intention. That level of intention traces back to where it all began. Before Blood Vision took shape as a project, Brandon Dodds and Sean Jarvis met while studying architecture, a background that continues to influence how they think about building atmosphere and designing their music.
“Architecture taught us that every project needs a concept, so it’s not just a song and a cover to go along with it, but a compelling idea that brings everything together. You can see the influence a lot in our cover art. We try to craft a compelling 3D environment that embodies the energy of the song, and many of the architecture softwares we learned allowed us to pick up Blender quicker which is the standard for EDM visuals and what we now use.“
What they’re describing moves beyond the audio aspect of music production into a way of thinking about music as something spatial, where sound, visuals, and concept exist within the same environment. Their production process is guided by a central idea, with elements like audio, visuals, and overall aesthetic developed together. Each element works to support a unified experience.
That way of thinking doesn’t stop at the music itself, it extends into how they create together. Their dynamic reflects a balance of shared vision and individual strengths, shaping a process that feels both collaborative and intentional. While they move fluidly across all aspects of production, their roles begin to settle into a rhythm, one that allows each of them to lean into their strengths while still building as a unit.
“We both engage in all aspects of production, which has led to a massive library of unreleased music. That being said, one of us takes more of a lead on music production, and the other takes more of a lead on mixes and live sets. So we each have strengths that make us a lot stronger as a duo.“
Their process feels rooted in trust, allowing their ideas to take shape without being forced. That same sense of alignment begins to extend beyond the studio, shaping how they move within the world around them. As their sound continues to take shape, it’s also finding a place within a wider community that reflects the same energy.
“It’s cool to be releasing music alongside some of our favorite artists that we have listened to for years. We’ve been fortunate to meet some other HypnoVizion artists recently and it’s a great community to be a part of.“
Being part of that ecosystem brings a sense of connection, placing them among artists who have shaped their listening and creative world. Still, what they create remains grounded in something personal, shaped by their own experiences and creative instincts. It allows them to move through the scene with intention, staying rooted in what makes their sound distinctly their own, even as their music begins to reach larger stages and new audiences.
“Dark bass music is genuinely our favorite thing to listen to in the edm world and we always love discovering new artists. We don’t necessarily shape Blood Vision based on what’s out there. Our identity is a product of our backgrounds and the art we enjoy creating, and we’re lucky to have a community of Night Owls that supports us as our true selves.“
As their sound continues to grow, it begins to reach beyond the studio and into the very spaces that once inspired them. That shift from creating within the studio to hearing their music carried across massive stages marks a turning point in how they experience their own work.
“Seeing the clips of Rezz playing our music at Lost Lands was a rewarding feeling and gave us even more motivation to push Blood Vision forward. A couple months later we went to Rezz Rocks and that was the first time we got to hear our music on a massive sound system. Being in these types of environments made us eager to play shows and share our music in a live setting more often.“
Witnessing their work come to life in these environments reflects something deeper than a milestone, it mirrors the way they’ve always approached creation. With roots in architecture, the vision has never been limited to sound alone, but to the spaces and experiences that surround it. What begins as an idea in the studio is imagined with scale in mind, shaped by how it will be felt, moved through, and shared. In that way, each track becomes part of a larger blueprint, one that extends beyond the music itself and into the world they are actively working to bring into form.
“Architecture really influences the visual world we want to create for Blood Vision and is partly why that became part of our name. The visual environments we create for our music videos and content now are a brief glimpse of full scale worlds we want to build in the future. We have experience designing EDM stages, and bringing them into the physical world is something we are working to achieve in the future. Architecture really unlocks creative superpowers and it has led to ideas of future Blood Vision festivals, and unique experiences.“
What Blood Vision is building extends beyond sound. It exists in the full spectrum of experience, where structure begins to loosen, giving way to something more fluid and intuitive. True to their name, there’s both pulse and perspective in their work, something visceral and something intentional, held in balance by the dynamic of two minds creating as one. Altered Reality is only a glimpse into a world still expanding, one they are steadily bringing to life.
