Meet Sundal and his smooth-as-hell new single, Acceptance feat. JCAL

There's nothing better than a really great piece of instrumental electronica, especially when its creator hails from Perth. Sundal is a relatively new name to the world but we have no doubts that he's going to be around for a while, especially after teaming with one of our local favs in JCAL for his incredibly vibey new single Acceptance. It's a spectacular and cinematic affair, bringing together vocal samples, lush synth melodies and shaking percussion for a track that sits somewhere in between Tourist and Tycho in regards to its sonic landscape and general feel, which is highlighted through the gradually building wave that eventually comes crashing down at the 1:30 mark. It's a real moment of beauty from an unfamiliar artist – something which we're all about here – so we sent through a couple of introductory questions to get to know him and his washed-out sound a little better. Check it out below:

Tell us about yourself?

I'm Sundal, a producer/singer-songwriter from Perth. I've been producing and writing music since I was around 14 but this electronic/ambient project only became a focus of mine quite recently. I've produced electronic music for a while but it always kind of took a backseat to the soulful style of music I was working on with my band 'Vorsen' and other acts. Sundal was kind of born through a big love for both cinematic and downtempo/ambient electronic music. I've always loved composing music to accompany visuals but I also just really like writing songs so I guess this music is the logical combination of creating a mood while still maintaining that aspect of storytelling.

What kinda tunes we talkin'?

This is tough but I like to think my music is sort of a foundation of hazy soundscapes and downtempo beats mixed in with uplifting vocal melodies and dreamy guitars! Without sounding like too much of a snob... I have a pretty diverse taste in music and I think that definitely surfaces in my songs. I listen to pretty much anything but for Sundal I would say the heavyweight influences would be the likes of Jamie xx, Bonobo, Hans Zimmer and Brian Eno.

Production/writing process:

Extremely random. Sometimes it can be just sitting down with a guitar or at a piano and noodling away but more often than not my songs start with hearing something in my head when I've tuned everything else out. It could be in the shower, driving or zoning out in a lecture and a melody or progression will sort of appear in my mind and I'll have to stop what I'm doing to go and sing it into my phone quickly haha! From there I'll either play around with it acoustically for a while and build the song up from its bare bones or I'll get straight into messing around with that idea on the laptop and see if I can generate new ideas that way. Songwriting has definitely never felt like a same-step process for me. Most songs are approached differently but I kind of like that. It stops it from feeling like a routine and more of an adventure! I guess the one aspect of this project that I tend to stick to is incorporating live instruments and sounds as much as possible. I think this stems from having played in bands and learning different instruments from a young age. I love electronic music but there's something about hearing cool guitar parts, lush string sections or even field recordings that I really dig!

Can you tell us about your new single, Acceptance?

Acceptance is a track I wrote with long-time pal JCAL. He and I have been collaborating here and there for a couple of years now and it's always been effortless and fun working on tunes together. The song came about very quickly actually, I went over to JCAL's studio and he'd thrown down this really nice piano progression. The vocal melody came to me pretty quickly and we recorded it straight away! From there I messed around with guitar parts and we kind of built the track up from its skeleton. At the time (about a year ago) we were both really happy with where the track was going but were both so busy then that we left it sitting around for AGES. It was always in the back of my mind though, and I really wanted to finish it off.. so here it finally is!

Any shows coming up?

I'm afraid there are no live shows on the cards just yet. However, playing live is something I absolutely love so I'm hoping to make this happen by the end of the year. I know that when it does come around, I will try to make it as live and engaging as possible, I'm pretty excited/scared!

What's the rest of the year have in store?

Writing, writing and more writing! I'm working on a bunch of music at the moment and am hoping to put it out real soooooooon. From there, the live show will be in the works :)

Where can we hear more of your music?

You can check out my last release along with acceptance over at triple j Unearthed or on SoundCloud! Spotify etc. up shortly!

Follow Sundal: FACEBOOK