Australia based sycloner’s first EP ‘Not Without You‘, released in July of 2018, explored the relational complexities of unmatched expectations and enmeshment, drawing from many stylistic influences of the last few decades.

sycloner’s second EP ‘Lost and Found‘, to be released February 15th (2019), investigates vanity, narcissism, and the challenges of cultivating self-awareness.  

In this interview spotlight, I chat with sycloner about the forthcoming EP, motivations, challenges and more.

Full Q&A along with links and music below.

Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)

We are an indie-pop band from Australia – Daniel lives on the Gold Coast and Peter in Brisbane – which is just up the road about an hour away from the Gold Coast’s awesome beaches.  We’d describe our music as emotive and pure in its intent.   

What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?

We are both moved by the energy of writing and performance – it is largely what keeps us from losing our marbles.   I (Peter) was coerced into piano lessons as a youngster, though I ditched lessons in favour of BMX, then returning to music in my late teens when a friend introduced me to synthesisers.  Daniel’s experience has included classical guitar and art rock, when not teaching guitar to students. 

We hooked up to write music mid-2018, after doing our own things for a few years. The joy of collaboration is at the heart of sycloner – it has been a blast to share studio and performance spaces again.

How is this new release different than previous ones?

Lost and Found is our second EP in under six months.  It digs a little deeper into melody, beats, and reflections on human frailty.  We hope it’s a richer story for listeners.   

Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?

The holy grail of the perfect song keeps me going – the right balance of elements is just so hard to nail.  As for any song, I’m just hoping to tap into something that feels honest and raw…finding the courage to be vulnerable is a constant struggle.

Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age?

You said it, over-saturated!  Finding pathways to share our music and challenging the idea that music is inherently a free commodity are the two biggest issues for us.  The interweb is such a marvellously strange space and learning how to be ethical virtual citizens is surely part of the deal.

 How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?

I (Peter) remember when samplers had less memory than my kitchen blender – and, at the time, I thought that was cool.  The advances in processing and memory has meant we can record much of our work in home studio spaces – leaving mastering to better equipped facilities.

What was the last song you listened to?

(Peter) Stella Donnelly’s song ‘Old Man’ – I’ve only just discovered this incredible Australian artist – very cool stuff.  (Daniel) Beach House’s song “Somewhere Tonight” for dream pop delightfulness.

Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?

We prefer CDs, because of the artwork and tactile experience.   Vinyl is cool too! 

How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?

We are both Bandcamp fans, because it seems to cultivate a community of creatives – rather than the jukebox feel of Spotify, and the record store of Apple.  All have their place, Bandcamp suits the indie atmospherics better.

Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?

Facebook is probably the best place to catch us for chats and music.  https://www.facebook.com/syclonermusic/ 

Anything else?

It’s been a hoot sharing some of our story…thanks heaps for checking us out 😊