LaBøunty is a 19-year-old multi-instrumentalist from Plattsburgh, New York who originally began playing music more and more in a rock or jazz setting. After he began learning the production of music, specifically electronic, he started to add diversity into the mix, fusing multiple styles and genres including hip-hop, jazz, rock, and more.
LaBøunty released the single titled “Spiraling Down” featuring artist Sam Perkins and we LOVED it. This capturing record seizes the moment, abducts its listener, and takes you on an unforgettable ride. Alongside the vocals, which were delivered in a more haunting manner, the melody and keys from multiple instruments displayed in the song ranging from your typical computerized electronic to the melodic piano keys were chilling. LaBøunty keeps the listener at their toes with multiple transitions in the record instead of keeping this song at a more singular-type of record. LaBøunty shows a high level of skill while doing this, transforming us into major fans of his. If you love music in which you can intertwine yourself with the everlasting production that gradually builds you up, then “Spiraling Down” might be the exact record you’re looking for!
Listen to "Spiraling Down" here and get to know more about LaBøunty in our interview below!
Introducing LaBøunty all the way from New York! Tell us, how is it growing up in that type of environment? Were you heavily surrounded by music?
I definitely was exposed to a lot of music that my parents listened to (huge grateful dead/jam band fans), but not very much LIVE music growing up in the area I did. Luckily throughout middle and high school, I played drums in the jazz band - and with the help of a fantastic bandleader/mentor, I was able to broaden my musical horizons and began listening and developing a taste for many different genres of music. All of which, I believe, had an adverse effect on my writing and influenced the types of music I try to further develop into my own sound.
Was it challenging at first to develop the skills for producing? How did you overcome some obstacles?
Being at Berklee, amongst world class musicians and producers - there are a ton of things I get to learn in and out of the classroom. Music production is one of those things that's easy to get into, but has a steep learning curve in terms of using the tools at your fingertips effectively. Many times if I got stuck with something, I could ask the network of my peers and professors and find an answer. But mostly through trial and (lots of) error, I am able to achieve the sound that I'm trying to.
Let’s chat about this record “Spiraling Down” ! what was the major theme behind it?
A lot of the time, when I sit down to write a song, I focus too much on trying to present a life lesson to my audience, rather than just writing what I feel in the moment. With "Spiraling Down," it was almost the opposite. I wrote most of the lyrics around the idea of a toxic relationship, where you're just fighting with your significant other constantly, going down a road that you've been down before, over and over to the point where the fighting becomes arbitrary, and they all seem to blur into one. Hence, "Spiraling Down" a neverending rabbit hole of toxicity that neither party can really escape.
What moment in “Spiraling Down” was personally more impactful for the meaning of the song and you yourself !?
The most impactful part of the song to me was how quickly the lyrics came to me. I didn't sit at my desk for hours on end, trying to fit into a rhyme scheme - having written the first draft all in the matter of less than 2 hours, and only rewriting (if I remember correctly) 2 or 3 lines of the entire thing. I remember the first time I showed it to Sam (my best friend/the featured vocalist) was only a day after I had shown him the unpolished background track, and he couldn't believe I wrote such a cohesive song in just a matter of hours.
What’s next for you LaBøunty?
I'm currently working on a concept album, "The Inner Workings Of My Mind", where I'm trying to portray the many different genres that have influenced me as a musician, with some jazz, hard rock, hip-hop, and of course, electronic music - all falling under the veil of being true to myself, and the music that I want to put into the world. In the coming weeks I'm going to put out 1 or 2 more singles, before the final product, which is set to come out in mid-to-late August.
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