From San Diego, Californa, electronic artist/producer Sunsets captures sonic brilliance on his latest single “Align” Ft. Foreignlocal. Born as Enrique Vega, Sunsets grew up playing in a variety of bands from the young age of 12. However, after experimenting as Sunsets and the electronic production realm with blended guitar, he clearly found what works best. Sunsets’ recent single “Align” Ft. Foreignlocal effortlessly brings warm and bright imagery through its cohesive production. Not to mention Foreignlocals ethereal vocals perfectly enhancing the tracks celestial atmosphere. Through complex production and transcendent melodies, we’re left comparing Sunsets’ hypnotic sound to artists like Flume and RÜFÜS DU SOL.
“Align” opens with vibrant electric guitar strumming and haunting ghost vocals alongside Foreignlocal’s heavenly background vocals. At the initial downbeat, the emotionally-rich electric guitar picking shifts into fluttering synths overtop groundbreaking kicks. A third of the way in, Foreignlocal’s bright and inviting vocals effortlessly harmonize with the tracks underlying bass, guitar, and ghost vocals. The track keeps you and your soul moving with its breathtaking electro drum patterns and groovy bass lines. From Foreignlocal’s angelic vocals to Sunsets dreamy and skilled production, the track serves a mesmerizing experience. Sunsets’ “Align” is undeniably two minutes and 57 seconds of pure bliss.
Listen to "Align" here.
Hey Sunsets, welcome to BuzzMusic! Your latest single “Align” feating Foreignlocal has incredibly well-crafted production. Could you share how Sunsets gravitated towards creating what is now “Align”?
Of course! I actually made the instrumental for "Align" back in August of 2019. I was going through a pretty challenging time in my life because I had just started a brand new day job and had the worst imposter syndrome ever! Right after that first week, I got home from work, locked myself in my room and just started playing guitar. I still remember, how my body went from being so tense from all the stress and anxiety that I was dropping on myself to feeling calm and in peace. I just wanted to stop caring about my responsibilities and just feel good again for a moment. That's how the main lead guitar melody was created. I wanted to keep this dreamy and carefree vibe going so I then adding those boom-bap style drums, dreamy sounding synths and a groovy but still fat sounding bass guitar. I love recording real instruments in my music because it adds a type of connection that is very human in a way and it's also very fun! I kept that track to myself for a couple of months and then decided to send it to my friend Kelly (Foreignlocal.) to see if she was down to sing on it. She is so talented, her vocals and lyrics were perfect for this track.
Your track “Align” serves skilled production and Foreignlocal’s beautiful vocals. Could you share what the creative process/songwriting process was like, and how you went about laying her vocals down?
Foreignlocal: So one of my favorite things is when producers send me tracks with an interesting title, awesome beat, and free reign to write lyrics and melodies that create a story around that title. Originally titled "alignment", my first thought was of the stars and planets and the countless love stories where people's fates are pre-written in the stars. But the track was super upbeat and modern, so I knew it had to have a lyrically sweet and fun vibe to match that. I record everything from home and I had a lot of fun recording and writing this one! Once I finished all the vocals, harmonies, backup vocals and everything, I sent it back off to sunsets to work his magic with it! It was definitely a refreshing break from the more moody stuff I tend to write.
Your sound is very well-rounded and brings nothing but pure good vibes. Are there any artists/producers who influenced Sunsets' sound? What impact did they have?
A huge sonic influence as far as music style is SG Lewis, Tame Impala and HONNE. I love all music that puts me in a good headspace and these are a few top artists that I enjoy listening to and gain lots of inspiration from right now. However, artist and producer San Holo, has a huge impact on my music-making. I don't think my sound is similar to his style but I identify very much with his music-making process. He adds a lot of emotion and character to his music that you can hear and feel. It's very contagious in a good way because it is a very genuine way of making music. It inspires me to do the same because the process of channeling once emotions through any type of art is one of the most rewarding sensations in life and if I can make people feel good when listening to my music, then I think I did my job right. That's what music is about, spreading love.
It’s evident that each song Sunsets creates has a specific mood or atmosphere that’s clearly established. Could you share how you translate thoughts and emotions through electronic production?
I've always been a huge fan of music that hits you right in the feels! Therefore, I don't release every track I make. If I can't fully connect with something I am creating, whether it's uplifting or vice-versa, then I will just discard it and start something new. I've noticed that most of the tracks that I end up liking the most are the ones that I make while something doesn't go that well in life. I don't feel that way all the time now but it's still very therapeutic to make music for me so most of the time if I'm feeling down I create something that will make me feel good and end up sounding the opposite of how I felt in the first place but not all the times. That's how the instrumental for "Align" was made, I was locked inside my head by my own demons but as soon as I started putting together the instrumentation, it felt like I was drawing my own peaceful universe in a constant state of flow. Then Foreignlocal. nailed it by writing a beautiful story that connects everything together.