Hailing from San Bernardino, the alt-rock band Unsound Sunday releases their anthemic single, "Alive." Consisting of Cesar Aguiar (Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Drums/Keys), Christopher Moreno (Drums/Keys/Backup Vocals), Brian Ramirez (Bass/Keys/Backup Vocals), and Aaron Cuellar (Lead Guitar/Backup Vocals). The band strives to create enjoyable and unique music, and they've done precisely that with their recent single "Alive." Taking us on a trip through the heart, their lyrical content supported by bright instrumentals create vast space for the listener to do some inner reflecting. With each pounding drum kick, the track screams healing with a side of independence. Overall, providing us a deep and thoughtful track where we can easily dance away.
"Alive" begins with Aaron Cuellar's bright and fluid electric guitar that moves into a full instrumental. Once Ceasar Aguiar's vocals appear, the soft filtered effects create this dense atmosphere that feels similar to a dream-like state of mind. Christopher Moreno's textured drums keep the track at a steady pace while spicing it up with intricate patterns. Not to mention the grooving bassline that evens out the track's low-end, the listener has infinite space to sit back and take in what Unsound Sunday has carefully crafted. With hints of nostalgia all over "Alive," Unsound Sunday created a track that pulls the listener deeper into their unique sound and provides beautiful instrumentation to get lost in.
Where did the band find collective inspiration to create your single "Alive"?
We had an idea to create an atmospherically sounding song, but we also wanted the lyrics to be meaningful. Usually, we write songs by getting the instrumentals down and writing the lyrics from beginning to end. However, this song was different because Cesar and his lady Xiomara came up with the bridge part first, with the lyrics: “You were all I had in this life, but you left me all behind.” So, we basically used the middle part of the song as a reference point.
How did you guys work off each other to reach your end goal for how you wanted "Alive" to sound and feel for listeners?
Since we were starting off with the bridge of the song, we all just came in and worked our way around it. Each of us experimented and added unique sounds, as we tried to figure out what we felt best to fit the theme of the song. We wanted this song to resonate with the listeners in such a way that gets you thinking, vibing, and getting lost in the song. We have received great feedback from people who listen to us performing this song live, they often express that that they feel an unexplainable high. Which was something we wanted to achieve because we really wanted our listeners to feel like they are part of the song.
We noticed that you released "Alive" alongside two other singles leading up to your upcoming EP. Might we see more singles released prior to the project? Why did you want these singles to lead the way?
We are working on a new single that will also be on our next EP. We will be releasing it soon, and let’s just say it’s a game-changer! Our single, “Reaching From the Abyss” is a Part 2/continuation that was inspired by the prequel single “Alive.” We felt that “Alive” could not be released on its own, given that “Reaching From the Abyss” is an integral part – you cannot have one without the other. The other single we released called “Out of Place,” features our great friend Fred Dogg. We chose this song in specific because it showcased how diverse we can be. This song is not only a collaboration with another artist but is also a representation of how we can adapt to any genre. Each of the singles released so far has elements leading to the sound that we are going to have out on our new EP.
What can you tell us about your upcoming EP? How is it different from your debut album 'Unsound Sunday'?
Our upcoming EP is coming out better than expected. We, as a band, are multi-talented musicians. In this EP in specific, with each of our songs, we take turns, singing and playing different instruments. We are also incorporating new unique sounds with some new gear and are getting very creative with our writing process. Not to mention, in this upcoming EP we are collaborating with big names. We can’t wait to show everyone who we collaborated with, and how different our music sounds.
What has been keeping you guys inspired throughout 2020?
The pandemic definitely kept us inspired. We were stagnant because of social-distancing, but with more time to ourselves, we were able to think about life and what we really wanted from it. Collectively as a band I think we can all say that our passion for playing and creating music is what continues to keep us driven. Although we couldn’t perform, this was a great time to create new music and record. The great thing about this day and age is that recording has never become so easy and accessible. We have always been independent and like to do things ourselves, therefore we already had experience recording. We each were able to record tracks, send to each other, and work from home.