acloudyskye - Interview

ETHEREAL.PRESS

Tell us a bit about acloudyskye.

ACLOUDYSKYE

acloudyskye was originally my Xbox username, but I started using it everywhere online around 2014 including the site where I started making electronic music. 

The name itself is a silly pun of my actual name.

ETHEREAL.PRESS

Talk to us about your most recent release, ‘There Must Be Something Here.’

ACLOUDYSKYE

I started working on the album a few months after "What Do You Want!" came out.

I felt really burnt out of making music completely on the computer so I started writing a lot of songs outside the DAW and on my guitar which is how I made "Ditch."

After I made that track I knew I wanted TMBSH to be a very guitar-focused album, having indie singer-songwriter elements with an emphasis on big production was the goal.

ETHEREAL.PRESS

I saw a few fans note that this was a departure from your prior works.

Can you tell us a bit how this project was unique compared to past releases?

ACLOUDYSKYE

My other albums have a really present EDM influence.

The bass and drums are mixed really loud and tight and there are a lot of synth layers going on in the climaxes when compared to TMBSH. A lot of the climaxes in TMBSH are just a bunch of guitar layers, and there's a much clearer acoustic drum sound on all the tracks.

It's also the most vocal presence I've had on an album, my older stuff was very sparse with singing.

ETHEREAL.PRESS

Talk to us a bit about the album cover for ‘There Must Be Something Here.’

ACLOUDYSKYE

It's three of my characters, Enth, Ila, and Izi, trying to figure out where they are through a fog in the middle of nowhere. I wanted to make the cover feel a little uncertain since that's how I was feeling about the future when I was making it. 

ETHEREAL.PRESS

Your world building within your visual design is really cohesive.

Can you tell us a bit about the characters that appear in your album art?

ACLOUDYSKYE

Enth (the black one) is the main character in the story.

They're the last of their kind and have a past that they don't want to have happen to anybody else. They're trying to learn more about the things humans left behind so that they can keep everything that's living in this world safe.

Ila (the red one) is this sorta wanderer/scavenger, their kind abandons the young to fend for themselves.

Ila has a lot of experience being on their own. I think their pasts contrast in a way that helps them get along.

Izi (the blue one) is the newest in the group, they're Ila's friend who's always trying to stop them from getting into trouble, there's a lot we don't know about them yet though.

Enth (Left) - Ila (Middle) - Izi (Right) ^

ETHEREAL.PRESS

Tell us a bit about the music video for ‘Team’

ACLOUDYSKYE

I really wanted to make something that expanded significantly on the lore that I had previously shown.

I felt like I had yet to reveal some of the most significant things about the world and the characters that were important in understanding the story. Originally it was just going to be another episode of the teasers I started doing with WDYW, but I ended up really wanting to make another music video since I hadn't in like 2 years.

It took me about 6 months on and off to make, I'm really proud of it!

There's still a lot more about the world I want people to see and I think there are even more questions now about some of the lore, but I'm glad I was able to show what I could in it.

ETHEREAL.PRESS

What kind of themes do you like to explore in your work?

ACLOUDYSKYE

I think anything I say would boil down to exploring people's effects on each other and the world around them.

I think a lot about how the things I say and do might affect the world in little ways, so a lot of my music is about that.

ETHEREAL.PRESS

Tell us about the importance of music.

ACLOUDYSKYE

It makes the world a much better place. It saves lives, helps us heal and grow, and makes us want to dance.

I really think it's just the best thing ever.

ETHEREAL.PRESS

What’s next for acloudyskye?

ACLOUDYSKYE

Gonna keep living and making music, will probably be brighter sounding.

I'm also trying to set up a live show or two! I think it will be fun, there's so much to look forward to. 

LINKS: Bandcamp - Twitter