Melbourne-via-L.A. producer Cleopold returned last year from a long stint overseas to drop his engrossing debut single ‘Down In Flames’, released through Chet Faker’s record label Detail Co.

He’s since followed it up with his debut EP Altitude & Oxygen, the tight selection of luscious jams you’ll find below. He took a bit of time out of his first ever U.S. tour to run us through the inspiration and processes that brought his debut record into existence.

You’ll be able to see him live when his national tour kicks off in August, dates below.

Not Coming Down

Not Coming Down was a fun song to write. It started with a melody and loop that I made at home. I ended up tracking a few different versions of the song in the studio, and playing different versions live in Australia, on tour with Chet Faker, before finishing it.

The tune itself is about feeling excited and high on life when things are on a roll and going well. In this case, its kinda about having feelings for someone.

The Space Between

This song was written over a few days in Sydney. It’s about the grey area where a friendship could become something more. We whipped up the instrumental in the studio, but when it came to recording the singing, the exciting feeling I had when I started to write the lyrics had dissipated.

It was kinda an awkward one to finish, because I ended up exploring both sides of the grey area – which I guess worked out well.

Down In Flames

‘Down In Flames’ is the first song I released as Cleopold, and I am very proud of it. It started as a demo that I made on my laptop in a friend’s apartment while he was at work, and I recorded a tonne of vocals onto my iPhone. I still remember the neighbours downstairs knocking on the roof with a broomstick, because I was quietly singing and maybe tapping my foot on the floor.

I tried to make the lyrics very descriptive and each line is supposed to reflect a certain memory of an event or feeling. Talking about taking a trip with someone, lying in a garden together, dreaming, catching trains and flying together; and then having everything come crashing down like a sinking ship.

Cleveland

I was living in a big empty house in Cleveland, Ohio, on my own for a couple of months. In the house, I was making beats and recording songs on a grand piano in the lounge room. It was the middle of winter and outside was blanketed in snow. I remember silent nights and mellow days, and coasting around in pyjamas. I didn’t have much to do other than feed the cat and work on music.

I looped some drums and layered different textures to create a sense of eeriness which eventually turned into this track. I called it Cleveland because that’s where it was made – I was also born in Cleveland, but I feel oddly disconnected from it.  I felt pretty creeped out some nights that I was in the house alone, and when I listen back to this track I’m reminded of an ominous, ghostly feeling that was hanging around at the time.

Scarlet

I started writing this song in Cleveland, in the same house, but finished it months later in LA. We made the synth sound by layering synth and guitar chords, and then ran it through a clunky old Tascam cassette recorder/amplifier.

It’s hard to distinguish what I’m saying in the chorus, so here are the lyrics for you: “I got a hollow-hearted Scarlet in my arms, I can’t stand falling madly deep in love, with a hollow-hearted Scarlet in my arms, a hollow-hearted Scarlet, Scarlet”.

Tour Dates

Sat August 6 – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney
Sat August 13 Hugs&Kisses, Melbourne
Fri August 19, Rocket Bar, AdelaideTickets on sale now.

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