A fresh single from Skyland Drive brings out the best in vintage synth-pop with classic soundscapes, and a driving beat that all come together with such a nostalgic and powerful style that it just feels good to listen to.
"Darkness Awaits" feels like a summer of your youth. You can start seeing memories pop into your head and you want to hold onto them as long as you can.
The track portrays such a tasteful use of a classic style and keeps to its neo-vintage roots in such a way that it manages to bring a new undertone while remaining so genuine to the aesthetic that it all falls together without a hitch.
This single is damn near perfect. The tonality and vastness of the world you get pulled into and the layers of textures used to create such an atmosphere is all intense but warming at the same time.
It truly is a nostalgic rush like no other and we're so happy to hear such heart go into synthwave music like this.
I think we all love this style of music even if we don't openly admit it all the time.
People like me work out to this stuff on a daily and it has that great drive to it that sticks.
With such an amazing single, we wanted to have a chat with Skylane Drive to find out where this actually came from and what it may mean.
Buzz Slayers: Let's kick things off with "Darkness Awaits". This single has such a classic synthwave style. Where did this track come from? I think in a lot of ways it does and in a lot of ways it doesn’t. My first EP I put out in June (Midnight Vice) really focused on just traditional Synthwave and Outrun with some additional groove and flair at times. I wanted Darkness Awaits to be novel. Believe it or not, I actually stumbled back into some Trance before I wrote it so I definitely think some elements of that genre actually rubbed off on me a bit. I wanted the track to be more atmospheric and droning at times; I wanted to be able to lose myself in it a bit. Buzz Slayers: So how did all of this start for you? When did you fall in love with music? I fell in love with music from a very young age. I remember jamming out in the car to Boston with my Dad when so was about 5 years old. I always had a deep love for rock music. By the time I was 12 years old my uncle bought me an electric guitar. I played regularly for about 10 years and then off and on for about another 5. There were a few years in which I actually didn’t play at all and sort of fell out of music besides just listening to it. One night, during the peak of the pandemic, I was playing Rocket League during their “Arcade Summer” event. That was really the first time I ever was exposed to Synthwave as we know it now. They featured tracks by FM-84 and that really sent me down a rabbit hole. I found it really captivating and in early 2022 I decided to give producing a shot; this is something completely new to me. Buzz Slayers: What inspires you to write a song? The idea of writing something that people groove to and vibe with inspires me. Sometimes I’ll go into writing something and it will definitely have more of a philosophical backing (like Darkness Awaits) and other times I’ll just start writing with a sort of generic theme in mind, such as nostalgia, and I’ll end up with something like Lost in Yesterday. Really, at the end of the day, I want to make music people enjoy. And I think given that my work emphasizes instrumentals it really leaves a lot of the themes of the songs open for the listener to interpret it how they want to. Buzz Slayers: This track has some great styles! Can you give us some of your top musical influences? I have a very diverse range of influences, but my biggest influence have been artists such as Kiile and Timecop1983. As far as non-Synthwave artists, I love rock and heavy metal so definitely stuff like Rush, Judas Priest, Billy Idol, & Iron Maiden. Buzz Slayers: What are you doing when you're NOT working on music? I’m usually working my 9-5, or hanging out with my fiancé and pug. I love the outdoors and going for bike rides, hikes, or walks. I really enjoy reading as well. Just the typical stuff I guess! Buzz Slayers: Who's in your headphones right now? It’s always a wide assortment. Lately I’ve been checking out The G. I recently found his work and have really been vibing with it. Outside of Synthwave I’ve been playing a lot of stuff like Ghost, Black Flag, and always Deafheaven. Buzz Slayers: Are you doing any live performances right now? Not yet, that’s something new to me again, just trying to nail down the production side of things now and I just started working on my first LP so that will keep me busy for a while. However, that’s definitely a goal in the future. Buzz Slayers: This single feels like a big undertaking, is there any advice you'd give to other up and coming artists out there? Just start. I wanted to produce music for years but found it really technical and difficult and I talked myself out of it for too long. I’d say just do it. Second, always look for critical feedback from several different sources and be open to it. That’s how you learn this stuff anyway and it will only help you improve and get stronger in your craft. Buzz Slayers: What can your fans expect from you guys in the near future? I’m currently finishing my first track on a new LP which I’ll likely put out this winter, so far what I’ve got is really strong I think. Buzz Slayers: Before we go, what would you like to say to fans of the music?
Thanks for the continued support and the best is yet to come!