Word by Callum MacDonald

After the release of his stellar single ‘Fragility’ earlier in the year, Hugo Basclain returns with a new sonic direction, embodied in his newest release ‘Falling’. We had the chance to sit down with Hugo and gain an insight into his journey as a songwriter, his influences in production and what we can expect from the project in the new year. 

Futuremag Music: As a newcomer on the Australian music scene, tell us about your journey to becoming a musician and when did that passion transcend into a drive to start releasing your original work?

Hugo Basclain: In high school I always wrote music, it wasn't really great but I didn't realise I wanted to make music full-time until I left school. Late last year I jumped into a local studio to record some songs I'd written as a fun thing to do, it got a little bit of traction and so I thought I'd work on some more. Early this year was the first time I'd managed to work with a producer to write and co-write songs with. It was a different vibe to what I was used to but it made me really excited about making music and so I started developing my sound and crafting tracks like Falling.

Futuremag Music: The new release ‘Falling’ touches on the subject of those early stages in a relationship where, as you learn more and more about the person, you realise, all of a sudden, you’re falling in love in love with them. Do you draw songwriting inspiration from personal experiences or do you prefer to create a story of your own? 

Hugo Basclain: It's actually pretty funny, with Falling I walked into the studio and I was pretty down about some of my personal experiences and I was super in the mood to write some sad songs. When we got in the studio the producer (James Guido) said "Let's write a happy song!" but we pushed through and managed to get out ‘Falling’. A lot of my songs come from personal experience, but I like to start with a small personal concept and expand it into something bigger. This has been the case for most of the new music I've been working on.

Futuremag Music: Your last release ‘Fragility’ was a beautiful song that was essentially a piano-based ballad perfectly accompanied by big gated snares and angelic backing harmonies. While we still get to enjoy those same elements in ‘Falling’ you’ve also mixed things up with some electronic sound design such as chopped vocals and pulsing kick drums. When your songs are ready to be recorded, what artists do you draw inspiration from in your production? 

Hugo Basclain: When I started writing it was more sing-songwriter. I wrote a bunch of ideas which were more like Dean Lewis, Lewis Capaldi and James Bay, but I found myself not enjoying this as much and lost the thrill of making songs in this style. I took some time out to rethink and develop myself, this when I realised the people that really inspire me are artists like Lauv, Lany, Loote and Chelsea Cutler. So I decided it was time to hit the studio again and find a sound that was more me.

Futuremag Music: You’ve mentioned we can expect a long run of releases as we head into the new year as well as the prospect of live shows. As a Sydney-based artist, who are some local acts you’re hoping to share the stage with when live music returns to its former glory?

Hugo Basclain: Damn, there are so many great pop acts to choose from. The girls are killing it for me right now so I'll have to go with CXLOE, Vera Blue, GRAACE and Yorke. Honestly, I'm just keen to play some shows and share some of this music I've been making as a hint i'd be expecting to be hearing a lot more from me in 2021.