Over this past year, Anglo-Spanish outfit And The Sunset Burns have managed to cement themselves as one of the more enjoyable names on the rise right now. And with their hotly-tipped debut album ‘All My Sins’ set to arrive very soon, they recently returned to deliver their vibrant new single ‘Take It Or Leave It’.
So with the new single currently doing the rounds, we thought now would be a great opportunity to find out more about their background as well as what they have planned for the future.
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Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you got started in music?
It’s been a different journey for all of us.
Danny: “I’ve been drawn to music for as long as I can remember, but when I was about 10 years old, my father played a blue cassette in the car—a rock and heavy metal mixtape that a workmate had made for him. That moment sparked a deep urge in me to be a part of the music world.”
Alex: “It came quite naturally from a young age. I remember being affected by songs I heard on the radio. I first heard Fastball’s The Way when I was 5 years old and I begged my dad for the cassette. The same happened with Deep Purple a few years later. So I felt why not also learn to play some of this music I was really enjoying?”
Ruben: “Music has always been a part of my life, as I grew up listening to my dad playing his guitar and singing around the house. I was too young to remember, but he claims that during one of his performances I started hitting a drum in time and he declared ‘he’s a drummer!’ I got into music more seriously when I started a band with some mates from school and learnt songs by 60s bands including The Who and the Small Faces. The buzz I got from our first gig made me instantly hooked!”
Isma: “Back in the day I had the chance to see KISS live and I loved it so I wanted to be in a band too, I started as a drummer in various bands in Spain and learned bass when I moved to London and here I am now.”
Who are your biggest musical influences and how have they shaped your sound?
Everyone has different influences and we individually bring those to the table and make room for them in each song, which shapes our sound. It’s a lot of fun to musically create ways through which these influences can complement each other and work together in a song. As a whole though, we would say our biggest influences are Lou Reed, The Doors and Jarabe de Palo,
Was there a specific moment or experience that made you decide to pursue music seriously?
It’s been different for all of us, but we’ll let Danny speak to this one as he formed the band way back when in Cantabria.
Danny Yes, probably a mix of two things: One was the profound feeling of creating something new while playing my father’s Spanish guitar. The other was watching those wild YouTube videos of Guns N’ Roses performing live in the early ’90s.
Can you walk us through your typical songwriting process?
For us, individual members tend to write a song and then bring to the band who bring their own influences to it. It’s closer to the Beatles process than the Stones if that makes sense! We feel it’s a great way to bring in a breadth of sound with many influences. The songwriting itself though is very personal and specific to each member:
Danny: “For me it always begins with a spark—this could be anything from something someone says in conversation, to a late-night reflection, a melody in my head, or even seeing a cat in a window. I then dive into writing or phone-recording as much as I can about it, without worrying about meaning, polishing, or coherence at that stage. Once I’ve captured everything I can from that initial inspiration, I put it aside and focus on refining it later. More often than not, it’s then that I discover what the song is truly about.”
Ruben: “For me it usually starts with me noodling around on an acoustic guitar until I land upon a chord sequence that resonates with something in me. From there I usually seek out a melody by singing some nonsensical words until a vocal line starts to take shape. I then sit down and write up the lyrics, work out a rough bass line and come up with a drum groove. But sometimes I start with the lyrics, drums, or bass – it often depends where the original inspiration comes from.”
How do you find inspiration for your music and lyrics?
Ruben wrote this song and so well let him speak to this!
Ruben: “My inspiration often comes from my encounters with the world around me. That was the case for our fourth single Just Another Day in New York City, as most of the lyrics reflect my direct experience of temporarily being a part of such a bustling city. In writing the song I was also inspired by the artists that have come to define the city, including Lou Reed, The Ramones, Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra.
Take It Or Leave was inspired by my experience of being in a string of ‘situationships’ and being unsure of whether they were going anywhere. I’ve found it can often help me relieve my frustration and anguish by turning my emotions into something I find beautiful.”
What themes or messages do you hope listeners take away from your music?
In general, we try to create music that is direct and chimes with people’s lived personal experiences, in a way that is honest and relatable. We’ve organised this as a concept in our upcoming album ‘All My Sins’, where each song is about a different sinful transgression that each of us have either experienced or witnessed, and that being resolved.
Many times the messages of the songs are simple but still developing. It’s only when we’ve written them and played them that they take on more meaning and the themes become clear. It’s possible, as with all music, that each listener will have their own interpretation of the meaning. But in writing lyrics we try to shine a light on the beauty that exists in the world, even when it’s buried beneath layers of pain and sorrow.
What challenges have you faced as an emerging artist in the music industry?
As a rock band in 2024 it’s been reaching those devoted communities who would appreciate our music and getting it in front of them. We have a growing follower base in London but also trying to grow this outside the city has been another challenge for us, especially at a time where other genres travel better through social media, which lends itself better to more commercial sounding music. But things don’t happen overnight and we’re seeing positive results so far so we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing.
What has been the most rewarding aspect of your musical journey so far?
With the above said, seeing the same people at our gigs and having them sing our songs while we play them has been really rewarding to see. Also, creatively speaking, over the last year working together as a four and seeing everyone’s influences come together to craft an original sound has been great to reflect on, and is something we’re super excited to see evolve and be able to express in albums to come.
How do you stay true to yourself and your artistry in a constantly evolving industry?
Every artist to different extents feels a pull to emulate or incorporate aspects of zeitgeist sounds and bands of the moment, or jump on trends that they feel will make them popular. It’s a tricky balance to keep between staying relevant and original. You don’t want to be popular because you sound exactly like someone else who’s having a moment right now. It’s important to take a step back and know that there are loads of fans of all types of music new and old, and have faith that communities will enjoy yours. It’s just a matter of reaching them.
What can fans expect from you in the near future? Any upcoming projects or tours?
We will releasing our full album this autumn and plan to tour Spain and around the UK in the coming months. During this time we will also begin work on our second album, in which all of our influences will be present in each song as opposed to captured in different songs.
Where do you see yourself and your music career in the next five years?
We plan to follow our music inspiration where it takes us, rather than being tied to a set vision. With this in mind, our coming albums will be conceptual and with strong visual and sonic identity. As for future, as a target we’re aiming to do tours across Europe and potentially further afield.
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Listen to And The Sunset Burns’ new single ‘Take It Or Leave It’ below.
