Welcome to Unrecorded, where we bring you closer to the music and the minds behind it. Today, we have the pleasure of diving into the creative universe of ALI, a London-based Spanish singer-songwriter with six years of songwriting, producing, and crafting her sound under her belt. ALI has just unveiled her debut album, Mirage Vol. 1. This introspective and evocative record blends imagination with reality, capturing the emotional landscape of the artist’s journey as an artist and individual navigating a new city and a new chapter. From her meticulous approach to songwriting to the seamless collaboration with Yuriy Salud, ALI’s process is as layered and thoughtful as the album itself. Join us as we explore the record’s influences, creative philosophy, and the stories behind the music in an interview that promises to inspire and resonate.
Welcome to Unrecorded! For those who aren’t familiar with ALI, can you introduce yourself ?
I’m an independent artist based in London. I moved here 6 years ago from Spain to study songwriting and create some music. I take part in every step of my music, from writing to producing and publishing. I just released my debut album Mirage Vol. 1.
Let’s dive right in and talk about your new album, Mirage Vol. 1, what does this release mean to you?
I always knew I wanted to release an album as I have so many songs written. I feel having released this album give some cohesion to the songs I released previous to it and the ones in the album itself, as they live together in the same universe.
The title Mirage suggests a blend of imagination and reality. How did this concept shape the album’s sound and storytelling?
Mirage to me is something just imaginary, that doesn’t exist outside your mind, but you strongly believe in its existence. Mirage Vol. 1 talks about all the expectations and dreams I had about this journey and how the interactions and feelings evolved during the first months here. How my perspective slowly changed and how I started overthinking about all the decisions that brought me to that moment. Melancholy and nostalgia grow by the end of the album with ‘When the summer’s back’ ending the album, allowing the listener to have a feeling on how Mirage Vol. 2 is going to show how everything actually turned out differently to all these expectations and dreams.
You’ve said that you aim to write the music missing from your ideal playlist. What’s one song from the album that you feel filled that gap for you?
I feel each songs would fill a different gap. I kind of feel I needed all of them, I know that whenever I feel bit sassy ‘Too Hard To Love Me’ is my go to, and whenever I feel sad I have ‘Like A Thousand Days’ to cry myself to sleep.
How did your collaboration with Yuriy Salud shape the sound of the album?
In every form. He’s been involved in all the process shaping the sound of the album, taking in consideration what he feels can work great with my vocal range and style, his classical musical knowledge can be noticed in the way he arranges the composition, leaving space for every sound to have its own moment, just how you could find in an orchestra. He brings his own personality and own sound to the recordings, always adapting to how I see the direction of the song should be. He’s as perfectionist as I consider myself to be, so we both take a lot of care and time until we find the song is ready.
Can you share a specific moment in the recording process where you felt everything come together?
Whenever we’ve recorded the first good demo of a song. There’s where we start to see the potential of the song. You have most of the musical structure of it, some backing vocals ideas and everything starts to sounds in place. From there the fun part comes, recording everything properly and giving it its final touch.
Who are your main influences? And how do their storytelling and sound inform your own creative direction?
I’d say Taylor Swift and LÉON. We all know Taylor Swift is a great storyteller. She really inspires me when it comes to creating a scene in which to develop the story of the song, and LÉON’s music style gets really close to the concept that I would like to develop in my music. I always like to have the doors open to any artists or genres to influence my music, though the main ones would obviously be pop music and singer-songwriting. I always do musical research before starting the production of the next song and I love to add a dramatic touch to my songs that could be influenced by my love for musicals songs.
What message or feeling do you hope listeners take away from the album?
I’d like listeners to make these songs fit in their own life and experiences the way they’d feel. I’ve done my part, the album is not mine anymore, is for everybody willing to listen to it.
And lastly, what can fans expect from ALI over the coming months?
Definitely more music, there’s a whole Mirage Vol.2 coming soon!
Listen to lead single ‘City Lights’ in our Shades of Pop playlist.
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