VICE Spotlight: Amorist

If you told me there was an artist out there that’s a mixture of SOPHIE, Jean Dawson, and Tears for Fears, I’d think you were bullshitting.

But tucked away in the discrete pockets of Sydney’s Hills district, the cryptic, oftentimes faceless, little-known Amorist has been gradually releasing collaborations with musicians like Newcastle’s Mason Dane and West Sydney’s Jess Jade.

Though Amorist – who chooses to keep his real name hidden – has been working behind the scenes for some of Sydney’s local favourites over the past three years, he’s still an anomaly. And that’s what makes indulging in his music a lot more special.

Growing up with a Filipino mother and an Italian-Argentinian father, 24-year-old Amorist recalls his mum’s side of the family being “very musical”, and his dad’s being “completely tone deaf”.

On his mother’s orders, Amorist was classically trained in piano from a young age.

“My mum played a lot of Michael Jackson, George Benson, Steely Dan, Hall & Oates. I got a lot of Latin stuff from dad’s side; Trio Los Panchos, Celia Cruz, Gloria Estefan, Piazzola,” he told VICE.

While there was no light-bulb moment for Amorist, he has developed into a sort of “if you know, you know” kind of artist. Releasing two songs over the past year with featured artists, an Amorist track release is slow-paced and meticulous. Partly because he’s also trying to make it as a producer.

“I’m really finding it difficult to position myself as a producer,” he said.

“I have a very nonlinear production process and my solo work is constantly changing in style. Maybe if I was more intent on making a career out of Amorist I’d put my taste to the side a bit and make my style more accessible, but I don’t think that’ll happen anytime soon,”

“I’m more interested in musicianship right now. Both [of my singles] had live strings and acoustic guitar, so that’s where I’m headed.”

Amorist describes his latest drop LA PRINCESA as a structural nightmare. It’s risk-taking and boundary-pushing, and above all, showcases Amorist just “having fun”.

The handclaps and vocal mixing pull heavily from Rosalia’s 2022 album MOTOMAMI, taking on the same distorted, industrial-sounding production as the late SOPHIE, before ending with tango-inspired production that Amorist says is a “rip off” from the works of Argentinian tango composer, Astor Piazzolla.

To the masses, Amorist’s music is nonsensical and abrasive – a hodgepodge of disorderly sounds that shouldn’t work together but often do. He describes his music as intentionally “shambolic and haphazard”, but not for long. Amorist’s next venture is expected to be a lot more “traditional and purist” – a reminder of his boundless attitude to the craft.

“Hopefully when I wrap up I can get all my solo work pressed on vinyl and have my grandkids play it for me when I start to decline with dementia,” he said.

“I know music can be powerful like that for people who loved to listen to it when they were younger, so I’m interested to see how powerful it’ll be if you actually made the music.”

And what are his desires for the future of Australian music? It’s pretty simple.

“I want to see OneFour step into grime or garage. I want to see a Full Circle album and movie. I want to see a documentary about Common House. I want to see Cathy from New Gen Artistry put on a festival at Commbank Stadium. That’s about it.”

Adele is the Junior Writer & Producer for VICE AU/NZ. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter here.

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