Music is far more than just a convergence of sounds, melodies, and lyrics. It’s an invisible thread that weaves through our lives connecting us to the experiences that define us. Our favorite songs don’t just offer an escape from the present moment but mirror our emotions and reflect back the highs and lows of our lives. Every album or song that speaks to us isn’t just a piece of music; it’s a time capsule, marking the moments we might otherwise forget.
With their latest hit Out Of Bounds, the rising electronic duo Koastle didn’t just set out to release another single but create the soundtrack to the good times we haven’t yet had.
“We just had a lot of fun making it (Out Of Bounds), and we think you can feel that energy in the record. We want people to go experience life to this song, whether it’s on the mountain, ripping up the slopes, or hanging with friends just having a moment with your favorite people. Our favorite songs tend to be ones we associate with great life memories and we really just hope that this song can be a soundtrack to great times in our fan’s lives as well” Koastle explained in an exclusive interview with The Daily Frequency.
One of the vibiest records of the year, Out Of Bounds channels the dark side of life and transforms the shadows into an illuminating and uplifting light.
“The song is about just picking yourself up when life keeps getting you down. At the time it came about, life was really coming down on us hard. Lots of life changes came all at once and it was overwhelming. We wanted to make a song that was almost like a word of encouragement for ourselves – sometimes when you get beat up enough in life, you just gotta sit there and laugh and say “That’s how it goes” hahahhaa.”
Joining forces with Conrad and DLG., Koastle crafts a feel-good anthem infused with catchy vocals, entrancing melodies, and hypnotic basslines creating a sonic experience that’s simultaneously new and nostalgic.
“The idea first was started when Conrad came to my (Andy) apartment in LA. He was out for the week working on music so he crashed on my couch for the week while he was here. It was super rainy and cold (for LA’s standards) so we just bunkered down and stayed in producing all day. I don’t think we got up from our chairs for like 8 hours. That session was where the core idea for the song started, then we sent that to Brett out in Dallas where he sauced it up even more,” Koastle stated.
“A couple weeks later we did a writing camp up in Tahoe to work on our debut album, we had both DLG. and Conrad come through and I showed the instrumental to DLG. on our drive up and he immediately turned it off, and said, “I don’t wanna hear the rest of it until we’re writing up in Tahoe, this ones gonna be fire.” When we got up the mountain, we were working many songs all at once but I think it was like day 2 that DLG. walked off for a couple hours and no one knew where he went. Like a nymph, the dude just appeared back with what is now the chorus for the song and immediately we all got hit with goosebumps. We knew it was gonna be special. We worked out the kinks together shortly after and that was where record really became what it is today.”
While they felt something special occurring in the studio they didn’t quite anticipate the buzz the track would create.
“When we made it we knew we all really liked it, but just because you like something as an artist doesn’t necessarily mean that’s going to translate to the audience liking it as well. No one ever truly knows whether something is going to be a smash or not. I remember when we got the master back, we all just had that moment where chills went down our spine, which to us is always a great indicator of a song being special. However, did we expect this reaction to it? Absolutely not and we’re just humbled and stoked that people feel the same way about it as we do.”
Not only did the track blow up but Koastle more than doubled their following since they started dropping snippets of Out Of Bounds on Instagram and TikTok.
“It’s certainly been a wild few weeks for sure. Honestly, we just feel super blessed with the opportunity to do this and that our music is finding an audience of people who believe in it like we do. The music industry has a lot of ups and downs so we’re just trying to stay level through it all and continue bringing this music to life.”
While Out Of Bounds is responsible for their recent meteoric rise, it’s far from their only record in their discography. In fact, they’ve been putting in work and dropping feel-good bangers since they started Koastle.
“Brett has been DJing since he was 14, he was really into early dubstep with artists like Flux Pavillion and Skrillex. Andy has been producing since he was 14, he was a die-hard Avicii and Martin Garrix fan back in the day so that was what really got him into music. I think both of us individually also found Flume and Odesza towards our later years of high school and that just introduced us to a whole new world of electronic music that we fell head over heels for.”
“Around the fall of 2015, the both of us officially met in college at TCU when we both rushed the same fraternity, and that love for music really brought us together. Brett taught Andy how to DJ and Andy taught Brett what he knew about producing. We just really loved electronic music – we didn’t know what we were doing but we knew we loved doing it and specifically loved doing it together. It’s crazy looking back cause we really don’t know how it all worked out, it really was a God thing looking back at it all. All we truly know is that 9 years later we’re still somehow doing this together and loving every minute of it.”
Inspired by the sounds of ODESZA, Porter Robinson, and Flume the duo can narrow down the exact moment they discovered their calling.
“Porter Robinson, Hard Summer 2016. Flume ACL Fest 2016 and watching The Chainsmokers Coachella live stream in 2016. All three of those moments were like watching Kobe sink a game-winner as a child, just this moment of awe-inspiring inspiration where we just knew – this is how we want our music to make people feel. We’re still figuring that out even today.”
However, EDM isn’t the only place they find inspiration. Sonically they’re heavily influenced by anything from indie rock to pop. More specifically, artists like John Mayer, Still Woozy, Mk.gee, Noah Kahan, Jungle, Tash Sultana, Justin Bieber, and Bon Iver have had a profound impact on their music overall.
“We’re all over the place dude but we believe there’s a little bit in every artist that you can take inspiration from and see how you can apply it to your own sound and style. No one hears music the same way so that culmination of all types of an artist’s influences is what really creates the final product or “sound” that’s inherently unique.”
Artistically, on the other hand, Koastle finds inspiration from just living in the moment going out in nature, and enjoying all the beauty the world has to offer.
“We’re trying to branch more into visual art and other forms of inspiration. Surrealism and specifically how it interacts with elements of nature is something we’ve always found intriguing. The beauty of a simple sunset or a mountaintop view. God is the greatest artist of them all and simply taking time to be inspired by the world around us is something we’re constantly trying to immerse ourselves in.”
When listening to Koastle’s records, whether it’s Out Of Bounds, their 2021 single Stay Close, or their 2024 EP Koastcards, these influences are easy to recognize. When asked to describe their sound, the answer was simple.
“Recently we’ve been describing it as GoPro music,” the duo chuckled. “That seemed to register with people well. Our sound is so loose because it really just boils down to what we feel in a given moment, but if you told us we HAD to come up with some description, I’d say indie-electronic with a nostalgic and uplifting feel, similar to the sonics of artists like Flume or Odesza.”
Not only do they aim to create a tangible sonic experience with the music create but they’re on a mission to make dance music happy again. And, for Koastle it all starts with the culture.
“We think music is a reflection of culture and our culture always craves something new. That’s why no matter what, eventually we get tired of what’s popular and collectively move on to the new,” they explained.
“Really melodically driven songs were all the craze throughout the 2010’s and people just got tired of it, so we think they shifted naturally to something more rhythmically based and more party/club focused. Also, the late 2010’s/early 2020’s man, what a whirlwind that was from a life standpoint. I don’t think people had the emotional energy to listen to music that was heavily dynamic/multifaceted.”
But as they say, trends come and go, the culture eventually shifts, and the music follows.
“Life was already exhausting enough with everything going on, people didn’t want their music to be exhausting either. They just wanted an escape from the chaos of life into something musically they could understand. Complex rhythms or complex sounds just became less of a demand, and I think inherently more melodic and sound-design-based music brings a little more of that designed chaos. Eventually, though, people will move to the next thing, thus the cycle of consumption, and we believe that the tide is shifting towards this way again.”
Of course, creating music with so many layers is no easy task, especially as a duo who live on opposite sides of the country.
“It honestly varies so much from song to song it’s hard to pin down an exact process,” they Explained. “These days Brett lives in Dallas and Andy lives in LA so we have to work around that now.”
“Usually one of us starts an idea we really like and sends it to the other to “develop.” That usually becomes a loop or a song starter that we then use when we sit down and do writing sessions with vocalists in LA (or virtual if they aren’t based here).”
But, through it all what drives them is a true love for their craft.
“We love songwriting and write every Koastle record we put out, it’s a huge part of our sound and honestly, something we find is rare for a lot of electronic artists, but it’s a part of the process we cherish a lot. Then when a vocal is written and cut, we kinda play ping-pong with the song going back and forth until it gets to a point where we both really like it. Then when it’s at that stage, Andy will take it and do a mixdown on it, to which we again go back and forth on feedback and adjusting until both of us really just have that feeling we’ve trained ourselves to know where we realize more work really isn’t adding anything to the song.”
With Out Of Bounds blowing up the way it is the sky is the limit for Koastle and according to the duo we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg as they prepare for their debut album and a tour to follow.
“Our debut album, to be honest, it’s the best thing we’ve ever worked on. It’s always been a dream of ours to make a cohesive body of work that tells a comprehensive story and builds a world for our music to exist in and be experienced. We’re so fired up with how it turned out and are just so proud of it. We hope our fans feel the same way about it as we do.”
“Outside of that, we’ll definitely be putting together a tour around the album so be sure to stay tuned for that and come check it out. We’re actually going to be shifting from being a DJ act to being a live electronic act like a lot of our inspirations mentioned in this article, so that’ll be a really cool experience and something we can’t wait to dive into.”
Aside from a debut album and a new live show Koastle has big plans for the future and the best way to reach your dreams is to envision it first.
“If we could achieve one thing in our careers it would be playing Coachella. Sunset slot. Watching the Chainsmokers play the Sahara at that time and Fred Again play the Gobi at that timeslot too, that’s always just been the benchmark for us as a moment we’ve always wanted to have. If we’re ever blessed enough to have that opportunity, that’ll be the moment we know we accomplished our dreams for real.”