My Top Five Tracks - AudioGust
- Flex Admin
- 2 hours ago
- 2 min read
AudioGust Is Back, and 'Amaze You' Might Be His Best Yet
The Seattle multi-instrumentalist drops a new single and opens up about the records that shaped him
Seattle's AudioGust does not do things by halves. Across more than four dozen self-written, self-produced, self-performed releases, the singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist has built one of independent music's more quietly formidable catalogues, pulling from alt-rock, post-grunge, and melodic indie pop without ever sounding like he is borrowing from any of them. Now he is back with 'Amaze You', a new single out 5 June that lands as the opening track on his forthcoming album This Time Or Any Other, due 17th July.
The track is AudioGust at his most direct and his most precise. Synthesisers, piano, layered backing vocals, and a rhythm section that knows when to step back build steadily toward a chorus anchored by one of the better lyrical hooks in his catalogue: 'maybe I'll remind you of the storms that just blow through / or maybe I'll amaze you'. It is a line about patience and uncertainty and the willingness to be judged over time, and AudioGust delivers it with the kind of conviction that makes you believe every word.
The song came together in a single day in his home studio, which is either testament to the efficiency of a writer who has been at this since the 1980s or proof that some songs simply arrive ready. The bridge, an unplanned acapella section that emerged during mixing, ended up becoming the emotional hinge the whole track turns on. The final chorus hits harder because of it.
Beyond the music, AudioGust is also the creator of StudioNotes, an app built for songwriters and producers who want to bring order to the creative process, covering everything from lyrics and demos through to release metadata and splits. It is a side project that makes complete sense given how deliberately he manages his own output.
With the album on the horizon and a back catalogue worth going back for, now is a good time to get acquainted. We caught up with AudioGust to find out which five songs have defined his life and still drive what he creates today.
“Madman Across the Water” - Elton John
“Badman’s Song” - Tears for Fears
“Smells Like Teen Spirit” - Nirvana
“I Can Feel You” - Motion City Soundtrack
“Many of Horror” - Biffy Clyro
“Favorite songs tend to define periods of our lives. One of the magical things about music is that a song can instantly take you back to a specific time, place, or feeling from your past. Each of these songs represents a different chapter of my life and continues to influence what I’m trying to create musically today.” - AudioGust
