Adelaide’s Tom Montesi, also known as LOS LEO, likes to play life on hard mode, apparently. Giving himself the almost-impossible task of writing, recording and producing an album solo within one calendar year, he’s just pulled it off with a little over a month to spare, and the result is LL-1000.
Sitting down with LOS LEO, my first question is simply “why?”. “I didn’t really know what I was going to do musically this year and I didn’t really have any goals and I thought that I’d just go out there and try and make a full album within the year while also making content online for it.” He says, shrugging it off as if its no big deal.
That content he’s speaking about isn’t just hastily put together BTS footage, but meticulously crafted reels showing the creative process from an extremely personal perspective. Inspired by the likes of Wes Anderson, he had a clear vision for these visuals but little to no experience in carrying them out. “On the 1st of January, I literally Googled ‘how to edit’ and then I downloaded a free program called Da Vinci. I’m a fan of film, so I’m aware of what’s going on in shots. I’m sure you would have heard of Wes Anderson before, he’s got a strong style- it’s like very symmetrical and the colour-grading is very strong. I wouldn’t say it’s achievable but it’s got a distinctive style that you can emulate.”
Content creation, especially of that level, is a feat in itself- add in creating an album from start to finish and LOS LEO had his work cut out for him. “Balancing that with actually actually creating the music was very hard. I felt like I was putting so much time into making the content, and felt a little bad because I should be putting more time into music. But also at the same time, it was a really good light palette cleanser, being able to jump between making videos and also going back to making the music.” LOS LEO explains. “I wanted to create more content this year, but I only wanted to do it if I liked what I was doing. I didn’t want to have to really like resort to, I don’t know- just putting stuff I didn’t really like have my heart in online.” It only takes a quick look at his Instagram to see that his heart was definitely in it, and the result is an incredibly creative archive documenting the intense journey he’s been over the last eleven months.
Each clip opens with the same voice over saying, “This terrifies me. This actually terrifies me.” But for LOS LEO, that fear generates motivation. “You’re exposing a part of yourself that maybe you haven’t shown yet. I think that’s what people connect to, really,” he muses, saying, “It’s vulnerability, you’re understanding that these people are human. But also, in saying that, everything is so dialled in with the documenting, in a way it could kind of feel un-human.”
Although at times finding that perfect balance between content creation and music was proving to be difficult, there were moments where the two creative sides worked in perfect harmony, complimenting and feeding off each other throughout the process. Inspired again by Wes Anderson’s ability to build worlds and somehow be the star of his own production behind the camera, LOS LEO wanted the visuals to really tie the entire production together. To do this, he had to maintain his focus on the finished product and the visuals helped keep his vision on track.
Working on such a high-pressure project over the last eleven months, there was a feeling of freedom that came with each release as LOS LEO approached the finish line. “I’ve just been absolutely knuckling down for the last like 11 months just trying to get this out. Trying to do this album within the year is a huge feat, especially for an indie artist like me.” On the flip side, however, being so closely attached to the project has meant that there’s been little time to fully conceptualise the music itself. “I don’t really know what this album is yet because I’ve been so close to it for the last eleven months and haven’t really had the chance to take a step back and listen to it properly. I was still checking off mixes and masters 3-4 weeks ago. I’m looking forward to not having it consume my life and being able to listen to it with fresh ears.”
On whether or not he would do this again, LOS LEO laughs and says “I don’t think so.”, and honestly I can’t blame him.
LL-1000 is out now and it’s an incredible achievement from an artist who has pushed himself creatively over the last year. Though he’ll be taking a well-earned break I’m sure, getting to know LOS LEO through this journey has made me very excited for whatever venture he chooses next.
