Vallis Alps is an electronic music duo from Sydney, Australia, composed of producer David Ansari and vocalist Parissa Tosif. Their debut album, Cleave, was released in August 2023 and has been praised for its blend of electronic and pop sounds, as well as Tosif’s soulful vocals.
The duo met in Sydney while they were both studying music. They started working together on music after they realized that they shared a love of electronic music and pop music. Their music is influenced by a wide range of artists, including Daft Punk, The xx, and James Blake.
We had the privilege of interviewing Vallis Alps, Check it out:
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Congrats on the release of your new album: Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your album “Cleave”?
Thanks! My answer changes — but overall the album is a study of the gray areas and middle grounds where truth tends to live, between people, between beliefs, between opposites. And that’s ultimately our story: Parissa and I are as different as two people can be, and at times it makes our working relationship really difficult — but in the middle of that Venn diagram lies the best of us, and the album is a collection of the moments we were able to translate that into music.
How does this album differ from your previous work?
It’s pared back. Musically, we prioritized choral arrangement over instruments and tried to let Parissa’s natural voice guide the production; and lyrically, we made an effort to let what feels right be right, without overanalyzing it (a trap that Parissa is able to dodge, and I tend to fall into). “Ephemera” and “Turn It Around” are good examples of this.
What do you hope listeners take away from “Cleave”?
Validation, inspiration, and a deeper willingness to be vulnerable.
What inspired the lyrics to the song “you & I”?
Parissa and I were at an event where someone — a man — was making the argument that women were subservient to men and that white men were the most oppressed group of people in society. He was serious. It was wild. Parissa wrote the first draft of the verse lyrics as a response to him — “I feel like you live in a different universe / wrapped in a silhouette, a curse / oh, how your blindness cracks the dirt…” — but I had no idea that she had written it with that intention, so I assumed it was about our friendship, which was in a fragile state at the time. So when I wrote the chorus lyrics (with the help of our friend Eric Cannata), I wrote them about our friendship — “I only wanted what you wanted, you always seem to cross the line / we got a million scores to settle but I can’t put up a fight…” — and somehow it worked. In retrospect the confusion was funny, but it goes to show how tenuous things were between us at that time.
What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re not making music?
Probably road-tripping with my wife
What are some of the challenges you faced in writing and recording this album?
Parissa and I spent a lot of time in conflict on this record — creative disagreements, communication breakdowns, long emails, you name it. We eventually went to mediation together in February 2020 and left with a bunch of new techniques on how to manage our friendship and collaborative relationship.
What are your plans for the future of Vallis Alps?
For now, the plan is to get the most out of touring — it’s the best part about this career, and we’ve spent so much time off the road to focus on the album, so we’re itching to get back out there. So far on this cycle, we’ve done two headline shows and a festival in Australia, and we’re heading on a USA tour in a few weeks, so we’re stoked.
What’s your favorite thing about being an independent musician?
The artistic freedom is the best part, but it’s a double-edged sword. We’ve been able to work at our own pace and make our own creative decisions, but the tradeoff is that it’s harder to be taken seriously by the industry. You have to know what you want, and ultimately what we want is to make art and connect with an audience directly.
If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
Teleportation, so I never have to set foot in an airport again.
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Listen and follow Vallis Alps HERE