Can You SCNDL It?

Melbourne's global bounce stars SCNDL don't always live up to their cheeky handle. Tom Grant and Adam Amuso tend to avoid getting “fucked up”, as Grant puts it. “We do have wild nights out with our mates and when we play and stuff like that, but we have to be on the road writing music and keeping healthy as well because, if we're not keeping healthy, then we're not gonna be able to perform our best shows.” SCNDL are, rather, 'scandalous in spirit'. “Our music is the most scandalous part – we like to be as aggressive and out-there with our music as we can be! I think that's the best way to keep it.”

That healthy lifestyle is serving Grant well. SCNDL have just returned from Miami and, within 24 hours, flew to Sydney for two shows, including a gig at their regular haunt Pacha. “Today I'm hurting,” he admits. “I'm kinda jetlagged and tired and everything – but, yeah, getting through it, getting through it, 'cause we've still gotta finish some records off this week.”

SCNDL came to prominence on the back of Melbourne's bounce explosion, following Will Sparks, putting their own spin on the genre. The two were introduced to EDM via hardstyle, big-room house and progressive – and all that continues to shape their style. “We try to make it melodic and have really big breakdowns in there and have all the chords going on as well.” SCNDL's music is bassy, too. “We also have a lot of dubstep influences in our music because, before we were writing bouncy stuff, we were writing a lot of electro-house and heavy complextro stuff.” Indeed, SCNDL teamed with electro-house kid Timmy Trumpet for Bleed last year.

As it happens, American DJ (and complextro pioneer) Porter Robinson has championed SCNDL's bounce, picking up on their single, Gypsy. “We owe a lot to him for getting onto our stuff in the early days.” However, SCNDL's major break has been to remix Flo Rida's Nina Simone-sampling How I Feel for Atlantic Records. “It was awesome to see that someone as big as them took an interest in two guys from Melbourne.”

Grant describes SCNDL's experience in Miami as “amazing” – it was their first international jaunt. They'll tour North America properly later in the year, joining the so-called Australian DJ invasion. SCNDL have secured their visas – “which,” Grant reveals, “was a massive drainer to get.” They recognise the huge potential for them in the US where, Grant reckons, “straight-up” dance music is more ubiquitous than in Australia, especially on radio – with “a 'dance music for breakfast' kinda culture”.

SCNDL have new music on the way. “We've got about seven or eight unreleased tracks at the moment that no one's heard.” And the duo are dabbling outside EDM, having been afforded “some really exciting opportunities”. “It's all on the downlow,” Grant says. “I'm sure when it comes out in the open we can tell you about it, but just for now it's still not there.” Is it scandalous? “No, no, nothing scandalous!”