About

David B. Roundsley: Author, Musician, graphic / multi-media designer

Partner at DBR Design, founded in 1983, music producer at Munich Syndrome 2001 onward, owner of Syndrome Sounds label and publisher 2006 onward, co-owner of DBR Design publishing 2018 onward.

Author – Musician – Graphics
& Multi-Media Designer

I have been involved in various artistic disciplines ranging from fine art (painting, pen & ink, watercolor), graphic design, multi-media, writing, video, and music (composing and studio production) over the past 50 years. I have run an independent design company since 1983 and held the Creative Director positions at GetSmart and Fast Find. I have released 15 albums and dozens of singles and EPs (Extended Plays) under the moniker Munich Syndrome.

Along with designing and building well over 50 websites for e-commerce, personal, non-profit, and the arts over the last 30+ years, I have created logos, corporate identities, book covers, illustrations, and album covers. I have also created over 100 videos, ranging from animated to live-action.

Previously, I had always segmented my work areas online: web design, graphic design, photography, multimedia, video, music production, and writing. I’m bringing the various artistic disciplines together under one roof with this website.

My first course of study in college was as a fine arts major. Concurrently, my first job was as lead designer in the visual merchandising department of a major department store chain. I was given free rein to visualize and build engaging signage, props, sets, and anything else to engage the shoppers and increase point-of-purchase sales.

A love of music was also overtaking me, and it was through album art I developed a love of typography, logos, and branding merged with fine art that created an engaging visual hybrid I still appreciate to this day.

During this period, I lamented the demise of posters promoting and memorializing concerts and began designing my own mixed media of watercolor, acrylics, pen & ink, and airbrush.

After completing my fine arts studies and having a very fulfilling and successful run in visual merchandising, I wanted to expand into the areas of commercial art. I returned to school with a Technical Arts & Graphics major at the College of San Mateo, California.

Longing for more precision in what I was rendering, and this course of study provided foundations in typography, drafting, and layout.

I have played piano from a very early age. Around the time I was finishing up my second round of studies, I purchased a couple of synthesizers and a Portastudio and began writing and composing my own material.

Time was split between graphic design projects, working with start-ups and small businesses, working on my own music, and working with other local artists assisting with mixing or recording their material.

My next round of education included digital design, web design, multimedia, and audio design.

During this period, I received a call that a start-up, GetSmart.com, needed a quick fix with some functionality and images on their recently redesigned home page. Getting the call at 10 at night and having no base files to work from other than what was currently live on the web, I was able to restructure and redesign the problem areas before sunrise.

Additional requests followed, and it became apparent that it would be more cost-effective for me to join them part-time. I soon joined the company full-time as Creative Director and the main production artist and provided the front-end HTML. Over the course of a year and a half, we redesigned, rebuilt, and expanded the website and business two times. GetSmart became an attractive acquisition target for Providian Financial, which had been unable to gain any traction online despite having a very large art and technology department. Providian had just rolled out a multi-million dollar campaign for an online-only credit card, Aria. Shortly after the GetSmart acquisition, the decision was made to jettison the Aria brand and rebrand it as a GetSmart Credit Card.

At this point, the company shifted, and I was suddenly in one of the largest company-wide creative departments in the private sector. When GetSmart was a start-up, we could go from meeting to mock-up to design implementation in a few days. Suddenly, there would be meetings that lasted weeks over a particular shade of blue in a banner ad that would only run for a quick cycle.

Leaving Providian in January 2002, I rebuilt my audio studio (Syndrome Sounds V2), and began writing and recording earnestly. An opportunity presented itself to score some short movies shot in France, and those soundtracks became the basis for my first commercial release under the band name Munich Syndrome, Sensual Ambience.

Primarily down-tempo electronica with jazz inflections, many of the songs from this album have been licensed commercially, including Quiet Atmosphere, which was used by L’Oreal for their Pureology brand.

In 2004, the SVP I reported to at GetSmart began a new start-up, FastFind.com, and I came on board as Creative Director. I also provided the front-end and intranet HTML, web design, and supporting graphic materials.

Subsequently, we built out several vertical offerings (from the core business model of matching lenders and borrowers) within a few months of going live. FastFind became an acquisition target by BankRate.com about a year after we launched.

After the acquisition, website tweaks slowed to a crawl, and I transitioned to doing hundreds of online banner ads. Some of the ads I designed during this period had the highest conversion rates Bankrate.com ever had up to that point in time.

In 2006, I left Bankrate to concentrate on music. Along with releases by Munich Syndrome, I established the independent label Syndrome Sounds, which is also my music publishing; Syndrome Sounds / ASCAP.

I created and established a Munich Syndrome Video Channel on YouTube, releasing 15 albums (and counting) as Munich Syndrome and establishing Syndrome Sounds. There are currently 100+ videos (and counting). If you like any of them, please subscribe to be notified when new ones go up.

Bad Blood: A Life Without Consequence
The Story…

At the beginning of 2007, a talk show about adoption reunions came on. Being adopted, I paid attention. At the end of the show, they displayed a website. They said if you entered your personal information, you might be reunited or connected with a relative.

I entered the information, and about an hour later, I received a call from a search angel. She said she knew my birth mother’s maiden name and where she was currently living. What I thought might be a reunion or some basic information turned into a 13-year search that led me to several states over thousands of miles and many phone calls, emails, and letters. During the journey, many of the people I encountered all said this would have the makings of a book, and I should document and memorialize it.

Available now directly from the publisher, and SAVE $3 over Amazon’s pricing!

My most recent endeavor is a novel – “The HOA,” a humorous farce about life in a fictional homeowners association. Along with the novel is a companion listening experience, “The HOA,” the album.

The HOA is available on all major online sites (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc.). But you can order it NOW directly from the publisher and save $3 over Amazon’s pricing:

Also available – The HOA trade paperback

Available from Amazon in Hardback, Trade Paperback, and the Kindle version!

For any media or sales inquiries, please go to our contact page!