News, Reviews

Lionel Boy Shares New Single “LOVE”

April 12, 2022
Photo credit: Casey Liu

LIONEL BOY

Shares new single “LOVE”
EPs ‘Up At 4’ due April 29th & ‘Down at 8’ due June 17th via Innovative Leisure

Hawaiian-born, Long Beach-based songwriter Lionel Boy is sharing his new single “LOVE” from forthcoming EP ‘Up at 4′due April 29th via Innovative Leisure. This will then be followed by a second EP ‘Down at 8’, which is due June 27th. 

Speaking about the new single, Lionel Boy said “I demoed this one out one weekend while my girlfriend, Casey, was away. I had a general idea of direction – but thankfully I had Brett Kramer there to really help bring these other ideas to life. The song is short but I think its takes you through a few different levels, a lot like falling in love. It starts off with a slow build then the drums transition it into something more intense and exciting. The siren/alarm that comes in at the middle feels like conflict, which we all experience in relationship. The acoustic guitar portion brings it back to a sobering state and the song ends a bit…up in the air.”

LOVE starts with this lo-fi ambiance and this imperative beat, clashes of fierce soundscapes sweep in and dynamically shift that alluring calming vibe. Lionel Boy carefully controls the atmosphere and bridges the unpredictable shifts with the influential vocal harmonies that glide through that landscape with such ease, such formidable power.

Lionel Boy’s sound mixes spacey synthesizers, impromptu breakbeats & bedroom pop. The airy, jazz-cracked, electronic pop of Lionel Boy belies a wistful romanticism, a careful observational streak, and a meditative fixation on life and death. Lionel Boy is soulful and easy-going, both introspective and laissez faire, extremely mellow but never soft-headed. 

‘Up at 4’ and ‘Down at 8’ are a collection of songs that started off as demos in Lionel Boy’s living room. Following the release of his debut album, Lionel Boy wanted to continue exploring producing and collaborating with friends. 

“I felt like I spent all and none of 2021 working on these songs. Producing these EPs looked like a lot of early mornings and evenings spent at my computer screen. Some days feeling like I made no changes at all. I’m a pretty early riser—waking up at 4 am which are when many of these songs came to mind. I spend most of my time working when the world is quiet which sounds nice but isn’t always the easiest to do when you live in an older apartment with downstairs neighbors. Everything I do to get things moving in the morning is an inconvenience to the people around me—the creaky wood floors, tracking vocals, tapping my drum machine…just one of the many ways I’ve woken up my girlfriend throughout the years. Trying to find a balance between making my music when the creativity strikes while also being a respectful roommate/neighbor is tricky but we make it work.

I’m grateful for the people who have helped me elevate these songs beyond this space. Friends like Brett Kramer, Andrew Pham, Ukiah Bogle, Casey Liu, Nathan Hawelu, Harlem (Dotager) and Jonny Bell were crucial to making these songs what they are now.”

Up at 4 tracklist:
1. FREEZE
2. SHADOWBOXING
3. LOVE
4. SMWYG
5. GLORY DAZE (Bonus Track)

Down at 8 tracklist:
1. CLOUDS
2. LOOP
3. SHDWS
4. SLFR

https://www.lionelboy.com/

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