Tuesday 6 March 2018

LISTEN: Gizmo Varillas - 'Losing You'

"I like the idea of sad lyrics with happy music. It balances things out." 

I'm a little late sharing this track (I've been sorting out my submissions inbox and couldn't archive this one without sharing), the recent single from Gizmo Varillas, the first from his second album Dreaming of Better Days, released 25th May via Muisca Records. The tune, entitled Losing You, was written in response to shootings at a nightclub in Orlando in 2016. Speaking about the track, Varillas says that “I was really touched by what I saw on the train that same day [...] I was on my way to work, and I saw two men sitting opposite me, crying, holding hands. I must have internalised that, and the next day the song just flew out of my mouth, word for word. I used the name Maribel as a way of putting myself into the shoes of one of the Latin mothers who lost their child. That song is basically a letter to her. The sad lyrics provide some sort of depth, and the happy music gives reassurance.”

I first discovered Gizmo back in 2016, opening up for Jack Savoretti at Somerset House, and saw him open again for Jack almost exactly a year ago at Hoxton Hall and was really impressed on both occasions. While on first listen the majority of his tunes appear feel-good due to the rhythms contained within, the joyful music is "often undercut by wistful melodies or recognitions of life's grimmer elements." This was true of his debut album El Dorado, and is a theme which continues onto the upcoming record, which is said to "acknowledge mankind's darker sides, and seeks to find light therein." Check out the first single below!



Gizmo plays an album launch show at London's The Lexington on 21st May (tickets here) with more dates to follow!

Follow Gizmo Varillas - Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.

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