- 2022-11-27
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MUSIC
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Donate to support families affected by the crisis in Ukraine ➔ SYML Releases New Song “Better Part of Me” featuring Sara Watkins
Last month, Seattle-based singer-songwriter Brian Fennell, aka SYML announced his third studio album “The Day My Father Died” would be released on February 3, 2023.
From the album, he unveiled a new song “Better Part of Me” on November 25, 2022.
On the track, he joined forces with American singer-songwriter and fiddler Sara Watkins.
It was written by Brian Fennell and co-produced by Phil Ek.
“When I talk about someone being the 'Better Part of Me,' it's certainly a familiar trope. There is a sweetness that is appropriate and not saccharine when we think about our 'other,'” Brian Fennell said. “Love is certainly a journey full of conflict and challenge, and the best way to become better together is through being honest with ourselves and one another. And to have Sara Watkins join me on this song is something of a dream. Nickel Creek's first album was a blueprint for me as I started singing and writing songs. I love her voice, and the tenderness and simplicity she brings to this song fits perfectly.”- Also he shared on social media, “2002. I was in a Nickel Creek cover band in college, the first band I ever sang in. Because I had a naturally high falsetto, I would usually sing Sara's parts. I learned how to sing (and a lot about songwriting) because of this band. I was TRIPPING out when we first spoke on the phone about Better Part Of Me. I think we were both out doing family-related errands, and it occurred to me that music, in all its sick and beautiful ways, is really an extended family. It took me 20 years, but I finally wrote a song that she would sing with me. Thank you Sara.”
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The new album comprises 15-track and finds Fennell telling a story of interpersonal connection and chosen kinship following the death of his adoptive father in 2021.
“The ever-expanding universe will always frighten and delight me, but the truly unbelievable shit happens down here at our human level,” Brian Fennell said. “Losing my dad felt like running out of air. I still feel it in my gut. But this record is not about losing him, it's about what happens after we have lost.”
The album was recorded and produced in Fennell's hometown with fellow Seattle-native Phil Ek.
He said, “This album has 15 songs on it (like the old days?). I wrote most of them before my father died, and recorded the album a few months after he passed. My producer, Phil Ek, had just had a baby when we started working on the record, which made for a special time to be creative together!”
He continued, “Working with Phil was exciting, humbling, and memorable. This dude has produced some insane records that are beloved by everyone I know. The music that Guy, Sara, Charlotte, and Lucius makes it all beautiful and uniquely their own. I feel fortunate to say that we all now have songs together. Again, I want to say I can't believe it's happened, but it has.”
Background photo by Andreas Budtke - source : Apple Music
