Today we have the premiere of the emotive “Love Hurt” from Meanjin/Brisbane indie-rock artist Sam Syrah. Sam Syrah is the solo project for Sam Shepherd, joined with friends from bands such as Juno and Port Royal. “Love Hurt” showcases the versatility of the artist. His previous track, “Philosophy” had an Arctic Monkey’s inspired groove, and “Love Hurt” is very much in the vein of a stadium-rock ‘torch song’.
The track was orginally written as a coming of age love song. It took a different direction after Shepherd suffered the loss and immense grief following the death of a dear friend.
As Sam writes: “My longest and dearest friend – Jesse – passed away in a fatal bike accident on January 16 2022 at approximately 6 pm. It was a Sunday. I was in the studio all day that day. We’d been playing phone tag all day that day…
“I’d written ‘Love Hurt’ before Jesse’s passing. However, when it came to recording, things had significantly changed. On the day I was doing vocals, I felt a heaviness in the room. As if there was another body in there with us.”
It’s a beautiful track, with warm and tender vocals, gentle guitars and the lyrics are vulnerable and personal. The instrumentaton builds and swells, but the feeling of loss doesn’t fade. It’s a beautiful and very special gift to the memory of his dear friend. “Love Hurt” will melt even a heart of stone.
“Love Hurt’ from Sam Syrah will be available on all digital platforms on Friday, 10th March 2023.
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