Photo by: Tom Southey
Sydney artist Lorenzo Guevarra has just released his debut single, a stunning indie folk track titled ‘As Well As I Do’. A bewitching song built up of warm acoustic strings, twinkling chimes, as well as Lorenzo’s gentle and velvety vocals, this debut release marks Lorenzo as a true indie folk treasure in the making.
Inspired by the likes of Passenger and Damien Rice, Lorenzo leaned into the styles of many of his musical influences while working on ‘As Well As I Do’, looking to the former particularly in the writing of the track, and to the latter in its production:
“The song was written on acoustic guitar and has seen little change over the years. At the time of writing, I was obsessed with Passenger and loved his way of fingerpicking the melodic lines of his songs before the words came in… At the time of recording I was listening heavily to Damien Rice’s ‘My Favourite Faded Fantasy’ record and drew some inspiration from its production, particularly the orchestral arrangement of the tracks. The string section ideas came organically as we kept replaying what we had. The song’s melody left much space to experiment so we didn’t have to force anything.” LORENZO GUEVARRA
Written by Lorenzo back in 2017, shortly after he graduated from university, ‘As Well As I Do’
was “inspired by two of [his] friends who started a relationship when [they] were in school. It was a largely turbulent one, constantly reshaping itself over the course of [their] education. The heart of the song was sparked by how they handled the “final” breakup. There was a mutual understanding that it was for the better and lacked the violence, drama & ugliness that usually accompanied the enterprise.” Lorenzo remarks that they “were about 20-21 which [he] thought was impressively mature.”
Coming back to this song at a later point, with different experiences and perspectives, Lorenzo shaped the track into what it is today. In the midst, then, of “processing a recent breakup of [his] own, the memory of this song helped [Guevarra to] maintain a state of grace throughout the ordeal” in a “roundabout way.”
Remoulding and readjusting the tune into its final, glittering form, Lorenzo’s years-long project makes for a deeply impressive debut single, demonstrating the passion, patience and care which inevitably went into the end product.
‘As Well As I Do’ is out everywhere
‘As Well As I Do’ is out now
Lorenzo Guevarra: triple j Unearthed | Instagram | YouTube
