Through prosperous vocals, intricate harmonies, and a continuous cinematic flavor, ROYAL’s new album “Heart of Shadows” explores the aftermath of an ill-fated relationship.
For the Canadian independent pop/dream pop artist, her new album – just released November 2nd – serves as a reminiscent auditory memoir of her own youth and touches on themes of love, heartbreak, bitterness, and the loss of identity.
“My goal with ‘Heart of Shadows’ was to create something that thematically represents me as an artist, but also relates to anyone who hears it. I wrote this album while re-visiting a relationship that left me shattered by the loss of a love that I thought would last a lifetime,” ROYAL says.
“Heart of Shadows” – which was produced by Luca Fogale – is a new milestone for ROYAL in a diverse genre-bending journey that has taken her from illustrious beginnings as a folk-pop artist to her current sonic fusion of independent, dream, and electro-pop ingredients.
For the well-traveled songstress – who has lived in Toronto, Melbourne, and Vancouver to name a few – there have been many highlights.
ROYAL’s debut album (2009’s Seasons) and 2010 Canadian HOT AC Top 40 Single “Christmas With You” have earned multiple television placements, including Men with Brooms (CBC Television), Cra$h and Burn (Showcase), and the 2017 Hallmark Channel films, Christmas in the Air and The Perfect Bride. She also won first prize in the 2010 We Are Listening Singer/Songwriter Competition and was a Top 12 finalist in 2014’s Peak Performance Project. “City Lights” – a 2016 collaboration between ROYAL and EDM artist Conro – has hit over 5 million plays on Spotify and was chosen for placement in a Gogoro scooter commercial in Taiwan.
Along the way, noted producers like Warne Livesey (Matthew Good, Rykka) Ryan Worsley (Dear Rouge, Sophia Danai), and her current muse Luca Fogale (Mathew V, Emily Rowed) have led ROYAL towards finding her refined and most authentic sound and creative identity.
“Heart of Shadows” boasts six new tracks – including “Vessel”, the record’s lead single.
“Vessel” joins the acapella-driven opener “Kings and Queens”, the mystical opus “The Hunter”, the tragic ballad “Reminisce”, the romantically-tinged “Black Beauty”, and the punchy “Rebel”.
ROYAL says, “As an artist, my purpose is to share experiences through sound that connect with people on a meaningful level, and thus connects us together. With ‘Heart of Shadows’, I believe I have done just that.”
You can listen to “Heart of Shadows” on Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, and Google Play Music.
Check out ROYAL on social media @IAmRoyalMusic on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram or visit her at https://www.royalofficial.com
