Somehow in our hunger for perfection it's become difficult for music to just be. And so when Bilal began making A Love Surreal (his latest-and fourth cd over all) the acclaimed Grammy nominated vocalist/songwriter/producer knew where he needed to go. "I've always wanted to make music that is so basic and simple that it can be recreated every time. Something simple like a jazz standard. On this album I let go of a lot of shit for the first time and that opened my eyes up to a lot of more stuff. It was a real complete thought."
A soulful rumination on love's varying rhythms Bilal describes A Love Surreal as a "musical art gallery." As the title might suggest the cd is a reference to the father of Surrealism Salvador Dali. Although Bilal is quick to point out that he isn't "a painting connoisseur" he loves Dali's work. And has long been intrigued by the possibilities of fusing art and friends with a young artist who was making a living off his art. He considered himself a musician and playing guitar would get him thinking about painting. Through him I saw how I could make music out of something visual and vice versa. I was beginning to think in a bigger picture and so, when I went into A Love Surreal I was no longer just looking at things as being "just" a singer. I really put something into it."
A Love Surreal found Bilal taking on the self -described role as "complete brain master." In actuality he produced or co produced a majority of the cd. "I built a big landscape and put it all together when I got into the studio. I'd come up with an initial shape of a song on my laptop and take it to the studio and instead of keeping a lot of the electronic stuff I'd teach it to my band and then we'd expand from that. I'd lay down ideas, little words, mumbles and then we'd sketch out the rest of the lyrics." Creating the cd took about a year and Bilal cites the fast pace and forward movement as a reason why "everything come out naturally."
The first single, "Back To Love", takes listeners on a journey through the
trials and tribulations of a relationship. Self produced, the smooth meandering of Bilal's vocals, along with the instrumentation, paints the picture of a couple navigating falling in and out of love. "It's about getting back to the one. The initial passion and spark, the fire. In everything and at different times we all find ourselves at that place where we need to reaffirm things."
show less
A soulful rumination on love's varying rhythms Bilal describes A Love Surreal as a "musical art gallery." As the title might suggest the cd is a reference to the father of Surrealism Salvador Dali. Although Bilal is quick to point out that he isn't "a painting connoisseur" he loves Dali's work. And has long been intrigued by the possibilities of fusing art and friends with a young artist who was making a living off his art. He considered himself a musician and playing guitar would get him thinking about painting. Through him I saw how I could make music out of something visual and vice versa. I was beginning to think in a bigger picture and so, when I went into A Love Surreal I was no longer just looking at things as being "just" a singer. I really put something into it."
A Love Surreal found Bilal taking on the self -described role as "complete brain master." In actuality he produced or co produced a majority of the cd. "I built a big landscape and put it all together when I got into the studio. I'd come up with an initial shape of a song on my laptop and take it to the studio and instead of keeping a lot of the electronic stuff I'd teach it to my band and then we'd expand from that. I'd lay down ideas, little words, mumbles and then we'd sketch out the rest of the lyrics." Creating the cd took about a year and Bilal cites the fast pace and forward movement as a reason why "everything come out naturally."
The first single, "Back To Love", takes listeners on a journey through the
trials and tribulations of a relationship. Self produced, the smooth meandering of Bilal's vocals, along with the instrumentation, paints the picture of a couple navigating falling in and out of love. "It's about getting back to the one. The initial passion and spark, the fire. In everything and at different times we all find ourselves at that place where we need to reaffirm things."
Somehow in our hunger for perfection it's become difficult for music to just be. And so when Bilal began making A Love Surreal (his latest-and fourth cd over all) the acclaimed Grammy nominated vocalist/songwriter/producer knew where he needed to go. "I've always wanted to make music that is so basic and simple that it can be recreated every time. Something simple like a jazz standard. On this album I let go of a lot of shit for the first time and that opened my eyes up to a lot of more stuff. It was a real complete thought."
A soulful rumination on love's varying rhythms Bilal describes A Love Surreal as a "musical art gallery." As the title might suggest the cd is a reference to the father of Surrealism Salvador Dali. Although Bilal is quick to point out that he isn't "a painting connoisseur" he loves Dali's work. And has long been intrigued by the possibilities of fusing art and friends with a young artist who was making a living off his art. He considered himself a musician and playing guitar would get him thinking about painting. Through him I saw how I could make music out of something visual and vice versa. I was beginning to think in a bigger picture and so, when I went into A Love Surreal I was no longer just looking at things as being "just" a singer. I really put something into it."
A Love Surreal found Bilal taking on the self -described role as "complete brain master." In actuality he produced or co produced a majority of the cd. "I built a big landscape and put it all together when I got into the studio. I'd come up with an initial shape of a song on my laptop and take it to the studio and instead of keeping a lot of the electronic stuff I'd teach it to my band and then we'd expand from that. I'd lay down ideas, little words, mumbles and then we'd sketch out the rest of the lyrics." Creating the cd took about a year and Bilal cites the fast pace and forward movement as a reason why "everything come out naturally."
The first single, "Back To Love", takes listeners on a journey through the
trials and tribulations of a relationship. Self produced, the smooth meandering of Bilal's vocals, along with the instrumentation, paints the picture of a couple navigating falling in and out of love. "It's about getting back to the one. The initial passion and spark, the fire. In everything and at different times we all find ourselves at that place where we need to reaffirm things."
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A soulful rumination on love's varying rhythms Bilal describes A Love Surreal as a "musical art gallery." As the title might suggest the cd is a reference to the father of Surrealism Salvador Dali. Although Bilal is quick to point out that he isn't "a painting connoisseur" he loves Dali's work. And has long been intrigued by the possibilities of fusing art and friends with a young artist who was making a living off his art. He considered himself a musician and playing guitar would get him thinking about painting. Through him I saw how I could make music out of something visual and vice versa. I was beginning to think in a bigger picture and so, when I went into A Love Surreal I was no longer just looking at things as being "just" a singer. I really put something into it."
A Love Surreal found Bilal taking on the self -described role as "complete brain master." In actuality he produced or co produced a majority of the cd. "I built a big landscape and put it all together when I got into the studio. I'd come up with an initial shape of a song on my laptop and take it to the studio and instead of keeping a lot of the electronic stuff I'd teach it to my band and then we'd expand from that. I'd lay down ideas, little words, mumbles and then we'd sketch out the rest of the lyrics." Creating the cd took about a year and Bilal cites the fast pace and forward movement as a reason why "everything come out naturally."
The first single, "Back To Love", takes listeners on a journey through the
trials and tribulations of a relationship. Self produced, the smooth meandering of Bilal's vocals, along with the instrumentation, paints the picture of a couple navigating falling in and out of love. "It's about getting back to the one. The initial passion and spark, the fire. In everything and at different times we all find ourselves at that place where we need to reaffirm things."
show less
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