Videos

LIONEL BOY announces two EPs

• 17th Mar 2022

Following the release of his debut album last year, Hawaiian-born, Long Beach-based songwriter Lionel Boy is back today with news of two new EPs. The first ‘Up at 4′ is out April 29th and the second ‘Down at 8‘ is out June 17th via Innovative Leisure. The first single from ‘Up at 4′, ‘SHADOWBOXING” is streaming online now. 

Speaking about the track, Lionel Boy said “I’ve been trying to write a song like ‘SHADOWBOXING’ for a long time. Something that would feel both nostalgic to me and new at the same time. When I first started playing music it was always the guitar riffs that grabbed my attention and I think the same happened with SHADOWBOXING. Growing up in Hawaii, you automatically take things slower. No rush, no worries…until you piss someone off, then they’ll go 0 to 100. We’re both quick to relax and quick to rush in. This song isn’t about one thing in particular, but some observations I’ve made in myself and in those back home. I know a lot of us are just dealing with our own things, fighting our own demons…shadowboxing.”

Listen via other streaming services here: https://smarturl.it/LB_shadowboxing

Lionel Boy’s sound mixes spacey synthesizers, impromptu breakbeats & bedroom pop. The airy, jazz-cracked, electronic pop of Lionel Boy belies a wistful romanticism, a careful observational streak, and a meditative fixation on life and death. Lionel Boy is soulful and easy-going, both introspective and laissez faire, extremely mellow but never soft-headed. 

‘Up at 4’ and ‘Down at 8’ are a collection of songs that started off as demos in Lionel Boy’s living room. Following the release of his debut album, Lionel Boy wanted to continue exploring producing and collaborating with friends. 

“I felt like I spent all and none of 2021 working on these songs. Producing these EPs looked like a lot of early mornings and evenings spent at my computer screen. Some days feeling like I made no changes at all. I’m a pretty early riser—waking up at 4 am which are when many of these songs came to mind. I spend most of my time working when the world is quiet which sounds nice but isn’t always the easiest to do when you live in an older apartment with downstairs neighbors. Everything I do to get things moving in the morning is an inconvenience to the people around me—the creaky wood floors, tracking vocals, tapping my drum machine…just one of the many ways I’ve woken up my girlfriend throughout the years. Trying to find a balance between making my music when the creativity strikes while also being a respectful roommate/neighbor is tricky but we make it work.

I’m grateful for the people who have helped me elevate these songs beyond this space. Friends like Brett Kramer, Andrew Pham, Ukiah Bogle, Casey Liu, Nathan Hawelu, Harlem (Dotager) and Jonny Bell were crucial to making these songs what they are now.”