LARISSA IN REFLECTIVE MOOD ON 'MIRROR'
Singer/songwriter LARISSA TORMEY is beginning the new year in a reflective mood with the release of another of her own original songs as her first single of 2022. MIRROR, written in a style where jazz meets a more contemporary sound, will be available on all platforms from Friday, January 21st.
Recent years have seen Larissa record and release new music in both the country and more contemporary pop genres, and - more often than not - material from her own impressive songbook too. In 2021, this artistic versatility was rewarded with nominations in two of the biggest categories at the Hot Press Awards. She joined names of international renown such as Imelda May, Sinead O' Connor, and Mary Coughlan as well as Denise Chaila, and Emma Langford in contention for the Female Artist of the Year prize, while keeping company with Bono, Hozier, Dermot Kennedy, Lisa Hannigan, Sorcha Richardson, Niall Horan, and more in the line-up for Best Songwriter.
For the Kilbeggan-based chanteuse, the release of Mirror marks a continuation of a journey she began on her 2015 debut album, Perfect As I Am...
"From a very early age, as a songwriter and as a singer, I was always drawn to a certain kind of jazzy sound. But with a contemporary twist of my own on it as well. I think there's a freedom in that style for any artist to really express themselves without having to wonder if their work is 'enough' of any particular sound. It can just be what it is. And as a person, that's very much what I've always been like too. On my debut album, 'Perfect As I Am', the songs I recorded were deeply personal and full of different emotions. 'Mirror' takes me back in that direction, I think."
Larissa continued, explaining how different styles of writing allow her to access and express different parts of herself as an artist...
"When I write a country song, for example, because country music is so much about the art of storytelling, that's what I want to do. I want to share something in a way that the listener can relate to it, so that it can somehow make sense to them in their own life and experience. And in country music as well, even though there can be sadness and heartache, there is also a lot of fun and cheekiness too, which is so important. Fans love that, and we all need it in our lives. When I write a pop song, it can be more just about a feeling. You don't have to try and tell a story or share something in particular. Most of the time, you just want to make people feel happy and alive. And that's just as important and I love being able to do that too."
"But with a song like 'Mirror', written in this kind of jazzy way", observes Larissa, "I can be a little bit more serious, and go a little bit deeper in my writing. I think we live in an age where peoples' attention spans have shrunk to matters of seconds, and I don't like that at all. Everything has to happen now, straight away. Fast isn't even enough anymore, it has to be instantaneous. And that's crazy. That's not how you live life, that's how you miss life. Too many people these days are completely engrossed in themselves. Everything is about 'me, me, me.' And if you're only thinking about yourself, you're only looking inwards. But again, that's not where life is or where life happens."
For Larissa, the inspiration behind Mirror is the concept that the world you see is a reflection of your inner state...
"Yes, this is what I believe, and very much so. And this applies especially to love and to relationships. The world you see in front of you will reflect your inner state. If you, as a person, are full of love, then that is what you will give to the world, and bring into the world. In order to receive, you have to be able to give. One cannot really happen without the other. And likewise, if you are empty, then emptiness is what you will see around you. And it's what will stare back at you from the mirror too."
Mirror, arranged by Kevin Whyms and with an accompanying video by Andrew Jordan of AJ Films, will feature on Larissa's forthcoming album of original contemporary material, currently scheduled for release in March. ~ MIRROR, the brand NEW single from LARISSA TORMEY, available on all platforms from FRIDAY, JANUARY 21st.