Sam Himself Explores The Dissonant State Of Catharsis Right Now With 'Cry'

Last May, Sam Himself released the EP Slow Drugs, and now the Swiss Brooklyn-based artist has launched the first single from his upcoming 2021 debut album with “Cry”.

The EP is now out on limited edition vinyl via Taxi Gauche Records, and was given the Best Talent Award by the Swiss National Broadcasting Service.

Sam Himself was on tour in Europe when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out earlier this year. After only one show, all remaining dates were canceled due to the virus, and Sam Himself (aka Sam Koechlin) suddenly found himself stranded between his native Switzerland and his chosen home in New York City. Unsure if and when he’d be able to return to the United States, Sam self-quarantined at an Airbnb in his hometown of Basel, Switzerland, and went ahead with the scheduled release of his EP Slow Drugs. 

He did, however, start working on new material while waiting things out in Switzerland and the resulting batch of songs forms the framework of his upcoming debut album, including “Cry”.

Sam Himself says about the inspiration for “Cry”:

“I was driving across Switzerland before dawn to shoot the final takes of the video for ‘Like a Friend’; I’d been up for a long time, the tour had just been canceled and, according to the news, I wouldn’t be able to fly back to New York anytime soon. Then my phone rang and at the end of that call, the relationship I was in had ended, too. In a matter of hours, my life as I’d known it was over. For all the dread and confusion of that moment, I also felt ridiculous for licking my own wounds while the world around me looked like it was ending. That's the dissonant state I tried to capture with ‘Cry’: it's a farewell letter to my old life in New York and a relationship ended by the pandemic, but also a caustic reminder to myself not to wallow in self- pity amid a global catastrophe.”

“Cry” was recorded partly at a local Basel studio, partly in the attic of a quarantine location, and Daniel Schlett produced the song remotely from Strange Weather Studio in Brooklyn. The song was mastered by Greg Calbi (David Bowie; Bruce Springsteen).