Americana Highways presents this premiere of Warden and Co.’s song “Living for Love” from their forthcoming album, Somewhere, slated to be available on April 8. The song will be released on January 14. Robert Daubenspeck is the executive producer of Somewhere. It was produced by Chris Carey and Seth Warden; engineered and mixed by Chris Carey; and mastered by Jason Brown at Starling Studios. It was recorded at Millstone Studio in Ballston Spa NY. All songs were written by Seth Warden. Photography is courtesy of Tim Ferris of Saratoga Photography LLC; and album design was created by Jeremy Fetzer.
Warden and Co. is Seth Warden on vocals and guitar, Doug Moody on violin, viola, and vocals; and Brian Melick on drums and percussion. “Living For Love” also has Chris Carey on bass and James Mastrianni on keyboards.
Americana Highways: What inspired you to write this song?
Seth Warden: Becoming a parent for the first time was the monumental life event that led me to write “Living for Love.” I quickly realized that there was nothing greater to live for!
AH: What is the story behind it?
SW: I wrote this song in 2008, and it sat quietly inside a hard drive until I rediscovered it in 2019. Let’s just say I was very happy to find it again, and decided to make it the first song and first single on our new album.
AH: What is it about more specifically?
SW: Life is like a rollercoaster with its ups and downs, and I was imagining that ride through the innocence of my newborn child’s eyes — feeling her fear and then eventually her comfort once she knows that we are right by her side to guide and protect her. Now she’s a teenager and telling us to calm down!
AH: Do you consider this song — and your music in general — a place for you to work through things that are weighing on you or that you are trying to process?
SW: Music is my creative outlet for all the emotions, although I do find it hard to write when I’m feeling sad since the emotion is right on the surface. Sometimes, I need some time to pass before I can take sadness and put that into song.
AH: Do you find songwriting therapeutic?
SW: Songwriting is both therapeutic and frustrating at the same time; some songs get written in a matter of minutes and bring such gratification, while others take years to complete and frustrate you endlessly.
AH: Did writing this song help you in some way?
SW: Yes, of course, this song is a constant reminder of the importance of love.
AH: What was the recording session like for this song?
SW: Recording took place at Millstone Studio with producer/engineer Chris Carey. This song started out with tracking guitar and drums. Once we got a solid drum take, then we built the song around that; it’s basically the foundation that we can build the house on. After bass and violin were recorded, we sent the basic tracks to Jim Mastrianni (keyboardist) so he could record his parts at his studio and send them back to us for mixing. Vocals were the final piece to the recording puzzle.
AH: What do you hope listeners hear in its music and lyrics?
SW: We hope that people who listen to our music hear words and themes that are familiar and relatable to their own lives. We are all on this crazy ride called life, and love is the glue that holds it together.
AH: This song is from your forthcoming album. What made you want to release this song into the world before the album comes out?
SW: Great question! There’s way too much negativity being pushed into our lives, so this song felt like the most positive song to make the jump out of the gate. Hopefully, the message will be received as intended!
Pre-order/pre-save link: https://ffm.to/wardenandco-livingforlove
This song has a very enjoyable intro, layers and grooves for miles to draw you in. The stringed instruments will haunt you while the songs carries you up to its vistas and peaks and down to the valleys in between. “You’re not living if you’re not living for love.”
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