Masterful troubadour, Coyle Girelli today releases his 3rd album ‘Museum Day’, a collection of 10 tracks featuring the previously released Museum Day, So Predictable, Jane Tells a Lie with the latest release, ‘Between Us’ rounding out the new singles. The album takes you on an indie/contemporary journey Coyle calling it “Upbeat and in the shadows. Half New York City, half Manchester, England. Stories of moments, stories about people. Stories about lovers.” It’s for fans of The Smiths, with smatterings of The National, The Drums, Big Thief, Japanese Breakfast and War On Drugs.
To celebrate the release of Coyle Girelli’s new album Museum Day, we threw a few questions his way to get to know the talented artist a little better.
1 What was the spark which lit your flame for music?
I had always been a writer from the moment I could hold a pencil. Writing stories as a kid. Music hit me about the age of 9 or 10. I can’t remember the exact spark, but I remember spending hours and hours sat alone consuming it, getting lost in it. It was a place to escape to. A place of magic and wonder. A place of searching. And I’ve been there ever since.
2 What was the first music you purchased with your own money?
I think it was the Ace of Base album Happy Nation. I think! I basically spent all my money on music so it’s hard to remember the very first but I’m pretty sure it was Ace of Base. Great melodies!
3 Tell us about your main guitar
I’m a bit of a guitar addict. I have a lot of them. I’ve lost count but it’s a lot! Electric wise I’ve always been a Gibson E335 guy, but my main guitar is my Gibson J-45 in vintage sunburst. I’ve had it for about 7 years and I’ve written pretty much everything I’ve written during that time on it. I also play it live. I had played a Hummingbird for a long time and felt I needed a new acoustic for this new chapter. And what’s better than a J-45.
4 What was your first band t-shirt?
Gotta be Oasis. I had a lot of Oasis swag back in the day!
5 A record that changed your life?
There’s a lot of them. But the first one that comes to mind is Jeff Buckley – Grace. It just felt and sounded like perfection to me. Every moment of every song is divine.
6 What’s your latest recording ?
My new album “Museum Day” is out today. I wrote and recorded it in a 6 week period at the beginning of this year here in New York City. It all came together so quickly that I barely had time to think about it. That’s given it a freshness to me that I don’t think I’ve felt with any of my other albums. It’ll almost be as new to me as to my fans and listeners when it’s released into the world.
7 Most memorable gig you have ever played?
I’ve been very fortunate to play a lot of incredible shows. Playing Wembley Arena will always be up there. I think it’s between that and playing Central Park opening for Duran Duran. The last 2 shows of about 6 months we opened for them. I love Central Park and playing there, opening for one of my favourite bands was special. Not a bad backdrop!
8 What’s on your gear wish list?
A grand piano!
9 What would you like your music career to look like in 5 years time?
6 or 7 more albums, several of my musicals on stages around the world and still finding ways to excite and evolve as an artist and composer.
10 What would be your dream collaboration?
Kate Bush!
11 What gigs are coming up in the next few months?
I have a few shows in the US to promote the release of the album and then I’m straight into rehearsal for an immersive theatrical piece I’ve created called True Love Forever that opens in New York in early 2024. As part of that show, I will basically be performing an hour long set every night. It’s a unique and very special piece of theatre and I can’t wait to share it with the world.
More about Coyle’s latest single ‘Between Us’.
Masterful troubadour, Coyle Girelli has gifted us another magical track, ‘Between Us’, his fourth single from his 3rd album ‘Museum Day’ out today. ‘Between Us’ is charming and buoyant, Coyle’s vocals are a standout as always, an effortless crooner teamed with humming guitars and an uptempo beat. “Between Us is a love story in New York City. A love lost and found again. Distance and return. A love that persists. Yet fighting against it. The fear and curiosity. What awaits? Heartbreak or True Love?” Coyle explains. Check it out here Between Us
Set against the lyrical backdrop of the Big Apple, Between Us unfurls with Girelli’s trademark lush vocals, stirring intimacy and swooning indie pop wiles, complete with nostalgic 80s elements forged in a fire of modernity. Produced by Lorenzo Wolff, whose previous work spans Taylor Swift and Kanye West, Between Us is Girelli at his buoyant and easy going best, glowing with cinematic charm while lyrically traversing charged passion in his own adopted home of New York, as Girelli reveals, “Between Us is a love story in New York City. A love lost and found again. Distance and return. A love that persists. Yet fighting against it. The fear and curiosity. What awaits? Heartbreak or True Love?”
Taken from Girelli’s new album, Museum Day, Between Us sits amongst 10 dazzling tracks lying in wait, including the album’s previous singles, the smooth and sentimental Museum Day and the hooky fuzz of So Predictable. Ultimately an immersive and affable journey, laden with authenticity and soulful reflection, Museum Day seamlessly extends the foundations laid out by its predecessor, 2022’s Funland, with a noticeably modern injection driving at the core of Girelli’s new outing amongst his signature trademarks. “It’s a more modern sound than Love Kills for sure,” shares Girelli. “In some way it feels like the next step on from Funland. It’s more indie and in a lot of ways more contemporary feeling. Upbeat and in the shadows. Half New York City, half Manchester, England. Stories of moments, stories about people. Stories about lovers.”
Inspired by love itself as much as Girelli’s own ardour for the likes of The Smiths, with smatterings of The National, The Drums, Big Thief, Japanese Breakfast and War On Drugs, Museum Day bustles with rosy-cheeked pop (Jane Tells A Lie), swooning ballads (Swim, Real Love) and ambient heart-breakers (Nobody), like a modern-day Roy Orbison strolling through a Hollywood romance. Tirelessly helmed by Girelli’s effervescent yet stirring vocals, soaring into the heavens on the outro for Between Us and diving into woozy calm on I Tried to Love You, Museum Day ultimately draws to a close on a stripped-back note, with New York Rain beautifully capturing the essence of Coyle Girelli’s magic: reflection, romance and riveting storytelling that places you directly into the moment alongside Girelli himself. And while the overall album is an elegant and expertly-crafted affair, the road to creating Museum Day was unexpectedly swift amongst other plans, as Girelli elaborates, “I wrote and recorded this album in a very short time, a matter of weeks really at the start of the year. I’d written what I thought was an album. Then I wrote Museum Day. I scrapped the album I had planned, and in the weeks following wrote and recorded a whole new one. Which is what I’m releasing. I purposely didn’t overthink or analyse it. I let it write itself. Tell its stories. My job was to not overcomplicate it or get in the way.”
Recently enamouring with his sophomore album, Funland, in 2022, Girelli’s musical magic as a solo artist first unveiled via his debut full length album, 2018’s Love Kills. A gifted songwriter, storyteller and creative cauldron, Girelli has also found himself hotly in demand over the years as both a songwriter and producer for multiple artists, including work with BTS, Macklemore, Robin Schulz, Westlife and more. A multi-instrumentalist who has also turned his hand and voice to musical theatre along the way, Girelli’s previous releases have been repeatedly hailed as masterpieces by the likes of Rolling Stone Australia and countless others; a fact that is witnessed once again on Museum Day and tantalisingly in the near future for Girelli’s upcoming projects.
Set to perform an immersive theatre musical show called True Love Forever in New York next year, Girelli’s star is set to boundlessly continue to rise, with the talented English-born, New York-based artist already working on a follow up to Museum Day to bless 2024’s timeline even further. And it’s ultimately the free-flowing approach that Girelli adapted while crafting Museum Day that is set to shape and solidify any and all of his future releases, as Girelli concludes, “It was very fulfilling creating in this space. In flow. I’m going to try do the same thing with my next album. Makes life easier as well when you’re not over-analysing every little detail. Let the songs do their thing. I really let my instinct lead the way on this one. It feels fresh and true.”