Yungblud has shared a first taste of his forthcoming third album, in the form of nine minute, six second new single Hello Heaven, Hello, accompanied by a striking, cinematic video.
“I’ve been discouraged from releasing a nine-minute and six second song as my first move back in a year because, in the modern world, it’s seen as a 'risk'," the Yorkshire-born singer, real name Dominic Harrison, admits. “I don’t see it that way at all - I see it as an opportunity. In my opinion, risk is an artist’s greatest tool - putting everything on the line in pursuit of the best evolution and art you can create. Without risk, there is no innovation.”
With its orchestral flourishes, Hello Heaven, Hello bears more than a trace of classic British artists The Who, David Bowie and Queen, and speaking about the song, which he began writing four years ago, Harrison says, “Rock music is in my DNA. It’s the first genre I was ever exposed to; I grew up in a guitar shop with my Dad and my Grandfather. Rock music helped me find an identity as a human being.”
For the 27-year-old musician, the single is “a journey of self-reclamation - a goodbye to the past and how you may have known or perceived me before, and a 'hello' to the future and where I’m going."
“It’s an adventure that is sonically more ambitious than ever before,"he says, “a journey that is meant to be played in its entirety, never holding back or allowing its imagination to be filtered.
“I felt like I was starting to repeat myself - I’d fallen into my own cliche… I’d become comfortable. It was good in a way; it meant that I had my own style. But I’ve always said that if people know where I’m going next, that is my idea of failure.”
He adds, “I feel like for the first time in a long time I’m exactly where I need to be and doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing - making exactly what I want - exploring the past, the present, the future, and most importantly, myself.”
Yungblud has yet to reveal the title of his third album, but he promises it will be “magical”.
