As harsh weather froze Britain during the build-up to his concert in London earlier this year, RY X tweeted a message of robust reassurance to ticket-holders. “London… in case anyone is wondering… with the snow and the weather… everything is smooth and going ahead. We will all be warm and loved together in this space…”
The power of quietly intense, passionate music to pull audiences in to an intimate space is something this Australia-born, LA-based singer excels at. After the break-out success of his uncommonly minimalist beauty “Berlin” in 2013, Ry notched up a string of sold-out shows across Europe, US and Australia. From Shepards Bush Empire in London, to Tempodrom of Berlin, to Being the first to play unique and powerful venues such as Notre Dam and to thousands of fans on uninhabited islands in the mouth of caves in the fjords of Norway. In addition to these shows he has joined premier festivals around the world to connect with his growing fanbase outside of these beautifully curated shows.
Ry’s debut album was nurtured into shape over months of – Ry says – “hibernation” and “emotional sweat” in the mountains north of LA, Dawn (2016) was a sublime study in devotional songcraft from a singer who seemed both awed by and in command of its elemental emotions.
Ry honours and expands on his vision with his second album. Between its rippling beats, mellifluous guitars, poised piano and questing vocals, Unfurl does what its title suggests: develops as if organically from Ry’s previous work, blossoming in delicate new directions while holding firm to its roots. “I think my mission statement was simply to remain vulnerable and to capture that within this album,” says Ry. “The inspirations change each time, and I always want to allow that process to be free, to draw on new ideas and sounds and instrumentation. But what feels consistently important to me is keeping a sense of rawness and honesty in the work.”