CYRUS shares debut EP had, lost

November 5 2021

LISTEN TO HIS LATEST SINGLE ‘A380’

Photo by Ben Develin
PRAISE FOR CYRUS

“Dreamy”
NME

“Forward-thinking taste”
Pilerats

“Intimate and introspective”
MILKY

Eora / Sydney-based alt-pop producer and singer-songwriter CYRUS today returns with his debut EP, had, lost, and shares latest single, ‘A380’. LISTEN HERE.

With walls of warbling, autotuned vocals, a soaring chorus, and airy synths that feel gargantuan in their optimism, ‘A380’ opens the striking five-track collection in euphoric, pop-anthem fashion, channelling the elated dramatics of newfound passion. On the track, CYRUS says “It celebrates a love, a life, and a source of joy that was once present in my life. I didn’t want to write a body of work that didn’t acknowledge that though things didn’t turn out well, there was at one point in time, something really beautiful and incredible I experienced.I wanted to create a sonic-scape that felt happy yet nostalgic through gospel organs, detuned pianos, stabbing horns, big choir stacks, and energetic boom-bap drums. This song serves as a celebration of a love that existed, and isn’t shadowed by its unfortunate ending”. 

WATCH: ‘A380’ Official Video

From there, had, lost oscillates between sunny and brooding, combining CYRUS’ diaristic, raw lyrics and his lithe yet powerful vocals with perpetually playful and surprising production, taking cues from the worlds of post-dub electronica, hip hop, and R&B. Throughout had, lost, CYRUS’ burgeoning talents as a vocalist, songwriter and producer find ample space to shine, encompassing angst-ridden, fractured alt-R&B on ‘Facts’, minimal, sample-filled bedroom pop on ‘Outgrown’, widescreen catharsis on closer ‘Love Online’ and pared-back balladry that pulsates with release and acceptance on ‘Eyes Wide’. 

Written almost immediately in the still-painful aftermath of the dissolution of a long-term relationship, had, lost condenses and chronologically charts the entire course of a relationship and its explosive breakdown, from initial infatuation to the moment of ruination the ensuing moving on. Bringing together previous released singles ‘Facts’ and ‘Love Online’, had, lost captures the brilliance and agony of a turbulent relationship. Far from diametric binaries, had, lost posits that both emotions can and do exist simultaneously and mutually within memories of a relationship; one does not negate the other. Shifting through the debris and detritus left behind, CYRUS looks to music as both therapy, a way of unravelling and making sense of his own past, and future, a way to define himself moving forward, all of the hope and possibility that closure provides. 

Of his debut EP, CYRUS shares: “I see this EP as a new refreshed, refined project,” says Villanueva. “It’s the first batch of music that I’m releasing that I’ve fully written and produced…. I’m just so much more self-aware now both personally and creatively — [Previously], I was thrown into the deep end, and a lot happened quicker than I realised. I just sat in the passenger seat, whereas now everything I do is deliberate and much more thought out”. 

had, lost arrives following a three-year hiatus from releasing music, the first project to be released under Villeneuva’s latest moniker. During that interval, Villeneuva established himself as a highly-touted, much sought-after producer and co-writer, working alongside a slew of like-minded Australian alt-pop acts including Client LiaisonCXLOEGlades and more. Being thrown headfirst and wide-eyed into the spotlight as a teenager, CYRUS’ subsequent struggles with the lack of creative freedom and integrity has inculcated his music with a sense of deliberate self-reliance. His first body of work to be completely self-written and -produced, had, lost appropriately reflects this self-aware maturation and refined clarity of artistic vision.  

had, lost EP is out now, buy/stream it here.

TRACKLIST
A380
Eyes Wide
Facts
Outgrown
Love Online

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