rare, forever is out today. it took a minute though...
an identity crisis of sorts, many self-imposed questions of purpose and doubt, and a year of a global pandemic later: it's here. in a beautiful way, this LP is no longer mine. it's everyone's (or should i say 'ours') and i hope you find your own place within its themes. some of you might remember a post i made on instagram in 2019 around my 30th birthday. i spoke about how i was really questioning what i wanted to do and say with my work & life, and all that comes along with that type of self-exploration. i was in the midst of writing rare, forever then, and i didn't feel great a lot of the time - anxiety, imposter syndrome, and no sense of 'place' were the main culprits - but i used the music and this LP to really channel what i was feeling, and try to get some answers. there are clues and cryptic nuggets throughout - in song titles, samples, words etc. the 10" booklet that comes with the vinyl is filled with notes, statements, and poems that eric timothy carlson has masterfully crafted from a long document i wrote about the record that was used for the art direction. i've also done a couple of in-depth interviews that will surface in the coming weeks where i go into it a bit more. i'll share them as and when. i know this sounds incredibly self-involved, but lets be honest, making music and art is pretty narcissistic a lot of the time. nobody is particularly asking for what you make - you just go through the motions, make your piece, present it, and then it's out there for others to do what they will with it. i do hope though that, even though i've turned the mirror inwards, it can serve as a notice for anyone that is, or has, gone through similar periods to realise that it's ok, it'll happen to everyone at some point, and that it's a continual process that never really stops. neitzsche said that self-actualization was "a great and rare art". through all this, i've come to the conclusion that this line of questioning one's self never really goes away. it continues in different forms and varies in intensity, and that's the deal. thus, rare, forever.
Leon Vynehall
rare, forever is out today. it took a minute though...
an identity crisis of sorts, many self-imposed questions of purpose and doubt, and a year of a global pandemic later: it's here.
in a beautiful way, this LP is no longer mine. it's everyone's (or should i say 'ours') and i hope you find your own place within its themes.
some of you might remember a post i made on instagram in 2019 around my 30th birthday. i spoke about how i was really questioning what i wanted to do and say with my work & life, and all that comes along with that type of self-exploration. i was in the midst of writing rare, forever then, and i didn't feel great a lot of the time - anxiety, imposter syndrome, and no sense of 'place' were the main culprits - but i used the music and this LP to really channel what i was feeling, and try to get some answers. there are clues and cryptic nuggets throughout - in song titles, samples, words etc. the 10" booklet that comes with the vinyl is filled with notes, statements, and poems that eric timothy carlson has masterfully crafted from a long document i wrote about the record that was used for the art direction. i've also done a couple of in-depth interviews that will surface in the coming weeks where i go into it a bit more. i'll share them as and when.
i know this sounds incredibly self-involved, but lets be honest, making music and art is pretty narcissistic a lot of the time. nobody is particularly asking for what you make - you just go through the motions, make your piece, present it, and then it's out there for others to do what they will with it.
i do hope though that, even though i've turned the mirror inwards, it can serve as a notice for anyone that is, or has, gone through similar periods to realise that it's ok, it'll happen to everyone at some point, and that it's a continual process that never really stops.
neitzsche said that self-actualization was "a great and rare art". through all this, i've come to the conclusion that this line of questioning one's self never really goes away. it continues in different forms and varies in intensity, and that's the deal.
thus, rare, forever.
buy, download and stream it now.
as always,
leon
3 years ago | [YT] | 31