Saffron Hearts is a talented band that was originally formed when musician and filmmaker Paul McLay and singer Lina Mitsuki were trying to spread a little harmony. Later, when the duo decided that they are ready to start a band, they invited Dan Jamkinsun (bass), Peter Keleptrishvili (keyboards), Michelle Lagman (guitar), Evelina Atmika (flute, bansuri), and Sergey Kalachev (percussion, cora) to join them. Their style is a smooth blend of reggae/fusion and we can’t get enough.
Saffron Hearts’ fusion of genres on their latest single “Right Here” works beautifully, the vibe is that of the start of the night! The kick-off to the weekend, the self-empowering boost you need to get up and get things done. The beat to this track has a smooth reggae feel, the instrumentation loops in a hypnotic fashion, cool and calm. On top of this, there’s a serenity to the vocal delivery and the rhythm of the melody. Everything from the writing to the performance to the production on this single lights a fire in the room as it plays out. Lina has a stunning voice, softly powerful, loaded with personality, and the lyrics throughout this are refreshing and honest and soaked in love and harmony. “Right Here” is incredibly clever, catchy, stylish, and refreshingly unique.
I highly recommend you listen to “Right Here” and read more with Saffron Hearts below!
Welcome to BuzzMusic! Congrats on the release of your new single “Right Here”! What does this song represent for you?
Paul: Thanks a lot! ‘Right here’ is some kind of Manifesto to the Awareness. Meditation is very important in our everyday life and awareness is the essence of meditation, that’s why I think it’s important to remind all of us about being here and now at every convenient moment. Through music, cinema, books, etc.
Lina: Right here - is a light and playful song about being right here and right now. It's a little reminder that no matter what is going on in your life - it's cool, and that's how it's supposed to be, don't worry, just accept it as it is.
Where is the best setting to listen to “Right Here”, and what do you hope people take away from it?
Paul: Music is one of the most powerful tools that we can use to change our mood. In filmmaking industry music is always used in two different ways: to support the action (make a sad scene even sadder) and as a counterpoint (when you see something really awful but music is so easygoing that you understand that the scene cannot happen in reality). So, as for me, we put some sunny tunes inside this track that can help listeners to feel that good vibes no matter rain or shine, megapolis or country house.
Lina: For example, I love listening to "Right Here" in a train, subway or just walking on the street, in my headphones,
when it's crowded and many people are in a rush - it balances the mind immediately and gives you the good vibe, the right vibe.
Your mood is set on the right tune.
Today, In the morning we listened to it with friends while drinking tea and telling stories about how each one of us met their "half".
What’s your creative process like as a group?
Paul: It’s unbelievably comfortable and easy for us to write songs together! It feels like we were meant to meet each other and every member of our band takes part in the production process sharing ideas and creating something that contains a piece of each of us. We love to jam together even during gigs. That’s a great opportunity to share the atmosphere that we create with our audience.
Lina: It’s a blessing how much we feel each other. One vibe. Similar backgrounds. Similar interests.
It all started when Paul and I tried to jam a little bit together, just playing around, we realized that some cool ideas were born through the musical form. And we decided to focus on that, to create and fix what came through us.
Sometimes the mood sets some situation, problem or feelings/emotions, everything that surrounds us, that happens every day outside is the reflection of the inside world and visa Versa.
Often Paul comes up with some music ideas, playing the guitar and I sing the melody, separate pieces of songs come with lyrics, sometimes the whole song appears in the moment.
Then we collect all together, organising the structure of the song, adding or cutting lyrics.
Sometimes Dan - the bass player or Misha the guitar player comes up with some reefs and we invent a new story right away - it looks more like a jam, we are in the rehearsal room, just feeling open and creative and some flow comes through us, it's kinda like Channeling... At the moment when magic is happening, we are simply open and ready to accept,
like small portable devices that deliver this electrical current, tiny lightning strike and then we relay what we've delivered through songs.
I love this feeling, it feels like love - Creating something.
What’s your favourite lyric that you feel has the most impact in “Right Here”? Why?
Paul: ‘Every day is like a waterfall’. I love this metaphoric expression about time, cause time is unstoppable, it’s always running and you can’t stop it.
Lina: The vibe is important, not some particular line or phrase it's a combination of funny happy mood, being light, feeling happy and open and ready to let go something that makes you stuck.
Do you have any upcoming events or shows you’d like to talk about? What’s next for you through the end of 2019?
Paul: We are planning a European tour next summer and will also shoot a movie about it, cause we are not only musicians but also filmmakers. By the way, our first music video will be out next month! So, don’t miss it!
Lina: We are a brand new band, our intention is to play as much as possible, and let people hear us. We invite our listeners to participate in our concerts to become not just a passive listener but an active accepter and giver, it's a synergy, it's a union, it's a family. Playing live concerts- is a very important way of communication with your audience.
Many festivals are coming.
We plan to release our first EP at the end of autumn.
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