“Sam Himself uses his vocal power to sing songs of finding your place.”
– Consequence Of Sound
“His deep, rich vocals remind us of the beauty that exists even during the darkest times.”
– The Wild Honey Pie
“The King of Tears.”
– Victoria Turrian, Radio Télévision Suisse
“Sam Himself’s baritone vocal provides a cool sensuality reminiscent of The National’s Matt Berninger combined with the soaring instrumentation of Future Islands.”
– Ears To Feed
The 2021 Swiss Music Awards nominee’s latest release is the third single leading up to his debut LP, Power Ballads, (due out in October) following album singles “
Nothing Like the Night” and “
Cry.”
“
What It’s Worth” is the swan song to a past relationship that crumbled in the wake of Sam’s father’s death. This reckoning with the past was inspired by the Swiss-born artist’s unexpected homecoming in early 2020 after a decade of living in Brooklyn, NY:
“My own history caught up with me during my time back in Switzerland. That’s where I grew up, and living there again brought back a lot of memories; home doesn’t forget… One ghost I kept running into was that of an old relationship that fell apart when I lost my dad a few years ago. My hometown is the place where all of that happened, his death and all its casualties, and “
What It’s Worth” is about one of them.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a standstill early last year, Sam had just embarked on tour in Europe. Suddenly unable to return to his adopted home in New York City, Sam set up shop in his native Basel, Switzerland. At various locations including his mom’s attic, Sam spent the lockdown writing the ten new songs on his upcoming debut LP, Power Ballads. He finished recording the album as soon as he was able to return to NYC this past January, together with his longtime ‘Second Beatle’, producer and mixing engineer Daniel Schlett (The War on Drugs; Amen Dunes). The pair had most recently collaborated on Sam’s acclaimed 2020 EP
Slow Drugs, which featured drummer Parker Kindred (Jeff Buckley; Elliott Smith) as well as bassist Josh Werner (Ghostface Killah; Iggy Pop), and earned Sam Himself the Swiss National Radio’s prestigious Best Talent Award that same year. Sam’s upcoming full-length debut was mastered by Greg Calbi (David Bowie; Bruce Springsteen) and will be supported by
extensive touring this fall through winter 2022 in Switzerland, Germany, and beyond.
LYRICS
I’m back where we broke
A lifetime ago
My clock’s still stuck right where it froze
The night your trail went cold
With a head full of ghosts
No one else close
Scared to the bone
With no one else to run from
All that’s buried here
I carry it everywhere
My arms too weak to keep an even pulse
Still I can’t stop holding on
With a head full of ghosts
No one else close
Scared to the bone
With no one else to run from
Heart full of holes
For what it’s worth
I couldn’t love you more
I came to take your place
And be the one who left that day
With both hands throwing ash into the flame
Like I don’t know it’s way too late
With a head full of ghosts
No one else close
Scared to the bone
With no one else to run from
Heart full of holes
For what it’s worth
I never loved you more
For more information about Sam Himself, visit his
website or connect with him on social media
@samhimself.
