Boombox Blitz: Zak Abel doesn’t fall for tricks in ‘Love Song’ video

Welcome to Boombox Blitz, an artist spotlight series showcasing overlooked singers, songwriters and musicians who are quietly taking over the world.

Don’t be fooled. Zak Abel‘s neon-cut new single “Love Song” isn’t a love song by usual metrics. “Just because I let you drive me crazy, you probably think this is your love song, baby,” he sings, the groove powering-up with each lyric progression, frenzied zips between chilled singer-songwriter and sweltering, old-school funk topped over well-egineered gloss. Instead of relishing in a bittersweet love or wallowing in brittle heartbreak, he spits his anger right back ⎯⎯ cathartic and empowered. “I guess this is what you get,” he dares on the opening line, keyboard glowing in the background and icy rage hanging like icicles in his husky phrases. “Throwing pebbles in the ocean / Watching ripples as they spread / Turn into waves and come back again.” He scrawls the line between his emotions, compartmentalized so he can get his head on straight. Along with industry heavy weights Steve Mac (Ed Sheeran, Charli XCX) and Wayne Hector (Trace Adkins, Nicki Minaj), Abel lets the emotions live just on the surface.

It’s an assertive and quietly engaging performance. Even when his voice tugs at the production’s edges, he roars vehemently and claws his way through crumbling ruins of the past. In the accompanying visual, he dances out the heartache and allows himself to breathe freer than he has in a long time. He takes to the streets and works his way through the midnight quiet. “I’ll be honest with you, love song is the first ‘angry song’ I’ve ever put out. It’s about distancing yourself from the people that keep you down and the negative perspectives that no longer serve you,” he explains of the song. “It’s also about reclaiming your self-respect and living in line with your values again.” The clip rarely pans away from Abel’s face, sharping the heavy evocative tone and beckoning the listener even closer, as he processes his feelings and sends them cascading into a drowning wash of blues, purples, pinks and greens.

“Love Song” follows the release of his debut album, 2017’s Only When We’re Naked.

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Photo Credit: Charlie Cummings

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