‘True Love Forever’ is a brand new single by the New York City based British singer-songwriter Coyle Girelli.
His first release since 2022’s ‘Funland’, his second solo album, and its acoustic companion piece, ‘Stripped’, the song appears in a show that he has created in collaboration with the musical theatre company Third Rail Projects info here.
Girelli explains that ‘True Love Forever’ “was inspired by the moment in the show when the couple in it first fall in love, that euphoria and the feeling that everything is wonderful. Of course, this may not be how the story ends, so it is tinged with a slight melancholy, but right then they are thinking ‘is this it? Is it true love forever?’”
Musically, he was seeking “something that had a pretty and magical feeling but also felt close and personal. I was listening to a bunch of stuff in that vein from the likes of Sufjan Stevens, The National and Elliot Smith, though the track doesn’t really sound like any of them.” Enhanced with mandolin and ukulele, it was mixed by fellow ex-pat Harry Burr and mastered by John Davis at Metropolis Studios in London.
As for the show itself, Girelli states that it “is an immersive theatre experience set to songs from my debut solo album [‘Love Kills’, 2018] and some new music. It’s an exploration of love, lust and heartbreak triggered from the personal history and experience of its audience members. As they wander through the world we created and follow the story they delve into their own inner feelings as well as being immersed in the story unfolding in front of them. It ends with a finale that I hope will ultimately be both emotionally and spiritually healing….with lots of tears!”
Girelli had come up with a basic concept for a show when writing the supremely cinematic ‘Love Kills’, eventually being introduced to Jennine Willett at Third Rail Projects on a Zoom chat during the first lockdown. They began to flesh out his idea, eventually beginning to workshop it in New York with its ensemble cast, with an opening run of performances to be announced in due course.
The video for ’True Love Forever’ has been directed by Willett and features the cast, which includes Girelli himself.
Girelli is currently working on more new songs, with an album planned for late 2023.
As a songwriter, Girelli has written for several renowned pop acts and collaborated with celebrated songsmiths such as Mac Davis and Linda Perry. He also has previous experience in theatre, co-composing the award-winning French musicals ‘Robin des Bois’ and ‘Les Trois Mousquetaires’. His early career saw him fronting the Leeds-based alt rock/post-punk bands Your Vegas and The Chevin, with a performance by the latter on ‘Late Show with David Letterman’ while on tour in the US prompting its host to state: “If I had a voice like that, I’d run for President.”
His ‘Funland’ album was described by Louder Than War as “a wonderful collection of rich and atmospheric soundscapes with Girelli emerging as the ultimate balladeer. He has a vocal style which absorbs all that is great about the likes of Roy Orbison and Richard Hawley.” A single from the album, ‘Do You Wanna Dance’, attracted attention at US radio, while an atmospheric ballad from his debut entitled ’Something Strange In The Night’ was belatedly recognised after its use in a Netflix TV sync.
