Rocker Stephen Richard Harlow drops edgy new song ‘Never Letting Go’
UPSHUR COUNTY, WV – A young rocker from the hills of West Virginia is set to leave his mark on the music industry in a unique way with his latest single, “Never Letting Go.”
The new hit from singer/songwriter Stephen Richard Harlow is one part Rock, one part Blues and one part Indie with heavy doses of storytelling as its foundation. Inspired by sounds from bands such as My Chemical Romance, Harlow’s new track is a one-of-a-kind journey that tells the story of a friendship that is doomed to end.
“I use the imagery of a guy hanging off a cliff near the ocean and the friend is hanging onto him for dear life,” Harlow said. “There are rocks below, and if the friend lets go, he’ll drop and hit rock bottom. But it’s sung from the point of the view of the person hanging from the cliff. He’s basically saying that the friend is wonderful and has been loyal for a long time. They’re like a hero but they have to let go.”
Harlow said the song was born from a difficult time in his own life when he was in a bad place mentally and felt like he was hurting his friends. Ultimately, he realized this and needed to walk away from that relationship. The song, he said, serves as a metaphor for that kind of a situation – when one friend has to just let go and let the other friend hit rock bottom before they’ll be able to get better.
The song showcases Harlow’s unique vocal talents which are indicative of his Rock and Metal background. With a quasi-falsetto soaring over the top of a four-part harmony, the sound is such that it immediately grabs the listener’s attention and demands that they stay for the whole ride. And though it has a bit of an edge to it, Harlow said it’s not as aggressive as a lot of the music he’s created or played in the past.
“I really feel like it’s a lore more gloomy,” he said. “How I deal with things is through my music. My songs are more like a musical diary, and for the most part, they circle around the realness of personal experience. Today, I’m a blues guy and a Rock-and-Roll guy. I don’t’ think I’ve ever written a song that didn’t have a guitar solo in it. I bring back the 80s and 90s feel of jamming out, though a lot of the stuff I write falls more into the Pop-Rock realm, as far as lyrics go. I like to fuse that with Blues or Classic Rock, and sometimes Heavy Rock or ever Metal.”
Harlow said he hopes fans will come to recognize his music for the realness that he brings with every lyric. He wants to be known for writing music that people can feel and connect to in addition to writing stuff that’s real. Though he appreciates the fantasy-fiction that often comes with rock bands, he’s not interested in going down that road with his career. He’s also not interested in the Techno-Pop or EDM-forward momentum that a lot of Rock music is moving toward today.
“I want to bring back the old feel a little bit,” he said. “More than anything though, I just want to be real through the lyrics and the music and be true to myself.”
In addition to “Never Letting Go,” Harlow has plans to release a full album that he’s tentatively called “New Beginning” by the end of this year.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go1DeppSYAg]
To listen to Stephen Richard Harlow’s music or to follow him on social media, please visit:
https://www.instagram.com/stephen.harlow/
https://m.facebook.com/StephenHarlow123/
“Never Letting Go”
https://soundcloud.com/stephenharlow/never-letting-go-mp3
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