French-born singer-songwriter Romain Gutsy began his career in the 1990s, singing and playing accordion with French bands like Les Affamรฉs or playing guitar in the Celtic band Daffy Plays Mandola. He also shared the stage with more well-known performers like American singer Calvin Russell or alt-rock band Soul Asylum, winners of a Grammy. With country music, Irish, and American folk singers, as well as country music as an influence, Romain approaches his music without any set guidelines that would confine it to a very clear style. After taking a musical hiatus of more than 20 years and traveling extensively, he returned in 2020 with a solo album under the moniker THE RED, Whatever Says the Clock, which featured songs with lyrics based on classical American and Irish poetry. Gutsy is currently working on two projects that are in production: an EP in duet with Russian opera soprano Svetlana Kasyan and an LP with only French songs. When Leonard Met Dolly will be released on April 11, 2022. My Only Love is an ardent love song that conveys the profound emotion of the person who is deeply in love and who has experienced the full strength and eternity of what can bind a being with another for all time.
While Romain Gutsyโs instantly recognizable guitar playing is featured in the upbeat intro, which has a lovely Spanish feel, the musical arrangement goes beyond what Gutsy has recently provided. The song transitions from Romainโs classical folk to the pop genre by blending electronic sounds with the authenticity of acoustic instruments. The distinctive, endearing, and charismatic voice of Romain adds yet another layer to this masterpiece of folk-pop. The truth is that Romain proves here that he has a voice like no one else, of his own, with a distinct vocal style that makes him an accomplished artist who cannot be easily categorised. Many people will compare Romainโs voice to that of Nick Cave or other folk singers. For the record, Heitor Villa-Lobosโ Study #1, which was written in Paris in 1928, served as the direct inspiration for the chord progression found in the songโs verses. Marc Bentel, a South African music industry professional who relocated to Florida after his bands won numerous awards, created the arrangement. It gives the song the symphonic and epic dimension it deserves, with a strong emotional progression in the orchestration. In his Florida studio, Marc also oversaw the singleโs mixing and mastering. Check out his latest single and the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how you got started?
ROMAIN GUTSY: Well, I think Iโve always been a musician. Learning piano at 6, abandoning piano at 10, then rediscovering music through guitar at 13 and from then I was into the music business. You think Iโm joking but when I was 13, I used to go with a friend in the subway to play songs instead of attending class. And earning a bit of money!
Then I played with many bands and artists, some of them which never had a huge success, even if they were very good, and others which were internationally successful. Iโve written songs, for others or for myself, Iโve performed many concerts, and thatโs it, I got started.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
ROMAIN GUTSY: Besides classical piano lessons when I was a kid, Iโve been what youโd call โself-taughtโ. Even if in fact, you always learn from others, people you duplicate or copy, friends who give you tricks and drills to perform, etc.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name โROMAIN GUTSYโ?
ROMAIN GUTSY: Very difficult question regarding musical influence. There is not one musical influence, nor 2 or 10. Iโve been influenced by hundreds of singers, musicians, composers, bands, etc. And I am absolutely incapable of naming one more than the others. Maybe I donโt want to, and that keeps me free to work out various styles, without trying to stick to one influence or the other. As for the name Romain Gutsy, there is no answer. Well, for โGutsyโ, letโs say that once someone told me โoh, youโre gutsy!โ, and I believed him.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
ROMAIN GUTSY: I would say that my sound is authentic. Even when there are electronic elements in our music, we keep something authentic, played with guts and passion. Iโve been working recently with producer Marc Bentel who is an amazing one. He is able to arrange the songs with a lot of things and sounds that I would not have thought of, and still, I feel that this is exactly what the song deserves. There is some kind of magic cooperation, and I think that even then, the result is authentic. Also, I say what I mean in my songs, and I mean what I say. And I hope that it communicates and resonate with listeners, either in the lyrics or in the music.
ROMAIN GUTSY:
Well, Iโve played with many other composers and songwriters, Iโve also played covers, but I never asked myself anything before to write my own songs. As I said, I write what I think I should communicate, what I mean. And the creation process is quite easy, it comes naturally. I donโt try to have my own style, I just try to communicate what I want to communicate. And then, when arranging the song, whether I do it or someone like Marc does it, the only real question is how to make it communicate better.
6. Whatโs your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles โ and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
ROMAIN GUTSY:
First, I think entertainment has a political, cultural, spiritual and social effect. There is no separation. As you will hear in my next song to be released soon: โI donโt do politics, left and right, I donโt seeโ. Nevertheless, even this statement is somewhat political, as a negation of the need to categorize people into political boxes. I think music is the most powerful vector of communication. So of course, you need to think of what you communicate. I can write sad songs, or happy ones, but never I would write a song that I think will have a bad effect on the listeners. Even a sad song must have in it an uplifting effect, a way or another. It might seem esoteric, but I do believe that maybe with a cathartic effect, it works. I definitely deal with spirituality in my song, and sometimes with social issues. It depends on what inspires me in the moment I create a new song.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfilment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
ROMAIN GUTSY:
Iโm always expecting more! But itโs not a painful process. Creating is always a fulfilling experience in itself. Then, the purpose is to share your creations, and of course to the highest number of beings possible. The purpose is to communicate to people, and to increase the number of people you communicate to. Of course, you canโt be loved or liked by all, because people have different tastes, and you canโt match all. But still, what Iโm heading to is to find anyone that could be touched by our music and give it to them.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
ROMAIN GUTSY:
I usually start by the lyrics. I write what I want to say, to communicate, in a way that is first communicating to me, and then I take the point of view of someone else and assess if it goes through. And I work it out. Then I take my guitar and I compose the song. It can be super-fast, or just fast. Then there can be several outcomes. I could work on the arrangement for days by myself, or I could send the basic tracks to someone else and have him or her work on the arrangement. Of course, we will have back and forth, and I will add some banjo parts, some guitar solos, etc. That is what we have done for the next song with Marc Bentel. I also like to work with other musicians, or singers, that will add their touch to the songs.
9. What has been the most difficult thing youโve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
ROMAIN GUTSY: Well, I have had a pause in my professional career for two decades. When I decided to come back, the world of music had completely changed. New rules, incredible competition, news ways of creating, recording and producing music. Honestly, I had to adapt, to learn, and itโs an ongoing process that just started. Now, if you want something more personal that I would see as โto be enduredโ, I think that losses, people dying whether they are family or friends, is maybe the most enduring part of life. But itโs also something to overcome, as itโs how life is made. So I learned to overcome it and keep myself up, always facing future more than being entangled in past, and celebrating life for what it is: a kind of miracle, even if you are not a believer!
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
ROMAIN GUTSY: I think Iโm proud of anything I did which helped others a way or another. Actually, Iโm usually proud, or inherently proud. Not of everything, of course, but still, I think we should have pride in many things, as we deserve it more than what we usually think. Every song I wrote, if it touched at least one person and brought him or her some joy, some life, some good feeling, Iโm proud. Besides that, Iโm not stuck in past pride, and not really interested in past success. Iโm always heading to new adventures, new ways to create good things, and Iโm putting energy in that future more than in what is in the past or even in the present.
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