Ro Yourell says: “How my Heart Beats’ is a love song. It explores the intangible quality of love, that which cannot be contrived or contained. Love arrives and departs without warning. It can give us a new perspective, help us to see the world in technicolor.”
The insistent guitar and shaker instrumentation symbolise the sense of purpose that love for another can give us, and the close harmony is reminiscent of the intimacy captured by songwriting greats like Simon & Garfunkel or Lennon & McCartney.
“True love for me, is not all passion and fervour,” Ro elaborates. “It is about patience, slowing our bodies and minds down, in search of connection, or commonality. In a time of so much division, it helps me to write and sing these words, to remind myself that love is out there and will respond if we project it.”
The Delorentos frontman shares the romantic, intimate song with fans as a follow-up to his debut solo single, ‘Freedom’, which was released in September and garnered widespread airplay across stations like Today FM, RTE 2FM, Radio Nova, KCLR FM, 98FM, FM104 and more.
Yourell is best known for his work as a member of Delorentos, a band that’s enjoyed massive success in Ireland and internationally, and is now on hiatus while its members pursue other projects. The four-piece have played stages across the world and racked up a RTÉ Choice Music Prize win for their acclaimed third album Little Sparks in 2012. Ro Yourell (vocals, guitar, piano), Kieran McGuinness (vocals, guitar), Níal Conlan (bass, backing vocals) and Ross McCormick (drums, backing vocals) last played live as Delorentos in 2019.
“We’d been going solidly for the guts of 15 years by then, but got to a point where our lives were moving in different directions,” Yourell explains. Our band has always been about four songwriters working in collaboration. For the time being, we can’t make music the way we would like to, so it felt natural to take a pause.”
Making his own music is a freeing but at times daunting experience. Having played in bands since he was 16, Yourell found it strange on his own initially: “I forged an identity as part of a collective, so I had some existential moments along the way asking, ‘Who is Ro?’”
Yourell ended up embracing this deliciously frightening unknown. He says: “An exciting thing for me in terms of my solo work is the scope. “I don’t have to take anyone else into account. I can be selfish, following the song wherever it leads me.”
Yourell’s solo sound focuses on meditative, intimate lyrics with a distinct poetic flair and driving melody.
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