Marcus Lowry is a Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer based in Montreal. Since earning his Bachelor’s degree in jazz performance from the University of Montreal in 2017, Marcus has worked with a wide array of Canadian and international jazz, folk and pop artists. His debut solo album, Time, Time, Time, produced by Juno-nominated musician Joe Grass, is set to be released this coming fall.
After reading Mary Oliver’s poetry collection, Devotions, Marcus felt inspired by how in tune she was with nature and embraced death with such calm and acceptance. In Marcus’s own life, he struggles with anxiety and Hurry Sickness, which means the inevitable passing of time is a recurring fear for him. These songs, and the journeys depicted in their lyrics, act as his personal reminder that this kind of fear can threaten one’s ability to explore all of life’s richness and beauty.
His debut single, “One Million Lights,” speaks directly to the beauty of life, and the painful acceptance of its ephemerality. The song draws us in immediately with a very gratifying groove that ebbs and flows and then slowly blooms into a liquid, lush soundscape of flickering pianos and crystalline effects over a rich bed of strings.
In “One Million Lights,” you can hear layers of pianos, all randomly playing with the same few notes to try and mimic the effect of light shining through water. It’s impressionistic music-production – like the audio version of a Debussy painting!