Canadian singer/producer Chris LaRocca just shared a playful new video for “Dice Out / Test On Me” with Billboard. With both singles off Chris’ recently released Saudade EP, the video was inspired by the artist’s hometown of Woodbridge, Ontario – the biggest Italian community in the world outside of Italy – so naturally has a delightful tinge of The Sopranos over dreamy R&B tracks.
Chris previously shared singles “Salt”, “Heated Up” and “Yard Sale” from theSaudadeEP, which takes its name from an untranslatable word only existing in the Portuguese language, describing a melancholic nostalgia and longing for a moment that never actually occurred.
A self-taught musician with soaring natural falsetto and punk rock past, Chris started producing in 2014 after years in Toronto’s DIY scene as part of math rock/indie band Elos Arma. Working on a combination of synths and drum machines running into one another with no computer, he released a trio of humor-tinted EPs under the moniker SEXTAPEbefore diving deeper into his vision for expansive pop music made with real emotion and an incredible attention to detail.
Chris self-released his first single “Closer” in 2017, championed by the likes ofZane Lowe, before putting out his debut EP, Voila with standout tracks “Roses” and the Xavier Omar-remixed “Wild.” Chris did all this while working 12-hour days at three jobs – tutoring, serving at an old age home and as in-home support for an elderly woman – to fund the project.
Saudade explores memories & nostalgia, the cover art even featuring his dad in the 1990s at the age he is now. Chris also identifies with the EP title’s ironic meaning of yearning for a time that was never there, “a vague and constant desire for something that does not and most likely cannot exist. This is a feeling that is not only very familiar to me, but a feeling that heavily inspired this body of work.”
Head Honcho, Editor in Chief and writer here on VENTS. I don't like walking on the beach, but I love playing the guitar and geeking out about music. I am also a movie maniac and 6 hours sleeper.