Silver Magpie is the professional name of an up and coming Indie-Rock singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jesús Gutiérrez. He made his debut in 2020 with the single “Star Crossed Lover” and the subsequent 5-song EP “Dear Friend.” Since then, the prolific songwriter has been hard at work on his forthcoming debut album. He released the album’s first single “The Storm” in July.
“Before You Leave” is the latest single and video from Silver Magpie, released worldwide to all major streaming services on October 22, 2021. The song is a heartbreaking look at the collapse of a relationship. The track opens on a piano playing a somber, music-box style melody. An acoustic guitar strums in the background as the singer enters the mix.
In a sentiment familiar to anyone who has seen a love affair descend into indifference or disdain, Silver Magpie sings, “I know that you care, but I have to ask you why are you doing this to me?” As the track progresses, the dark Dream Pop mix of strings, guitar and piano become awash in layers of reverberated vocals as the singer ruminates on the song’s central theme. It is a beautiful and heart wrenching sound.
The video for “Before You Leave” features Silver Magpie singing alone as a beautiful woman performs a solo interpretive dance. It is a striking visual for deeply emotional song. Check it out below. You can also hear the song on the Deep Indie Dive playlist, or listen on your favorite streaming service.
We had the chance to chat with Silver Magpie about his music. Read his answers to our 8 questions below. Follow the links at the end of this article to connect with the artist. Get on his socials and get in the loop on all of the new surrounding his upcoming debut album.
8 Questions with Silver Magpie
Where are you from?
I was born in a city called Guadalajara in Mexico, and currently reside in Mexico City
How long have you been making music?
A couple years now, since I was a child I used to write songs with playful rhymes, I just thought it was something everyone did when they were bored. So it started as a game and ended up as a real project in 2020 just before the pandemic hit.
Who are the musicians involved in your project?
Well it’s only me, Jesús Gutiérrez. I write, compose, sing and play all of my songs. Technology makes it easier nowadays, besides singing I play the piano and guitar, the rest of the instruments are midi magic. I also work with a pretty good old-time friend sound engineer, Sergio Zamorano who makes my trashy mixes turn into beautiful arrangements. And from time to time, if the song requires it, I invite some friendly voices on the backup vocals (Special thanks to Paula Arellano).
Who are your biggest musical influences?
That question has evolved a lot but I’d say mainly Radiohead, Son Lux, Placebo, Interpol. On a more Indie scene, Alexandra Savior. Maybe that’s why I tend to write rather dramatic songs…
What is your greatest non-musical influence?
There are a lot of subtle and hidden religious references in my songwriting, but still in order not to fall in common places I will choose St. Paul. Kindness, wisdom and passion. Today’s world would definitely benefit from more people like that.
What inspired you to create this project?
I guess it comes from some self-preservation instinct. I used to get terribly overwhelmed by my own emotions, I still do sometimes, but music always helps me channel this into something that can be terrible or beautiful, but tangible at least. I also remember one of the first times I shared my music with someone else who got very moved by a particular song at that particular moment, and I started thinking that there might be others who might find some comfort in knowing that someone else is living through something that feels similar to what they are feeling. That’s when I started thinking about publishing and sharing what I have to say and feel.
What are your plans for the future (musically)?
I’m working on getting an album done by 2022, this would be the second single I’m publishing for that. And it’s a hard industry, so I try to keep low expectations and just focus myself on enjoying the ride and let it come what it may.
Is there anything else you would like to say?
I think I just want to give a quick shout out to the crew with whom I produced my video for Before You Leave. It’s the first time I actually produced a video for a release and it was super fun and everyone was very professional and wanted to get the best possible product with the budget we had and I think we did it. Ery Falco – Producer, Anna Velasco – Director, Isabel Taracena – Photography, our star and dancer – Myriam Gonzalez, Dana Avilés and Alpi from the staff, everyone did a great job.
