Robinson Kirby cherish an undercover romance with a Secret Lover in their latest single and lyric video — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The followup to the Toronto folk-pop duo’s 2021 EP Little Dreams and single Summer Of Love, Secret Lover picks up where their previous release left off, celebrating the joys of a blossoming relationship that hasn’t gone public yet.
“We wanted to capture some of the spirit of our shows and celebrate playing live again, which we had really missed,” Luke Robinson and Madelyn Kirby explain. “Over the course of the last year, as shows started happening again, it became a highlight in our set.”
Secret Lover started with a slower melody and a completely different tone than the “upbeat, grooving feel” it emanates today. A soothing guitar intro opens the song, soon joined by a light percussive element and Kirby’s sweet vocals. She beckons her “secret lover” to “Sneak away with me / So our friends don’t see.”
“Secret Lover is about the excitement at the beginning of a relationship — when you get butterflies around the other person, maybe even feel those first feelings of love. You have hope for the future, but it’s uncertain, and the relationship is undefined,” the pair explain.
Harrison Lenz engineered the track and added his superb bass playing to the instrumental backing, while Ryan Johnston lent his talent on the drums.
“We cut the basic tracks at Gold Standard Recorders in Toronto with our live band. We used the live vocal take and guitar solo in the final track, which feels like a cool step for us. When we’re in the studio, we can be perfectionists, so it feels great to keep full takes, not fuss over every little detail, and just let the song speak for itself,” Robinson Kirby say.
Robinson and Kirby met at Berklee College of Music and bonded over a shared fascination with ’70s music and the pop scene. The duo collaborated on Venice with Julian DelGrosso and Tired Eyes with Darby Loves You before releasing Secret Lover.
Watch the lyric video for Secret Lover above, hear more from Robinson Kirby below, and share a secret with them at their website, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
