Sluka pulls out all the stops in his epic new single and video Saving It All — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The first single from the California singer, songwriter, composer and label head’s upcoming album Cautionary Yell, the deeply human and universal themed Saving It All is a densely melodic, downtempo track fuelled by bold lyricism. In a world constantly on the edge and teetering towards further chaos, Christopher Sluka’s new release emits a sense of calm beauty, hope and possibility. Taking cues from David Bowie, Georges Méliés, Jules Verne and Carl Sagan, it is written from the perspective of someone watching the world from outer space — an appropriate viewpoint, given that Sluka is also a professional pilot, among his many other pursuits.
Sluka was always musically inclined. He remembers his first instrument as a trombone, but on his eighth birthday his parents gave him a guitar. Now, while he claims not to be an expert musician, he can hold his own on piano, drums, bass, French horn, percussion, trumpet and of course, guitar. By age 13, he was trying his hand at songwriting. By 17, he was in New York City going to college and playing in clubs.
Between the ’80s and today, he’s released hit singles in Japan and Europe, released albums on major labels and started his own, owned not one but two successful coffee shops, and sold them to open a flight school. “For me, flying and music are very similar,” he says. “They both feel like magic and it’s incredible that human beings are able to do them both. They follow check lists. Mistakes can have dire consequences. They require lots of study, practice, and repetition. And yet no two flights are the same and no two musical performances are the same.”
In 2021, Sluka released his 13th album, Figure it Out. While he covers guitar, keyboards and vocals, he’s joined by bassist Anna Eppink, as he was on the 2019 release Ready to Connect. “Anna has a very unique style. She comes up with bass parts I never would have thought of. She also has many ideas visually for our videos and our live show. And she influences me greatly through our endless discussions of life on this planet.”
Watch the video for Saving It All, hear more from Sluka below, and find him on his website, Facebook and Instagram.
