. . . Photo credit: Michelle Grace Hunder (@michelleghunder) . . . . Photo credit: Michelle Grace Hunder (@michelleghunder) . . . CLICK THE PIC TO VIEW THE NEWS
RUEL
releases debut album
4th WALLBuy / stream here
Out today via SONY MUSIC
(AUSTRALIA) / RCA (ROW)Featuring new single
“I DON’T WANNA BE LIKE YOU”Watch VISUALISER here
Today, ARIA-Award winning and multi-platinum selling solo artist with over 2 billion streams to his name, Ruel (aka Ruel Vincent van Dijk), releases his long-awaited debut studio album, 4TH WALL via RCA (ROW) and Sony Music (Australia).
Three years in the making, 4TH WALL sees Ruel unveil a matured sound and elevated lyricism, bending between euphoric to contemplative realms of pop, backdropped by cinematic visuals inspired by The Truman Show’s own fourth wall premise. Pulling back the curtains and tearing down his walls on his debut record, the pop phenomenon delves into the tides of the human experience – reflecting on love, longing, heartbreak and everything in between; Ruel pieces together some of life’s most pivotal moments to cement his global status as a pop-icon.
A series of haunting piano chords open the record, as Ruel dissects one’s self-worth in relationships on “GO ON WITHOUT ME”. Next, the upbeat guitars on “I DON’T WANNA BE LIKE YOU” breeds an air of defiance from Ruel ahead of a melodious breakdown. As a stripped back number, “SITTING IN TRAFFIC” provides a reflective moment in time, whilst “JAPANESE WHISKEY” is a raw and intimate musing on life’s illusionary goal posts.
AUSTRALIAN TOUR DATES
TICKETS ON SALE NOWFriday, 14 April – Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane QLD
Saturday, 15 April – Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide SA
Friday, 21 April – MCA, Melbourne VIC
Saturday, 22 April – Fremantle Arts Centre, Perth WA
Friday, 28 April – Aware Super Theatre, Sydney NSWAiry tones of indie-folk on ARIA and EMA-nominated “GROWING UP IS ____” see Ruel present collective feelings of maturing, as his quintessential falsetto defines the myriad of labels given. Over a soaring rally of synths and chugging rhythm guitar, “SET YOURSELF ON FIRE” provides comfort to the shared experience of feeling lost in a contemporary world, which is followed by “LIE”, a slow and steady backing of acoustic guitar as Ruel laments to inevitable sadness that is, at times, inescapable in life’s journey.
The eighth track, “LET THE GRASS GROW” is an indie ballad, with an introspective lens on Climate Change. Previous single, “YOU AGAINST YOURSELF” then arrives as an addictive bop of compassion for a friend who repeatedly self-sabotages. An irresistible alt-pop anthem “SOMEONE ELSE’S PROBLEM” then analyses the process of breakups and new beginnings.
“WISH I HAD YOU” follows, soaked in reverb as a softer and smoother setting for Ruel to showcase his dynamic vocal range, it captures the yearn of a lost love in the process of moving on with life. Ruel’s confessions of relationship anxiety in “IF AND OR WHEN” are juxtaposed against the upbeat strum of guitar. The latest single “MUST BE NICE” sees Ruel wade through the aftermath of a broken relationship, grappling with lingering feelings of loss and trepidation.
Finally, the aptly named “END SCENE”, both a ballad of confessions and a homage to Ruel’s love of film, specifically the movie Fight Club, we hear as Ruel repeats, ‘when did we stop giving a f*ck about losing our minds’.
On 4TH WALL Ruel says, “I started conceptualising the album way back in 2020. It was pre pandemic, I’d just come off tour and I was working out of a studio in Bali. It was the first time in ages that I was able to take a moment and look back at all the craziness of the past few years. It felt like my life was a bunch of random scenes in a surreal movie, a bit like that Truman Show feeling we all get where you wonder if your part of some bizarre reality show.”
He adds, “I started thinking of the songs of the album like a soundtrack to the human experience. I wanted to write an album where there’s something everyone can relate to. I love to write about things I’ve experienced personally but I also love to take inspiration from anything and everything that I see happening around me, either directly or indirectly. Often I’ll put myself in someone else shoes and play out different scenarios in my head to imagine how they might feel and then write from their perspective. I love the freedom this method gives me.”
Ruel has also announced the first leg of his 4TH WALL World Tour, which will see him make five stops throughout Australia and New Zealand this April. The tour kicks off with a performance at Brisbane’s Fortitude Music Hall on April 14, followed by Hindley Street Music Hall in Adelaide on April 15. Ruel will then play at MCA, Melbourne on April 21 and Fremantle Arts Centre in Perth on April 22, before a massive homecoming show at Aware Super Theatre in Sydney on April 28 – tickets for the tour are on sale here.
At 20 years of age, London-born, Sydney-raised Ruel has fast become one of his generation’s most influential artists. Sitting with over 2 billion global streams,1.58 million YouTube subscribers, 1.2 million Instagram followers, three sold-out world tours and five Platinum records to his name, Ruel is both a seasoned global superstar and trailblazer for tomorrow’s next generation. Since his official 2017 debut single, “Golden Years” featuring M-Phazes, he remains the youngest artist ever to win Breakthrough Artist at the ARIA Awards and the youngest artist to sell out the Sydney Opera House… twice.
From Ruel’s first two EPs, Ready and Free Time, emerged Platinum and Double Platinum hits including “Younger”, “Dazed & Confused”, “Painkiller”, “Real Thing” and “Face To Face”. Praise from worldwide press including Nylon, VOGUE and The Face; co-signs from Elton John; and collaborations with Denzel Curry, Cosmo’s Midnight and Omar Apollo are just a few of the journeyed stops for Ruel along the way. Following a widely applauded third EP, Bright Lights, Red Eyes, and a successful stint at hosting the 2022 ARIA Awards, Ruel continues to drive his defiant lyricism to bigger and brighter moments. Ahead of today’s release, Ruel saw the album’s prior singles score coverage from NME, The Music, Coup De Main and Music Feeds alongside playlisting support from triple j upon release.
As a coming age of story that ties its strengths to vulnerability and raw talent, listen to Ruel’s highly-awaited debut record 4TH WALL today, as the pop-icon continues to navigate the star-studded stratosphere of contemporary pop.
4TH WALL IS OUT NOW VIA SONY MUSIC (AUSTRALIA) / RCA (ROW)
Buy / streamhereFEATURING NEW SINGLE “I DON’T WANNA BE LIKE YOU”
Watch Visualiser here
4th WALL LP
Track ListGO ON WITHOUT ME
I DON’T WANNA BE LIKE YOU
SITTING IN TRAFFIC
JAPANESE WHISKEY
GROWING UP IS ____
SET YOURSELF ON FIRE
LIE
LET THE GRASS GROW
YOU AGAINST YOURSELF
SOMEONE ELSE’S PROBLEM
WISH I HAD YOU
IF AND OR WHEN
MUST BE NICE
END SCENE
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Youtube – TiktokAMNPLIFY – ML
My nickname is “The Amnplifier”. Why? Because around here my focus is on being a conduit for providing greater outcomes that people come here for. My day to day “work” is living in the moment, and I love helping others concentrate on finding their connection to themselves through their experiences.
Why start a music environment? The truth is I love music, I love writing, and I love life. I work with musicians every day, and I feel certain that I will be until they put me in the ground. I have been managing people in businesses of some sort for over thirty five years so along the way I have developed some “wisdom” from my regular and constant “observations”.
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