Last year saw Salvatore Manalo step into the studio for the first time to record his debut EP at SW Portland's The Rye Room. The five-track record is full of smooth, soulful R&B tunes with catchy pop hooks.
But as an independent artist, it's impossible to spend all your time in a professional recording environment so Manalo got back to the basics—writing and laying down tracks at home. "Love Coming Down" is his first new single since the EP as he looks to for "it to be the first installment of a series of bimonthly releases," Manalo says. "The plan is to capture any ideas as they come and put it out without any restrictions, imperfections and all. I'd also love to collaborate with more local artists in doing so."
Listen to the new single "Love Coming Down" below and then catch Salvatore Manalo at the White Eagle on April 25 or at Mississippi Pizza on April 26The place where Manalo is capturing these songs—playing and recording all of the parts himself—is in his studio, "that is... my basement," he says. "I was pretty happy with how it came out but I'm still learning all of this as I go. I'm excited to look back and listen to how far I've improved in the future. I sent all of the recordings to Matt Greco of The Rye Room to mix and master it. He did such an amazing job on my EP, that I jumped at the chance to work with him again."
"Love Coming Down," Manalo tells, "came to life because of a recent purchase I made over the holidays, an MPC controller. I remember sitting down with it one night and looping a beat I had just made. I took out my guitar and recorded a rhythm part and bass line. Then I pulled out my keyboard and layered some keys. I eventually wrote out all of the lyrics and recorded a rough vocal that same night. I never thought a little plastic pad could spark so many creative ideas and make the writing process so fluid."
