Federico Aubele Shares Cinematic Single 'The Sacrifice'

Brooklyn-based Argentine singer/songwriter Federico Aubele shares the third, cinematic track, and its accompanying self-directed video, "The Sacrifice," today from his forthcoming LP, The Holographic Moon, due out on May 27th and available for pre-order now here.

"The Sacrifice," produced by Aubele himself, brings listeners to the center of a swelling storm, capturing the realization of a necessary sacrifice, the release of something that no longer serves you. The guitar strums stir a calmness within, where the strings build a cinematic atmosphere, and the bells, combined with Aubele's signature deep, baritone voice and heavenly choir-like vocals, carry listeners into an ethereal, ceremonious realm.

Written late in the album's creation during a blizzard in New York City, the track offers Aubele space to reflect on aspects of his life that need to be surrendered, and declares that sacrifice ultimately helps one move forward, develop and flourish.

"The Sacrifice" is what Aubele calls "an overcast sky about to burst and waves in the sea trying to reach the full moon." Diving into the background of the peaceful track, Aubele explains, "It's easy to get tangled up in ideas and concepts that no longer serve us and stick to them, often without even knowing. Once we realize, through internal reflection or an external event, that it's time for an update, I think we have to consciously let go of these old concepts. That's what needs to be sacrificed."

Aubele continues, "Often we identify strongly with these ideas because we had them with us for so long that they've become a part of who we think we are and getting rid of them feels like an intense sacrifice. Some of these concepts may have been passed down to us by our family, society, or friends, often even with good intentions. But that doesn't mean that they will serve us and that we need to keep them with us for life. I believe that there is no way around a periodic sacrifice of old ideas. It's a necessity. It's part of the way life is organized, part of its engine. Otherwise, we're just ghosts, repeating a moment over and over."

"The Sacrifice" follows previous singles, "Old Spanish Films," and "Pink Spray Painted Clouds." The former sees Aubele come to terms with the crumbling foundation beneath a relationship once thought to be unbreakable, where the latter, contrarily, is a gentle daydream that captures the warmth of a budding romance.

The visual accompanying "The Sacrifice" is Aubele's second-ever video that he has directed following the previous release, "Old Spanish Films." Sprinkled between clips of the musician before a scenic pond and quiet forest are shots of paint strokes coating works of art by late 19th Century British artist John William Waterhouse from the Pre-Raphaelite movement who made art depicting rituals and sacrifices.

In addition to the shots of paint over art, there are moments of glitchy computer codes. Aubele included these to represent the idea that new code needs to be written, and old code needs to be overwritten, symbolic of sacrifice, with very old paintings contrasted by new-age code.

Describing the video, Aubele states, "The Sacrifice" is about sacrificing the old and making space for the new. Since way back, forests have always had magical meaning in people's imaginations and mythology, the place where rituals are made. The crow character is in such a magical forest with blue vegetation and looks at himself in the water, perhaps realizing that a sacrifice is due in order to move forward," explains Aubele.

"The Pre-Raphaelite paintings depict rituals and create a contrast with the new computer code being written, accentuating the idea of the sacrifice. Watching it, I realize that I dance a lot more on this video than any previous ones, so perhaps the shooting of the video has been a sacrifice of sorts for me."

Federico Aubele has been blending cultures and defying borders throughout his almost two-decade long career. Bouncing between Buenos Aires, Berlin and Barcelona, and now, Brooklyn, Aubele has fused the sounds of each city and simultaneously melded genres into his powerful songwriting, deep vocals, downtempo electronica, acoustic guitar, flamenco and more.

The musician has also managed to seamlessly and seductively join both Spanish and English since he began recording music as Boston Globe, PopMatters and Westword each note. Remezcla calls Aubele, "The true master of Latin down-tempo electronica," with "eclectic influences that range from tango and bossa nova to dub."

Aubele's sixth full-length album, The Holographic Moon, featuring artwork done by Aubele himself, is due out May 27.

With the help of guests ranging from Mauro Refosco (David Byrne, Atoms for Peace) on percussion, Iain Cook (Chvrches) and Yuka Honda (Cibo Matto) on synths, Melissa Mary Ahern (Sulfjian Stevens) on vocal harmonies, the YMusic Ensemble (Paul Simon, Jose Gonzales) on orchestra arrangements and Kenny Wollensen (Tom Waits) on drums, Aubele looks to push boundaries of what traditional lyricism and genres might look like, and further establish himself as a dynamic, multicultural musician to watch as he continues to reach new depths.

"The Sacrifice," out everywhere now, allows Aubele to embrace the necessity of surrendering to sacrifice. Only once one confronts the release of negativity can one ultimately move forward and evolve, bringing Aubele to find peace. The tranquil upcoming LP, The Holographic Moon, is out May 27 and available for pre-order now.

Watch the new music video here: