New York City-based collective VRSTY (pronounced "Varsity") — Joey Varela [vocals], Javy Dorrejo [bass], Chris Cody [drums], and Paul Gregory [guitar] — have announced that their new album Welcome Home will arrive on November 19 via Spinefarm. Pre-order it here.
Watch the video for first single "Sick"
"I must be cursed to repeat cycles because 'Sick,' much like 'Shameless' from our EP, was the very last song written for the release," says Varela. "This song actually didn't exist until a few months after the record was pretty much done. It was also an incredibly different process writing this one. Instead of my usual approach of working with [producer] Andrew [Baylis], I also got to work with Kile Odell and Zach Williams before bringing Andrew into the mix. It's also one of the few songs that I've ever written where I'm just having fun singing about whatever random story pops into my head. Sometimes, music should just be fun. That's what I went for with this — and I'm glad I did."
Welcome Home is the band's debut full length for the label and follows last year's breakthrough Cloud City EP, which has accumulated six million streams in less than a year and yielded the head-turning singles "Shameless" and "Massive." The latter was the most played on SiriusXM's Octane for two weeks in a row in late 2020. VRSTY have perfected their seamless and fearless cross-pollination of metallic grooves and R&B-influenced, after midnight vocal swagger on this 14-track offering. VRSTY aren't just offering their own take on a genre; they have authored a fusion style that is entirely their own.
"Welcome Home is an incredibly personal album to me," Varela shares. "I know everybody says that, and hey, maybe they're not lying when they do. I sure as hell am not. It was definitely a task, at first, trying to figure out how to phrase or sing something without getting too personal. But somewhere along the way, I threw that idea out the window and decided to say exactly what I felt. You won't find me trying to sound cool or using any fancy wordplay. It's just me in my rawest form, saying exactly what I've felt or experienced over the years, which is what has made me who I am today. I think if anybody ever wants to get to know me, this record will give you everything you need to know. No secrets. Just me."