Devon Welsh releases a new song, “Faces” which showcase his range and harmony set against a soft backdrop. The lyrics, “When we’re honest, we’re all guilty. We can’t help it, we can’t help it.” Welsh’s voice takes you on a journey with varying emotion as he drives you with his vocal depth. The song is complemented by additional synths and sound processing from Nick Schofield, Kyle Jukka and mixed by Austin Tufts of Braids.

“I feel that there’s a bittersweetness to life,” Welsh says, describing this meditation on love and mortality. “There’s suffering and we know it has to end, but there’s so much tenderness in it nonetheless.” Set in the Wisconsin woods, the black-and-white video for “Faces” highlights the emotionality and humanness that remains Welsh’s signature.

Two years after the disbandment of Majical Cloudz, who made a name for themselves in the alternative scene by doing splits with Grimes and going on tour with Lorde, Welsh released his 2018 solo album, Dream Songs. Welsh then retreated to take stock of his purpose as an artist, left Montreal and moved to Wisconsin where he recorded in a basement studio and embraced a quieter, simpler life. He has worked on his emotional health through meditation and therapy.

Welsh reflects on the purpose of life and emotional space around love. He says, “Love in every sense has complications, often feels impossible or unreachable, and so many things can get in its way. Music has been a great way for me to try to understand that as best as I can.”

Welsh grew up in Sandford, Ontario and later moved with his mother to an ashram in Lake County, California, to join the religious community Adidam. After two years in California, he moved back to his father’s house in Canada and attended a Montessori school. Welsh never had any formal music training. He entered McGill University in 2007 and graduated in 2011 with a degree in religion.