Premiere: Embracing Connection in Michael Baker’s Intimately Ethereal & Softly Cinematic “Until the End”

Intimately ethereal and softly cinematic, Michael Baker’s beautiful new song “Until the End” captures the resounding warmth and weight of connection.

for fans of Gregory Alan Isakov, Bear’s Den, Aquilo

Stream: “Until the End” – Michael Baker

The track itself was another one of those tracks that seemed to write itself. It’s about the importance of connection.

There’s nothing quite like the seclusion of isolation and the loneliness of solitude to make us appreciate the true wonder of human connection: Of sharing a part of yourself with someone else, and feeling heard, appreciated, and understood. After the past two full years we’ve spent in varying degrees of separation and disconnect, it feels especially timely to recognize the value of true connection: Of meaningful shared moments together with others. Rising up out of a tranquil darkness, Michael Baker’s stirring new single captures the resounding warmth and weight of connection: Intimately ethereal and softly cinematic, “Until the End” is an achingly tender outpouring of emotion dwelling in the raw depths of loneliness and kinship, longing and catharsis.

Lonely river’s gonna wash me away
So I’m gonna give up my Saturdays


I know your noughts and your crosses
like the back of my hand


So long to my failings
Hello to my friends
Get that sun on our faces
Until the end

Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Until the End,” Michael Baker’s first single of the year and the second track off his forthcoming fourth studio album., set to release later this year. Active since the mid-2010s, the Brighton-born, London-based artist has emerged as a prolific and impassioned singer/songwriter with his own fresh perspective and a stunning way of communication emotion through song. Atwood Magazine praised Baker’s sophomore album Salt as “a heartfelt reckoning full of striking vulnerability and intensely intimate, beautiful songwriting,” and called last year’s third LP How Come You Sleep “a cathartic release of tension and visceral self-reflection made with love, light, and hope in the midst of a pandemic.” Embracing space while bridging acoustic and electric instrumentation and a soft rock / indie folk aesthetic, Baker’s visceral music can be likened to such acclaimed artists as Sufjan Stevens, Gregory Alan Isakov, Blind Pilot, Dustin Tebbutt, Bear’s Den, and Aquilo.

With moody keyboards and heavy, slow drums setting a serene scene from the start, “Until the End” feels insulated, but not small. Baker’s tender voice shines even as he gently erupts from within, spilling forth via confessional lyrics and a smoldering performance that effortlessly steals the spotlight.

A lonely giver’s gonna give us away
So I’m gonna give him my my time of day
I’ll tick the noughts and the crosses
and send him on his way
So long to my failings
Hello to my friends
Get that sun on our faces
Until the end

“‘Until the End’ Is my favourite track I’ve recorded and released so far,” Baker tells Atwood Magazine. “Producer Luke Potashnik captured a really special live performance, keeping it minimal and letting the song speak for itself. At the end we sped up and slowed down the track, singing different harmonies which gave the background voices a really ethereal and beautiful sound. The track itself was another one of those tracks that seemed to write itself. It’s about the importance of connection.”

So here is some space
For nobody’s gain
We all are the same aren’t we now?

And here is the day
Till we all blow away
For we all are the same aren’t we now

The turmoil recedes as “Until the End” moves forward and Baker grows up and out of his isolation, reconnecting to his world and becoming a part of a greater community. “So, so long to my failings, hello to my friends,” he sings in the chorus. “Get that sun on our faces until the end.” One gets the sense that in welcoming others to his world – highs, lows, joys, woes, and all – Baker is able to reduce his anxiety, calm some stress, and relax: To sink into the comfort of knowing he’s not alone.

“Until the End” is a truly beautiful, stunning soundtrack to intimate connection and the human experience. Stream Michael Baker’s new single exclusively on Atwood Magazine.

So, so long to my failings
Hello to my friends
Get that sun on our faces
Until the end

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:: stream/purchase Until the End here ::

Stream: “Until the End” – Michael Baker

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