Rui Gabriel announces his debut album, Compassion, out June 21st via Carpark Records, along with the news, the Venezuelan-born, Indiana-based songwriter has shared single/video, “Summertime Tiger.” The track features backup vocals from Stef Chura and is co-produced by Nicholas Corson (The Convenience, Video Age), and the video was directed by Jimmy Whispers and Zack Shorrosh. Additionally, Rui announces US tour dates this summer in support of Compassion.

The inviting and perceptive songs on Compassion all tackle growing up. It’s about how the older you get, your priorities shift, friendships evolve, and responsibilities become inescapable. For Gabriel, the changes in his own life, primary among them becoming a father, inspired him to write a solo full-length that sounds like nothing the indie rock journeyman has done before. Across 10 vibrant tracks that combine ethereal pop with slacker-rock and piano-driven dance music, it’s a galvanizing showcase of personal growth and the grace you give yourself to push forward.

“Summertime Tiger” is sung from the point of view of someone who is not qualified at all to advise on healthy living, but does it anyway,” explains Gabriel. “The song title is taken from the concept of a ‘regional tiger,’ which is a period of intense growth that countries like South Korea and Ireland experienced at the turn of the 20th Century. Summer is the slowest time of the year for New Orleans and tons of service industry employees tend to both earn less money and work fewer hours, so the idea was that a ‘summertime tiger’ was the patronizing urge to encourage someone to work on themselves during a time when they’re practically unemployed.”

Work on Compassion started in 2018 when Gabriel was living in New Orleans. “I was living a pretty teenage life in many ways,” says Gabriel. “I worked at a pizza restaurant and would just go to shows or parties. I wasn’t doing anything other than music. I didn’t have many responsibilities.” The songs he was working on at the time—tracks that didn’t fit Lawn but Gabriel still liked—initially went unfinished. But as Gabriel’s life changed, so did his songwriting and his desire to see his ideas through. “When I was writing lyrics, I was settling down with my partner and about to become a dad,” says Gabriel. “I was making choices about my life that contradicted the existence I had before. I had a different set of priorities.”

The songs on Compassion deal with youthful carelessness and coming face-to-face with newfound responsibilities. It’s consistently a biting, observant look at getting older thanks to Gabriel’s unique perspective as a South American immigrant who’s lived across the United States for the past 13 years. “When you are Hispanic, English isn’t your first language, and you’re in a music scene with a bunch of white people, you’re going to stand out a little bit,” he says

Rui Gabriel
Compassion
Tracklist
Carpark Records

1. Dreamy Boys
2. Target
3. Church of Nashville
4. Hunting Knife
5. Summertime Tiger
6. If You Want It
7. Change Your Mind
8. Eyes Only
9. End Of My Rope
10. Money

Rui Gabriel 2024 Tour Dates

Thu. June 20 – Nashville, TN @ DRKMTTR
Fri. June 21 – Bloomington, IN @ Blockhouse ^
Sat. June 22 – Chicago, IL @ Gman Tavern ^
Tue. June 25 – Detroit, MI @ PJs Lager House
Thu. June 27 – Brooklyn, NY @ The Broadway
Fri. June 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ Tin Can
Sat. June 29 – Washington, DC @ Cool Ranch
Mon. July 1 – Asheville, NC @ Static Age
Tue. July 2 – Athens, GA @ Flickers *
Wed. July 3 – Atlanta, GA @ 529 *
Sun. July 6 – New Orleans, LA @ Saturn Bar

^ w/ Wishy
* w/ O Key

Pre-order Compassion by Rui Gabriel HERE