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Labra Brothers deliver ‘Spring’ before summer

After the “Colder Weather,” Labra Brothers are offering a dose of spring.

The Youngstown band led by brothers Adrian (guitar and vocals), Cristian (bass and vocals) and David (guitar, saxophone and vocals) Labra will release “Spring (Without You),” its first new song since its 2019 debut album “Colder Weather,” on Friday to music-streaming sites.

Adrian Labra said the band already was leaning toward focusing on singles instead of a new full-length album, but it made even more sense with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The way of the world right now, even before the pandemic, artists are geared toward singles rather than albums,” he said. “Unless you have a real statement to make, artists are straying away from albums.”

Cristian Labra came up with the initial idea for the song, and the different parts came together during a fruitful writing session late last year.

The song has a laid-back groove with Cristian taking lead vocals and his brothers adding the harmonies for which the band is known. The band’s keyboard player Danny Svenson (who also plays with Spirit of the Bear) and drummer Matt Hayes filled out the arrangement.

Unlike “Colder Weather,” in which the band worked with producer / engineer Todd Maki, the band produced “Spring” without outside help.

“Danny has worked as a producer, and this is our first stab at recording in house,” Adrian Labra said.

The experience making “Colder Weather” helped on the new material.

“We have a better understanding of how a song gets built from initial idea to finished and mastered recording,” he said. “We know the process and time that needs to go into each song.”

For those who want a sneak peak, a live version of the track (recorded at the band’s January show at Youngstown’s Concept Studio) can be heard on its website (www.thelabrabrothers.com), and the song will get its broadcast premiere at 3:30 p.m. today on The Summit (90.7 / 91.3 FM) public radio station.

“I honestly can’t say enough about The Summit and how great they’ve been,” Labra said. “What an incredible asset they are to independent artists, independent music. They are some of our biggest advocates.”

Like most bands, local and national, the Labra Brothers’ performance plans are in limbo. Adrian guessed that 90 percent of the band’s planned gigs have been canceled.

“The other 10 percent are still up in the air,” he said. “We’re hopeful we’ll be able to get back out there. We’ve been looking for other ways to promote the music. We’re trying to be strategic, taking a much closer look at what we’re doing online, making sure we’re releasing new content on a regular basis.”

The band continues to work on new music, and a second single could be ready for release in July.

“It’s been inconvenient in some ways to be locked away at home. I’m sure it’s the same for a lot of people,” Adrian Labra said. “But for us its presented an opportunity to change our recording process a bit and get a lot done in a short period of time.”

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