Richard Swift – “Sept20”

Richard Swift – “Sept20”

This summer, Richard Swift — the longtime indie rock studio wizard, solo artist, and prolific collaborator, passed away at the much-too-young age of 41. He’d been battling alcoholism for years, and shortly before he died, he was diagnosed with hepatitis and liver and kidney distress. But in the time before he died, Swift recorded The Hex, his final album. That album, which was not previously announced, is out tomorrow.

Swift put the album together piecemeal over the last few years, and he finished it a few months before his death. The album includes songs dedicated to Swift’s mother and his sister, who both died, one just a year after the other. And it includes “Sept20,” apparently the last song that Swift ever wrote.

Today, September 20, would’ve been Swift’s 21st wedding anniversary. His family is scattering his ashes today, and they’ve also shared “Sept20″ with the world. It’s an echoing, piano-laden pop song about dying alone: “Slip away, asleep in my car / All the angels sing ‘Que Sera Sera.'” You can listen to it below.

The Hex is out 9/21 on Secretly Canadian.

more from New Music