Garry McCluskey, better known by his stage name GAZ, is a UK-born South African Singer-Songwriter releasing his new single ‘Slow Down’ on Friday 28 July. As the 8th track on his upcoming solo debut album, 'Slow Down’ is a deep, dynamic, melodic, song produced by the South African legend Mark Beling. GAZ aims to release his solo album by the end of 2023 and return to the stage for live performances thereafter.

GAZ shares that “I was inspired to write a strong piece that would hopefully resonate with listeners about how we are all going about our lives currently. ‘Flat-out’ with no off-switch or end in sight. 'Slow Down' asks the listener to reflect on themselves and the pace of their lives, to step out of the noise, to switch off news and social media, and to get out of the trappings of our fast-paced lives before we burn out. Stop, refresh, rest and feel what being normal feels like again. A dreamy start is followed by some solid riffs and powerful passages that cut through the noise and drives the message home.

Slow Down was recorded at Mark Beling Studios in Johannesburg on 31 May 2023. We started out softly as this is how the song had been originally conceived in my head and we never really intended for the track to become as powerful and grungy as it ended up being. But this track demanded it from us, so we did not stop, we just let it grow and grow until we looked at each other in some kind of shock and said…how on earth did we get here?…and had a good laugh. Mark and I work very well together, there is an unspoken understanding when we work together. We are never scared to explore and I hope that this comes through in this new release. We left nothing on the table with this track."

Interesting Facts

• • “Slow Down was recorded in approximately 7 hours (Excluding Production and Mastering)”
  • “We used the original guide vocals. No further vocals were recorded or over-dubbed”
  • “There was a point where I thought that the song was too big for me to sing”
  • “Mark Beling not only produced the track but also played the Bass, Lead, Rhythm, Keyboard & Drums!”
  • “Sadly, no whiskey was consumed during the making of this song versus the others we have recorded together”.