Hella Love, the Hardly Art debut from Marinero, is an album about closing a chapter. It's Jess Sylvester's grand farewell, and love letter to his hometown and the place he grew up, The San Francisco Bay Area, before relocating to Los Angeles after finishing his debut release. Using the moniker Marinero (which means "sailor" in Spanish), Jess Sylvester was drawn to this name as a means to honor his parent's stories - his father, a sailor, and mother, a Mexican-American who grew up in San Francisco. This record blends many worlds from beginning to end, and as you go deeper it hits harder. It's his goodbye to The Bay. Pulling sonic influences from classic Latin American groups and international composers from the 60's & 70's: Los Terricolas, Ennio Morricone, Esquivel, Carole King and, Serge Gainsbourg Hella Love finds Sylvester fusing classical arrangements with a variety of different genres, evoking a sonic nostalgia blended with other contemporary artists like Chicano Batman, Connan Mockasin, and Chris Cohen. The album was written, played, and produced by Jess Sylvester with help from Bay Area engineer Jason Kick (Mild High Club's Skiptracing) at Tunnel Vision and Santo Recording in Oakland, California. On the standout single "Nuestra Victoria," Sylvester shares "It's my way of talking about gentrification in SF, or specifically the Mission where my mom and family grew up. The song is about a bakery, or panaderia called La Victoria, and was a place where my mother and tias went growing up, a place I also went to that is no longer there." It was one of the oldest Mexican-American businesses in SF and I wanted to honor it". "Through the Fog" highlights Sylvester's exploration of his influences from the Tropicalia movement, weaving bossa rhythms with lush percussion and orchestration. Using SF's infamous fog as a metaphor for "tough times", Sylvester expands that it is a dedication to his friends and family who have helped him get through substance abuse issues, heartbreak, and other painful experiences. "There are a few easter eggs in the lyrics for Bay Area folks or people who have followed my music in the past but it's mostly about getting through something difficult with the love and support from the homies and fam." The album's title track, "Hella Love," summarizes both of his parent's stories of how they ended up in the bay. The first verse is about his father's voyage out west as a sailor during the late '60s while the second verse follows his mother's experience moving to The Mission District when she was a young girl. It's difficult to classify or generalize about Marinero's music or identity. To him, it's important to let his music do the talking. "I'm Chicanx, a bay native, biracial, and I've luckily gotten to travel and spend time in Mexico and I feel like my personality and specific musical tastes come through on this album. More than these generalizations we often make, I'm just a human who can both fear and love, and I'm just hoping to connect with others to share optimism and experience joy and laughter, even if for a moment." Lean your ear to the ground because Jess Sylvester has been many things and will continue to share his journey. It is clear this gifted creator has more to say. -Luz Elena Mendoza
Release date:
May 21, 2021
Label:
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Turntables - Top Picks
A selection of reliable record players you can buy today, for every budget
-
Nagaoka MP-110H Cartridge
Features a high-quality elliptical stylus that provides excellent tracking and minimizes distortion, delivering a detailed sound reproduction with an output voltage of 5.0 mV
-
Nobsound Little Bear T7 Tube Preamp
Delivers rich, warm audio through its high-quality vacuum tubes, featuring multiple inputs and adjustable gain
-
Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO
Featuring a one-piece carbon fiber tonearm, precision-tuned motor, and a heavy steel platter with TPE damping, it ensures superior stability and sound quality.
-
Audioengine A2 Plus
Precision-engineered 2.75-inch woofers and a 0.75-inch silk dome tweeter, featuring built-in DAC and Bluetooth connectivity for seamless integration.
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
John Fogerty Legacy: the Creedence Clearwater Revival years [2xLP]
Concord Records
August 22, 2025 -
Bailey Zimmerman Different Night Same Rodeo (Amazon Exclusive) [2xLP]
Warner Nashville, Atlantic Records
August 8, 2025 -
Simple Minds Once Upon A Time (Ruby Red)
A&M
October 17, 2025 -
Mappe Of Afterglades
Paper Bag Records
September 19, 2025 -
Scorpions From The First Sting [2xLP]
Bmg
September 26, 2025 -
The Subways When I'm With You [2xLP]
Cooking Vinyl
October 17, 2025 -
Motorhead NO Sleep 'Til Hammersmith (50Th Anniversary; Yellow/Black; Half-Speed)
Bmg
August 29, 2025 -
Joviale Mount Crystal (Blue)
Ghostly Int'l
September 12, 2025 -
Amorphis Borderland [2xLP]
Reigning Phoenix Music America, LLC
September 26, 2025 -
John Maus Later Than You Think
Young
September 26, 2025 -
Jonathan Groff & Original Broadway Cast of Just In Time Just In Time
Atlantic
October 24, 2025 -
Nine Inch Nails TRON: Ares Soundtrack [2xLP]
The Null Corporation/Interscope
September 19, 2025 -
Restraining Order Future Fortune
Blue Grape Music
September 26, 2025 -
Sabrina Carpenter Man's Best Friend (Translucent Light Brown; Amazon Exclusive)
Island
August 29, 2025