Twitch streamed mixing sessions and a new single…Aaron Garcia talks ‘Hit Low’

The single cover of Pillbook’s single “Hit Low” shows Aaron Garcia sitting on an old stairway within the Natick Mall.

Fans of Aaron Garcia’s ever evolving psychedelic alt pop project, Pillbook, will get their first taste of his debut album, El Primer Paso, with the Dec. 18 release of the single “Hit Low.”

The decision to lead his new project with this song, though, was not Garcia’s alone. Rather, it came via a remote community of Twitch viewers who watched the 21-year-old bassist-turned-producer grind through weeks of final mixing sessions.

“From the feedback I’ve gotten, [Twitch viewers] were, like, ‘This has to be the single,’” Garcia explained in a recent interview. 

El Primer Paso marks Garcia’s long awaited musical marriage of his rock/grunge roots with the Latin music that serenaded his childhood. This record is softer than Boyband, his first EP as Pillbook, while still driving harder than the series of “Quarantine Session” singles he released this past summer to local acclaim.

One friend who recently listened to his masters, Garcia said, described the new sound as a “heavy Maroon 5.”  

He does not see the link. But he admits the style is a new one.

This debut single, “Hit Low,” specifically incorporates syncopated percussive guitar strums on top of layered bongos and vintage sounding drums. There are fingerpicked guitars buried in the mix and almost rapped, hip hop vocals topping it all off. 

“It’s freaking weird to finally let people listen to it,” Garcia said.  

Indeed, a handful of people have heard private final masters of these new songs, including “Hit Low.” Still more, though, actually saw this whole process come together in real time through a series of Twitch streams.

Garcia wholeheartedly embraced live streamed mixing sessions, this fall, as he shepherded his more than two-year-old music project towards its finish line.

“I kind of can scope out what my audience likes in music in real time,” he said of his rationale. “I can bounce back and forth with human reaction to sound in real time.”

Frequently, Garcia slogged through late nights with messages chiming in through Twitch’s live chat function. Garcia connected with a handful of dedicated followers directly. 

Now, one familiar voice bouncing back input on the developing mixes has actually ended up helping Garcia shoot the cover photo for “Hit Low.” 

In that photo, Garcia rests staring deadpan at the camera. He holds a cigarette in a hand rested gently against his bleach blond hair. He sits on stairs that cry drips of rust colored grime over neon green paint. 

A final subtle nod to his Twitch fans, a halo of hand drawn stars hangs above Garcia’s head. 

Added in photo editing, that star illustration has long been Garcia’s waiting room screen on Twitch, shown to viewers to log on before a Pillbook stream actually goes live.

Stars above Aaron Garcia’s head in his “Hit Low” single cover offer a subtle nod to Garcia’s Twitch stream viewers.

A few weeks shy of his single release, Garcia is reintroducing Pillbook to the world with a song he hopes can get major play. 

“I hope that the rock side of Spotify appreciates it,” he said. “I hope it gets picked up at some point.”

Ultimately, still, Garcia has just pulled back his curtain, spilling out his musical process for a handful of dedicated fans before now turning over his final product to the world.

“I’ll put it out there and push it as much as possible,” he said. “Whatever happens, happens.”

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“Hit Low” is the debut single off the debut full length Pillbook album El Primer Paso. It hits streaming services on Dec. 18 and is available for pre-save today!