Georgio Valentino

With his first release in four years, Florida-native Georgio Valentino steps back into the music scene with Lines of Flight. 

After spending some time in Brussels, Valentino decided to return home to Florida and spend his time working for Folio, Jacksonville’s alternative weekly newspaper. However, Valentino found himself stuck in Greece when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. With all of his instruments back in Florida, Valentino decided to pursue music again with his computer, a mini keyboard, and the collaboration of other musicians. 

“My buddies from all over the place would send me tracks and demos. My friends have been doing all the heavy lifting on this album and I took over the editorial function,” Valentino said. “At Folio, I learned you don’t have to really write the whole magazine. You surround yourself with people you trust, have fun with, and work with them. That’s basically what we did in this instance. The tracks were recorded in Athens, Berlin, Brussels, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, and Melbourne.”

Growing up in West Palm Beach, Valentino found his start in music with various bands in high school, but started to take music seriously in college. He began to tour around the country with his college band and found that other people shared a similar love for the music he enjoyed. 

“It seemed like a breath of fresh air because growing up in West Palm Beach, no one was listening to the same music I was and I just felt so lonely. I knew there were other people out there that liked this stuff,” Valentino said. “I left Florida and moved to Detroit after I graduated and I was able to meet more people who I had things in common with.”

With a ukulele on hand and a mini keyboard, Valentino also sings and writes verse for the album. On the instrumental front, Valentino uses his computer to cut up and mix contributed tracks to create his sound he describes as an “art rock.”

Valentino’s favorite song on Lines of Flight is a cover of “Sleep Alone” by one of his guitar heroes growing up, Rowland S. Howard. 

“I sent the song to different places for friends to do over dubs and then I did the vocals and a little bit of keyboard. I love Rowland Howard so much and it was great to pay tribute to him,” Valentino said.  

Lines of Flight is available to download on digital platforms and on 10” vinyl.