The August 2026 release of SHAPES marks Matteo Lovik’s first solo release since the TATATEO EP, a duet-project with his late partner. SHAPES, his indie-folk record, was written across a decade marked by love, loss, grief, and renewal, crafted bit by bit, an artist's observations from inside a life well lived.

SHAPES has been compared to the poetry and dark humor of Leonard Cohen, the raw emotionality of early Bon Iver, in a sonic landscape that fans of Big Thief will appreciate. This intimate alt-folk record features thoughtful melodies and rich vocal harmonies that support Lovik’s unguarded poetic storytelling. 

The result is a collection that feels deeply human, vulnerable without spectacle and reflective without losing its sense of humor— grounded in the belief that raw authenticity might still save us from becoming strangers to ourselves and each other. These songs aren’t trying to be perfect. They’re trying to tell the truth of a humble man's scrapped knees healing and broken heart mending.

Raised barefoot in the rural farmland of California’s Central Valley, amongst orange blossoms and familial chaos, Lovik approaches songwriting as a form of emotional excavation– a way of dancing with shadows and wrestling with the parts of himself that are awkward, contradictory, ugly, and unfinished. His songs peel back layers of shame, nostalgia, longing and inherited wounds in an attempt to uncover something real beneath them.

The album was brought to life at 25th St Recording in Oakland, CA with the help of producer, Jeff Kolhede, and band featuring Sage Lind on keys and harmonies, Joel Mandala on electric guitar, Joshua James Jackson on bass, Jamie Schlessinger on cello and Cody Rhodes on drums.

Lovik has spent the past decade as an artist, wanderer, outdoor guide, carpenter and arborist. He’s the lead guitarist for the Oakland-based indie-rock band, Mount Saint Elias, recording multiple original releases and performing at venues throughout California such as Bottom of the Hill and Cafe DuNord.