I wrote "I’m Gonna Be" more than a decade ago. It was one of my first songs and an honest account of my life at the time; I was in my early twenties, feeling incredibly lonely, confronted with homophobia in my home country and desperate for a change. This song is about struggling with depression, low self-esteem and loneliness but there's also some hope.

Genre-wise, it's a chamber pop, influenced by music of artists such as Anthony and the Johnsons, Rufus Wainwright, Ludovico Einaudi and Grzegorz Turnau.  I’ve worked with brilliant local musicians, including producer and guitarist Luke Cawthra (Beth Porter, Nuala Honan), drummer Matt Jones (Elles Bailey), bass player Andy Lowe (Rodriguez), strings arranger Jools Scott (The Cold Web), players from the Bath-based string quartet Red Carousel (Peter Gabriel) and others. The cover art is by the Columbian illustrator Ximena Arias.

I'm Gonna Be

This is a radio version of a single released on 4th February 2022. 

I wrote "I’m Gonna Be" more than a decade ago. It was one of my first songs and an honest account of my life at the time; I was in my early twenties, feeling incredibly lonely, confronted with homophobia in my home country and desperate for a change. This song is about struggling with depression, low self-esteem and loneliness but there's also some hope.

Genre-wise, it's a merge of chamber pop and indie folk, influenced by music of artists such as Anthony and the Johnsons, Rufus Wainwright, Ludovico Einaudi and Grzegorz Turnau.  I’ve worked with brilliant local musicians, including producer and guitarist Luke Cawthra (Beth Porter), drummer Matt Jones (Elles Bailey), bass player Andy Lowe (Rodriguez), strings arranger Jools Scott (The Cold Web), players from the Bath-based string quartet Red Carousel (Peter Gabriel) and others. 

The cover art is by the Columbian illustrator Ximena Arias.

I'm Gonna Be (Radio Version)

"Anything" is the second of my debut singles produced by Luke Cawthra and recorded in autumn 2021. 

Written by Łukasz Iskierka
Produced, Recorded, Arranged and Mixed by Luke Cawthra
Piano and Vocal: Łukasz Iskierka
Drums and Percussion: Matt Jones
Double Bass: Andy Lowe
Guitars: Luke Cawthra
Strings Arranged by Jools Scott
Cello: Jo Silverston
Viola: Emma Hooper
Violin: Sue Lord and Ian Vorley
Background Vocals: Belinda Day, Eliza Fyfe and Łukasz Iskierka

Recorded in 2021 at Alma Vale Studios, Bristol
Mastered by Pete Maher, London

Artwork by Łukasz Iskierka

Anything

Anything (Single Version)

My third single released on 10th June 2022.

LYRICS:

I want to take your pain and break it in half
This way, it will be easier to carry around
Oh I can tell you're hiding that crack in your heart
Your eyes, they are so pretty, they cannot lie

Well you can bury it and leave it behind
But with time it will grow tall and cast its shadow on our home
We are together on your boat and I can help you to row
'Cause when you're stuck, my darling, my life's on hold

Remember when you told me once there are riddles you can't solve
Those are stories just too old, you have long since shut that door oh-oh

You've learnt to build your walls, you make them really high
Sometimes it's hard to tell them from your lovely smiles
I've been around for you my friend and I can read you quite well
But there are days, like this one, that I am lost

Remember when you told me once there are riddles you can't solve
Those are stories just too old, you have long since shut that door
But will you let me know when it all gets too hard, when you can't cope alone?
Please don't say you're doing fine, when you life is crumbling down

Ah-ah let it all out, let it all out
Ah-ah let it all out, let it all out
Ooh-ooh let it all out, let it all out
Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh


CREDITS:

Written by Łukasz Iskierka
Produced, Recorded, Arranged and Mixed by Luke Cawthra
Piano and Vocal: Łukasz Iskierka
Drums and Percussion: Matt Jones
Bass and Hammond Organs: Andy Lowe
Guitar: Luke Cawthra
Strings Arranged by Jools Scott
Cello: Jo Silverston
Viola: Emma Hooper
Violin: Sue Lord and Ian Vorley
Background Vocals: Belinda Day, Eliza Fyfe and Łukasz Iskierka

Recorded in 2021 at Alma Vale Studios, Bristol
Mastered by Pete Maher, London

Artwork photo by Marcus Maschwitz

The Riddle

Hi! I’m Luke (in Polish Łukasz) and I write and sing my songs. I invite you to explore my music and to find out more about the man who makes it.

I would describe my music as indie folk pop, however, feel free to name it the way you prefer. The bottom line is my influences range from folk to chamber pop to minimalist music to Polish tradition of sung poetry and they don’t stop there. I grew up listening to hundreds of film scores and that too shaped my music taste. There are characteristic qualities to my songwriting, especially my fondness of rich, emotive harmonies and memorable melodies – my songwriting process usually begins with a vocal line that pops into my head and then I’m looking for the right harmonies to weave the melody into. The lyrics come last, and they are my intuitive response to the emotions I experience when playing (and humming) the song again and again.  

In February, I released my first single, which met with a warm reception from my listeners and indie blogs – Right Chord Music wrote “Luke Spark has put his all into ‘I’m Gonna Be’ with his voice clear and decisive, his lyrics fluttering from the page into the ears of whoever chooses to listen.” Speaking of the lyrics, I wanted to tell a story from my early adulthood; the struggles I faced as a young LGBT+ person living in Poland, depression that followed and the hope that guided me through that difficult time.

I don’t come from a family of musicians, but I’ve always had ear for music: when I was ten, I topped the kids chart of my hometown radio for many weeks singing covers of all-time Polish favourites. I lacked nurturing environment at the time, and my flair for music had to wait for another ten years to be rediscovered. All it took was falling in love for the first time and in a one-sided way. It was then that I discovered singers-songwriters who expressed the whole new universe of emotions I was experiencing – the pain, vulnerability, and profound sadness, which, surprisingly, made me feel alive. Anthony and the Johnsons and his ’I Am a Bird Now’ opened my mind, my heart, and my ears to a different quality in music – acoustic, beautifully simple in arrangements and authentic more than anything else I’d ever heard before. Around that time, I also discovered Bruce Springsteen, Rufus Wainwright and Polish sung poetry classics – all resonating with the new, evolved version of myself. I started playing the piano and working on covers of my beloved songs – it was magical and felt like flying.

Then came prosaic life – never ending job search in a crisis-stricken economy, facing intolerance in everyday situations and a family conflict. In 2013, to try my luck elsewhere, I moved to the UK and started building my life from scratch. Slowly (and painfully) I worked my way through anxiety and depression, to find the new sense of purpose in songwriting. As a self-taught musician, I practiced with one goal in my mind – I wanted to record my songs to get my story heard. In 2021 I started looking for a local recording studio with a grand piano and that’s how I heard about Bristol-based Alma Vale Studios, run by a producer and guitarist Luke Cawthra. It was his previous producer credit on ‘When the Lights are Bright’ by Marshes (ft. Beth Porter) – a charmingly acoustic chamber pop album – that convinced me to collaborate with Luke. The results of our work are now available for you all to listen and (hopefully) enjoy.

Luke Spark

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