Sometimes a heart can be so broken that the pain bleeds out through the cracks to poison the world around you. That level of grief and betrayal turns the things you once saw through rose tinted lenses into something that now makes you see red. Places that once held happy memories become bitter reminders of what’s been lost. Pain that deep takes a long time to heal, even without constant salt in the wound, so sometimes the best course is to leave in search of a fresh start and never look back. ‘Leaving You With Less’ sees Mikhail Laxton channel that sorrow into something beautiful. Taken from his eponymous debut album, this single is paired wonderfully with a video that captures the despair and anger in a truly cinematic fashion. Mikhail’s vocals reside at the improbable perfect intersect between gritty earthiness, and the warmest, smoothest soul – elevated to even greater heights thanks to the track’s soaring harmonies. The guitar work curves and winds like a country road, and whenever you feel like you’ve heard all it has to offer it just keeps pulling you along. It’s like that urge to keep chasing the horizon as long as you can, just to be sure the past is no longer in your rear view mirror.