Angelo De Augustine Releases New Single “Empty Shell” + Short Film ‘Can I Come Back to Earth?,’ Out Now

“Empty Shell” is the second single and opening track from Angelo De Augustine’s forthcoming album, Angel in Plainclothes, releasing on April 24, 2026. “It was the first song written of the batch that would make up the album,” says De Augustine. “I don’t know how to talk about a song like this in a way that wouldn’t cheapen the experience of listening to it. You have to listen to understand.”

A haunting elegy, the track features Angelo on vocals/harmonies, acoustic guitar, with Oliver Hill on string arrangement (violin, viola,) and showcases Angelo’s gift for pairing powerful melodies with devastating lyrical precision: “Bury the needle past marrow and bone / Relax into meadows ‘neath stars dead and gone / To cope with your loss and pay off the cost”

Stream “Empty Shell”

With his new album Angel in Plainclothes, Angelo De Augustine shares a multi-year-long journey of healing and renewal. After collapsing and being hospitalized with an undiagnosed illness in early 2022, the Southern California-based singer/songwriter endured an arduous journey of re-learning how to walk, talk, see, hear, play music, and sing again; abilities most people take for granted. Once he was able to return to writing and recording, De Augustine welcomed others into his creative process for the first time in years. The end result is a reverent album. His most inspired and powerful work yet.

Pre-Order / Pre-Save ‘Angel in Plainclothes’

Can I Come Back to Earth? – featuring Angelo De Augustine, directed by Ramez Silyan.

This short film is a companion piece to Angelo De Augustine’s fifth album, Angel in Plainclothes, releasing on April 24,2026, and includes a live recording of “Empty Shell” from the album, alongside an original score recorded and produced by Angelo.

“I wanted to make a document of where I am now and an acknowledgement of the years of suffering I have endured. In my life I oscillate between guarding privacy and wanting to share things I have made. This little film feels like the right sized window–small enough for a glance, but large enough to leave behind, showing that at one time I existed on the earth.” – Angelo De Augustine