For those with their ears firmly to the ground, the forthcoming debut EP from Sage would be one you’ve been eagerly awaiting for some time.
Having shared her debut single, ‘From Dust’, last month, fans of this Melbourne-based indie singer-songwriter have been looking forward to the release of her Tethered EP on February 27th.
With raw emotion and visceral beauty strewn throughout her work, Sage’s music is a rare breed that captures your attention from the very outset and refuses to let go, drawing you in with its stunning compositional skills and genuine delivery.
To celebrate the release of her forthcoming EP, we had a chat to Sage to learn more about her music, what makes her tick, and what’s on the cards for the future.
Check out ‘From Dust’ by Sage:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnJWoA784ds
How did your artist name come about?
My mother gave it to me! It’s an old family name that was passed down after a few generations. I’ve always been pretty proud of having a unique name; it suits me, and luckily also really suits the music I make.
How would you describe your music to your grandma?
It’s pretty, folky, pop music with cello, and I sing at the same time. I think you’d like it. They’re mostly songs about my life, love songs, or songs about nature and travelling. Sometimes when I’m singing ‘From Dust’, I imagine I’m singing about you and Grandad.
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Tell us about a few of your tracks; their titles and what they’re about?
‘From Dust’ has had a lot of attention being the first single off the EP, so I’ll do a quick shout out to some of the other songs on there to get you excited for their release on Feb 27th!
‘All My Lost Loves’ is the third track on the EP. I’ve only ever had one serious relationship with the guy I’m engaged to now, and everything else before then was just a near miss. It was always the same old story over and over again; I thought they were nice, I thought they were interested, then they backed out, and we both had to move on like nothing ever happened.
This song is me casually saying “Oh well, I guess it didn’t work out this time. Farewell!” A moodier version of Ariana Grande’s ‘thank u, next’, perhaps?
‘Wanderlust’ is the last song on the EP and is bound to instantly put a smile on your face. I wrote this song 10 years ago after I’d been travelling Europe and came home full of wonderful adventuring travel vibes. It’s a song about chasing the unknown and getting out of your comfort zone. The glockenspiel makes it sound like the holiday version of Jonsi’s ‘Go Do’ and I’m totally into that!
What do you love about your hometown?
I just got back from five weeks in Canada and the US, and the first thing that hit me about getting back to the Mornington Peninsula was the delicious and fragrant air, and the bird sounds. Whenever I have a day off, I take myself down to Main St and give myself a mini holiday.
I like to check out my favourite book store, get some ice cream, and walk along the pier. For someone who finds it hard to turn their brain off, this is the perfect place to live.
Career highlight so far?
In December last year I was flown up to Brisbane to play a set in the Dots+Loops Festival as one of their emerging artists. I took Briar String Quartet and music producer Flowerhead with me, and we had the most fun playing these crazy epic folktronica remixes of my songs.
I had a floor-length glitter dress made for the show, and DIY’d these beautiful moving wallpaper projections to match each song. Good times, good vibes, good people!
Fave non-music hobby?
Baking. I just made a dark, delicate, crumbly chocolate cake today so my house smells amazing right now! I love being creative with flavours and presentation, then getting to eat it afterwards is just a bonus. I even applied for the Great Australian Bake-Off a couple of years ago.
What’s on your dream rider?
Bastille, The 1975, The Rocket Summer, Ellie Goulding, & Vera Blue. The more the merrier!
Dream music collaboration?
I’m so keen to sing one of those beautiful folksy male/female love song duets. There are so many dreamy voices out there that make me swoon like Dan Smith, Dallas Green, and Matt Corby. Second to that I’d love to go further down the folktronica path so teaming up with a killer producer would be the dream!
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
That is so scary to think about! I honestly have no idea, so I’ll just spin the best case scenario at you. In 10 years I’ll have put out a steady stream of music, be living happily with my husband cooking up a storm every night, finally have a cute little dachshund and maybe some kids.
I don’t know if I’ll even be living in Australia by that point, but I sure hope that all of the people who are important in my life now and still a huge part of it then. I’ve always planned my life out way too far in advance and seen it turn into something else completely so I’m happy to just go with the flow this time.
What’s your go-to karaoke song?
It’s gotta be something from the ’90s or early 2000s like ‘Sk8er Boi’ by Avril Lavigne. Isn’t that everyone’s go-to? Any of The Backstreet Boys’ greatest hits will do the trick, too.
What’s on the cards for the future?
A lot is changing this year! I’m getting married in a couple of months, and then moving into a new place which needs a bit of fixing up. When I was in Canada recently I wrote a lot of new music so I hope to start working on that to get it release ready.
Travel is always on the cards; there are so many places left on my checklist that I want to see for the first time or see again, and the next place I’m off to is Bali.
