Your new single FLOWERS TO MY DOOR // SWORD OF SACRIFICE hits with a mix of heartbreak, fury and surrender. What sparked the first line or image that set this song in motion?
The first line of this track is exploring an alternate reality, questioning and wondering if things had gone a different way would the outcome have changed, or whether it actually was always destined to be the way it is.
You’ve described writing this song as an act of emotional release. What moment in your life made these lyrics arrive with so much urgency?
I was in the middle of a serious relationship rupture. I was feeling so much grief and anger spiced with a particular flavour of empowerment, because this was not the first time me and this person had gone through something like this, but I knew it would be the last.
The production moves from intimate vocals and sparse guitar into a darker, pulsing electronic world. How did you approach that shift so it reflected the emotional rupture you were working through?
In the chorus when that first kick drum comes in, that’s when the song starts having a feeling of movement and from there a lot of possibilities opened up. When I’m producing my own tracks, I rarely have an idea of what it’s going to be before I’m in the studio. I try to get out of the way as much as possible and listen to what the song is asking of me. How does it want to be brought to life? I believe songs really do have a life of their own and it’s my job as a producer to listen with an open mind and with open ears. The feeling of the song was already there and I just created the textures and movements that reflected that feeling.
The drum and bass breakdown is such a bold turn. What made you decide that this song needed that jolt, and what were you trying to express in that moment?
This was a decision that honestly surprised me. When I first made the track, that section was not fully going into a drum and bass territory, it was only alluding to it and honestly I was kind of scared to fully go there. But when I took this track to Callum Edwards who helped me finish it off, he said that it’s definitely asking to be a drum and bass breakdown and I think I just needed that affirmation to go there. This is such a big moment in the song both musically and lyrically where I’m literally yelling (in some of the vocal tracks) “That’s what I needed”, and it’s here that all the anger, grief and sadness culminate, creating the pinnacle of the song.
You took bigger risks as a producer on this single, working between your rural home studio and Sing Sing in Melbourne. What did stepping deeper into production allow you to say that you couldn’t before?
It has been and continues to be such a big journey learning the art of production and I still feel like I’ve only really scratched the surface. It’s been so empowering to be self-sufficient in making my own music and has really given me the permission to carve out a new sound for myself that previously was not possible. If someone had told me a couple of years ago that I would be releasing a self-produced single with a drum and bass breakdown in it, I would not have believed them. But here we are.
Making my own music has not only helped give my songs the life they have been asking for, but also has changed the way I write music. Some of the songs on my upcoming album just wouldn’t have been written if I didn’t know how to use Ableton. That DAW has literally changed my life. It’s also been such a joy to bring my projects to Callum Edwards who is an actual wizard. He has really affirmed and helped bring my ideas to life.
The theme of sacrifice runs through the entire track. While you were writing, what did “the sword of sacrifice” come to represent for you personally?
The act of choice making is something that I have been contemplating for many years now and I have come to my own understanding about what it actually means to choose. To me, “the sword of sacrifice” represents discernment. The blade that cuts away anything that is no longer serving or aligned and creates a clear pathway for you to walk down. That pathway can only appear when you are fully inhabiting a choice. Every choice we make, no matter how great or small, requires some kind of sacrifice, which is why it can be so difficult to choose.
I think in this modern western/capitalist world we are sold this idea that we can have it all, do it all, and that more is more. I think it’s this mindset that creates a lot of confusion. The reason I have been in such deep contemplation about this topic is because I myself have found it extremely difficult to make clear choices and found that being in indecision for long periods of time amounts to a lot of stagnancy. To choose wholeheartedly is to live, and I want to live fully. Therefore I have to live and die by the sword of sacrifice.
You often pull from folk sensibilities, but this single leans heavily into trip-hop and experimental electronic textures. What pushed you toward that sonic evolution?
As I said in the previous question, having the agency over creating my own sound through production has really allowed me to expand what is possible for my songs. I started out as a folk singer-songwriter but have never wanted to pigeonhole myself into any particular genre. The trip-hop and electronic textures were resonating at the time so I just trusted what I was being gravitated to. I think a big part of the creative process for me is to trust my own ear and go by the rule: if it sounds good, it is good.
You’ve spent years moving through collectives, bands, solo work, and global travel. How did all those creative chapters shape the artist who made this song?
Oh my goodness, all of these things have shaped me so much. I have been so privileged in my life to connect with people and places in Australia and all around the world. Through each of these chapters I’ve learnt many things, found endless inspiration, and faced many challenges, which has led to where I am as an artist now. Someone who trusts themselves more than ever, is willing to take more risks, is more process-than-outcome driven, and someone who feels they genuinely have something to offer.
This single is the gateway into your upcoming album FLOWER TONE SLAYER. What does this release reveal about the emotional and sonic territory you’re heading into next?
There’s a definite ’90s trip-hop thread woven throughout this body of work, with some songs leaning toward R&B and other songs leaning back into my folk foundations, all of which speak from my inner landscape. Most of the music I make is born from emotional waters and songs are written out of necessity to process my emotions, and this album is no different. Expect songs of love, loss, belonging, and taking power back.
The repeated question “Was it worth it?” hits like a wound and a challenge at the same time. Looking back now, has your answer changed since the day you wrote it?
Ooft, a wound and a challenge. Love that. The whole song is crafted around exploring that question and at the time of writing it, the answer was not yet clear to me. But now, if I was to ask that same question — was it worth it? Absolutely. It was all worth it. For one, I got a great song out of it. But more importantly, it was through the experience of this relationship rupture that I was able to return to myself in a way that I never had before. I was able to embody my own self-worth in a way that was so powerful it created a new trajectory for my life that I would not trade for anything. It was 100% worth it.
