Photo credit: Shervin Lainez
JUNO and SOCAN Award winning electro-pop artist Dragonette returns with another infectious power-pop anthem ‘Twennies’, the title track to her upcoming new album released through BMG.
‘Twennies’ is the second release for Dragonette (the professional moniker for highly sought-after songwriter Martina Sorbara) fresh of the back of her recent single ‘New Suit and a newly signed global recordings agreement with BMG earlier this summer. It is the first new label partnership for Sorbara in over a decade.
‘Twennies’ is the first radio single for the album. Martina says: “I have a lot of nostalgia for earlier times, life without the frantic energy of what the digital/social media age has wrought. But I also have a genuine excitement about current and future knowledge/progress/technical and scientific discoveries. ‘Twennies’ is the internal collision of those two polarities.”
What’s your story as an artist?
I feel like I am a maker more than anything. For me, bringing things into being that didn’t exist before is my battery power. In fact, when I’m not making something, I’m fantasizing about making something. Building something, knitting something, drawing something, writing something…. I love the act of creating a thing, seeing it exist in the world and wondering how long it will be around for…. I have a collection of dolls I made and I love looking at them wondering where and when in the world they will see their last days. It’s the same for music. I make a thing that didn’t previously exist. And here it is now…. Forever or not forever…
What do you want your music to communicate?
Authentic feelings and experiences that people can relate to. It doesn’t even have to be a story or a message or anything concrete. It can be a lyrical texture… but I want it to permeate through the words and become just feeling.
What are some sources of inspiration for your storytelling?
I like to find the unique angle of a familiar story. Something so relatable that maybe hasn’t been put in words before or hasn’t been described that way before. I don’t think my experience of being alive is a million miles away from anyone else’s, but I think the angles I look at my life from are unique to me and my job is to try to pluck out the words to describe my particular view.
Who is an artist that you look up to more than others today?
Oh god. There are too many. Joni Mitchell, Kate Bush, Bjork. BJORK! Nick Lowe. Daft Punk, Peter Gabriel. Artists who let their lives lead them through endless new worlds instead of letting the world keep them where it wants.
What’s the record or artist that made you realize you wanted to be an artist?
Sinead O’Connor and Ani Difranco; powerful women singing outside of the lines…
Tell us about your latest release ‘Twennies’ and how it came about?
TWENNIES started with a writing trip to LA and it was week two of a new stranger everyday and I was burnt out and creatively tapped. When I got to the session that day with a new stranger, Dan Farber, my energy was like “don’t make me write a song” so we just hung out and talked. Had such a fun and hilarious time that we just sort of accidentally started writing. The song we wrote that day was great and I think we both knew that we had a lot more creating to do together. So when I was sort of grounded in Toronto cause I had a kid and didn’t know how to leave for weeks at a time I flew Dan to Toronto. We shut ourselves into my little basement studio and just resumed the hilarious and crystal clear creative connection from before. I don’t even know that I was even trying to make an album. But an album emerged. I see this collection of songs like a little miniseries, telling the story of that 6 yr chunk of time between Royal Blues and now.
Its a drama but a lighthearted one.
