She helped shape Australian rock history as the voice of The Superjesus, then changed her image again on her acoustic solo turn, but Sarah McLeod wasn’t satisfied. After a hiatus and a change of scenery, the chameleon of Aussie music is back. And this time, she’s ready to set the dance floor on fire!

Lost In Suburbia: You’re about to release your album Madness. Madness is set to be filled with thumping club tunes. Where did the inspiration to reinvent yourself as a dance/electro artist come from? Has this been something in the pipe line for a long time?

Sarah McLeod: Madness isn’t a club record. It’s a genre mash up of electronic, dubstep, indie rock,  transient insanity.  The album is designed to be listened through from beginning to end and the last song is very special.  I have been influenced by so much different music in the last few years and my taste has really evolved. Learning how to program and produce on my lap top has been a big part of this transition too. Once you are armed with different tools, making different music is a natural progression. I feel I had done my dash writing on guitar.  I was feeling stale and needed to switch it up.

Every time I tried to put guitar in it sounded quite harsh, so I started effecting the guitars so they sounded like synths, and eventually I stopped recording guitars entirely.

LIS: Does it feel almost like a debut album again changing music styles so radically?

SM: It does feel like a debut album yeah. It’s been so long since my last album and this is just nothing like it at all. I like that though, it feels fresh and exciting to me

LIS: What has your established fan base reaction been like?

SM: So far everyone’s been really supportive, barr one or two people!

LIS: You’ve spent a lot of time overseas recently. Where did you find the most creatively stimulating?

SM: I found New York to be the most creatively stimulating (visually speaking) but London musically speaking. London was great for discovering new hubs of music and seeing cool new acts. My agent used to drag me out to clubs to see everybody that came through so I really experienced a lot in this time. New York I loved for all the strange and wonderful people that were everywhere and accepted for who they are. Where I lived in Soho there were freaks and fashionistas, artists and buskers, strutters and posers, trannies, hippies and homies. It was awesome, every time I went outside I was fascinated, and it all moves to the rhythm of the underground subways.

LIS: Who would your ultimate collaboration be with?

SM: I would like to write a pop song with Dr Luke and Max Martin, not for me but for someone else.  For a flat out pop star, an absolute unashamed unforgettable pop song.

LIS: After evolving your sound so drastically, do you think you would ever go back to rock or acoustic pop?

SM: Never say never, perhaps I would do an acoustic album again someday as I really enjoyed this phase.

LIS: You mentioned that you wrote close to 60 songs before putting together this album, will any of these extra tracks be released? B-sides or EPs?

SM: Some of these songs will be re vamped into my new style, but if history is anything to go by, re vamped means completely re written, so no probably not! It’s all a learning curve. You gotta kiss a lot of frogs ya know!

LIS: After Madness is released later this year, what’s next? Tour plans? Or are you planning to throw another musical curve ball – A Spanish album perhaps?

SM: Ha ha, when I was in Spain I went to watch these Spanish dancers at this club and I found the rhythm of their feet fascinating. I actually pulled out my Dictaphone and recorded it and then tried to insert it in one of my songs, but it sounded shit so no.  However, ‘Madness’ being one part of a three part trilogy, will keep me writing , recording, releasing and touring all year and next year.

LIS: And finally, what’s the greatest piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

SM: “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration”  Thomas Edison, of course he didn’t actually give that to me personally, my mummy did But it has taught me a lot, I don’t think people understand how much work goes into creating art. Which is why it’s total bullshit when people tear it apart so easily.  Its a torturous game with rewards that are few and far between. But I live for it.

Madness is out October, with Double R in stores now!

Check out Sarah’s new single Double R here:

And a real cheeky little cover of Bruce Springsteen’s Dancing In The Dark here:

So what do you think of Sarah’s new direction?

This entry was posted on August 24, 2010 at 6:35 pm and is filed under Australian Artists, Interview, New releases, News with tags Sarah McLeod, Superjesus. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.