Sorcha Richardson's debut album is on its way, and "Honey," the latest single from the album, is a powerful snapshot of a beautiful, exacting voice.
The Irish singer-songwriter's new single is the second release from her debut,
First Prize Bravery, out November 1st. The new single follows in the foot steps of "Don't Talk About It," released early this summer. Richardson has been making music for nearly a decade, and she's perfected a delicate tightrope walk between hard-edged irony and gentle emotionality in her songwriting. But "Honey" arrives in the fallout of heartbreak, with Richardson's liquid vocals and soft piano spelling out the disorienting feeling of love leaving you behind. It's a change of pace from her usual casual cynicism, but a welcoming introduction to her first album, the culmination of years of work.
Popdust got the chance to catch up with Richardson, discussing her songwriting approach and how her music's grown with her.
Your debut album, First Prize Bravery, is coming out in November, and you've been making music at least since 2012. What's that journey been like for you? How has it been to grow into different versions of yourself, as an artist?
It feels like there's been many stages to it all, but I'm very glad I took my time in making an album and did things at my own pace. At the very beginning, I was just making demos in my bedroom on GarageBand. Once I started letting other people into the process, it made me realize how much more was possible, how much I could learn from other musicians, and how much more fun it could be.
I could have put out an album way sooner, but I was enjoying the process of just making music to make it, without too many rules. It feels like things have kind of come full circle in a weird way. Nearly every song on the album began as demo I made by myself in my bedroom, and everything is very guitar driven, like the very first songs I wrote, just with a lot more confidence now than I had back then.
What's the significance, to you, of the album's title? How did you land there?
It comes from the title of one of the songs on the album. I sometimes have a habit of giving my demos two alternative titles. So this one was originally called "1st Prize/Bravery," and then over time it became
First Prize Bravery. I don't want to decode it entirely, because I think it's important for people to attach their own meaning to it. But at a very basic level, I think I realized as I got older that one of the greatest achievements you can have in life is just to build up the courage to face your own demons. I think the biggest battles we have to face in life are with ourselves. That is definitely true for me. So that title has a lot to do with that. Having the courage to be honest with yourself. Acknowledging what an achievement it is just to do that.
When did it become clear to you that you were ready for a full length album? Was it a matter of having the right material, or was it just about the right time?
I think some time toward the end of 2017 I just decided that I wanted to make an album. I was back in Dublin after living in New York for a few years, and I spent about four months playing shows around Ireland with my band. Towards the end of that run of shows, it just started to become really clear to me what kind of album I wanted to make. And as soon as I said to myself, "I'm gonna make an album," it completely changed the way that I was writing, and I felt much more excited about the songs I was writing. I guess there's a different freedom in making an album, than there is in releasing singles. You can write songs that might never work as singles but can live as a part of a bigger world on a record.
Heartbreak is nothing new for you, but there's a lot of pain in "Honey," from its production to your lyrics; it sounds like it's pulling from somewhere deep within you. How did it end up sounding the way it does?
I guess I do have a lot of sad songs. "Honey" was the first song I wrote after I decided I was going to make an album. I wrote it at the piano in my parents' house in the middle of winter and the song itself didn't really change at all from the day I wrote it. Sometimes you just feel things so intensely that it feels like you're going insane, and the only way to try and get a handle on it is to write about it. That's kind of what "Honey" is for me.
The way you write about love and want is so interesting. It never seems idealized or unrealistic in your songs, but there is a layer of sentiment, even wistfulness, in your work. Where does that come from for you?
I guess all of my songs are about very specific people in my life, so they're always going to be grounded pretty heavily in reality. But I want them to feel almost like mini-movies. A lot of times I write just because a day or night felt special, and I don't want to forget it. I think life is pretty cinematic anyway. I'll be at a party or driving around Dublin and just the simplicity of people going about their lives feels like there's an entire movie in that.
How do you think about character in your songwriting? There's a really interesting balance between cynicism and romanticism in your voice, even in your early stuff; does that come to you naturally, or is that a conscious piece of your craft?
It's not something I think about consciously at all when I'm writing songs. I studied creative writing and fiction in college, so that probably has a lot to do with why my songs are so narrative-driven. But I think I can be both cynical and idealistic in equal measure. I guess they just meet halfway when I'm writing songs.
Let's say a listener's introduced to you through "First Prize Bravery." What's the most important lesson you want to share with them?
Hmm. That's a hard one. Maybe just that life is hard but friendship makes it worth it.
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