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If someone tells you modern musicians aren’t producing meaningful artistic statements reflective of our age, don’t believe them. Point them in the direction of Rachael Sage.
The Billboard-charting producer, singer, and songwriter enjoys an international following for good reason. Her musicianship and close audience connection have fueled multiple albums, and scores of successful live appearances, and garnered her numerous awards. Her multimedia gifts, social concerns, and poetic talents have attracted notice from a bevy of admirers and she shows no signs of slowing down.
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/rachael_sage/?hl=en
Her experience of the pandemic fuels her new single “The Other Side”. It isn’t the sole reference point, however, as a cumulative embrace of her journey ratchets up the stakes. It speaks, as well, to her perseverance through abusive relationships and experiences making her way through increasingly fraught times. There’s no Pollyanna view of the world through rose-colored glasses characterizing this song. It looks at the world with a pragmatic gaze, yet ultimately strikes a triumphant and redemptive note.
It alternates between pristine delicacy and gentle striding. Collaborating with multi-instrumentalist Kevin J. Killen playing electric guitar and drums on the track creates a layered sonic landscape for her voice to inhabit. Her lyrics hinge on dazzling wordplay rife with meaning and stocked with specific concrete imagery. It doesn’t present its message from a single angle but, instead, unwinds an accumulation of impressions and experiences that have served to guide her through life’s wilderness.
Its refusal to settle on one emotion and point of view would be jarring in the hands of a lesser songwriter. Sage, however, masters the song’s whirlwind of indecision, disappointment, shame, and eventual acceptance without ever dizzying listeners in the process. Listeners will be hard-pressed, as well, to find even a single extraneous word in the composition. She penned these lyrics knowing what she wanted to say but, more importantly, how to say it.
Few will deny the uplifting aspects of this song and its accompanying video. Directed by Mike Flanagan and produced by Nick Clark, it focuses on Rachael’s presence. She’s in glorious and life-affirming form as she fills the screen with elegant calm and intelligence. There are several instances in this video where viewers will see her truly lost in the moment and it further elevates the experience.
The plethora of colors accentuates the song’s poetic nature. Her songwriting shares the same colorful predilections and leaves you with a beaming spirit. Part of her avowed intent behind the writing and video presentation is to emphasize our shared desire for reconnection after overcoming adversity and the visual elements of the promotional clip deliver on that. It’s another in a long and ever-growing line of substantive works that Sage has produced throughout her career. “The Other Side”, however, is far from the last time we will hear from this artist. The single does rate high though as one of her finest moments yet. It speaks to eternal yearnings in the hearts of every human being and its timelessness sets it apart from so much of the disposable music we hear today.
Jennifer Munoz
