MY CITY
Sydney, I love it for the views, the food and the ocean pools. The expanse of it makes it special – it’s full of so many incredibly diverse microcosms. You can eat your way around the world just by driving 40 minutes.
FAVOURITE FOOD MEMORY
The Cavolo Nero pizza at Bella Brutta – the ingredients are so simple but I can taste it just by thinking about it for even a moment – think Cavolo Nero, chilli, fior di latte, whole garlic, parmesan. Also, the calamari Sant Andrea at Fratelli Paradiso in Potts Point is divine – that sauce.
FAVOURITE BAR
Bar Planet, the Martini Spritz. It’s a beautiful looking bar run by gorgeous people and there’s free popcorn which tastes incredible and is impossible to stop eating. It’s also stumbling distance from my house.
DRINK THAT DESCRIBES YOU
A Gin Sour. Haha, Look I’m not really sour or bitter, so let’s get that straight, but I do have my moments. I find a Gin Sour a very refreshing drink.
BEST HANGOVER CURE
I recently had a Korean prune hangover drink before we started drinking and it did seem to do something. Otherwise, Coca Cola always hits the spot.
BEST INTERSTATE BAR
I am a huge fan of Four Pillars Gin and I quite recently went to their bar in Healesville – I thought that was a pretty amazing experience.
FAVOURITE WINE
Lucy M (Lucy Margaux) are probably some of my favourite wines. Beautiful, interesting natural wines made in the Basket Ranges in South Australia.
FAVOURITE WINERY
I haven’t really visited many wineries that I love to be honest, but we met and hung out with the awesome winemakers Ochota Barrels a few years ago and saw some of the process of making their wines – that was really wonderful. Amber continues on the work that she started with her husband Taras who she lost a few years ago, and their wine is really wonderful.
NEXT DESTINATION
I’m playing some shows in the UK & Europe in June/July & I’m hoping for some time in Italy for a family holiday after that!
Tell us your new album I Just Need to Conquer this Mountain
Writing the album was a long but cathartic experience. The words took a long time to come but the chords and the melodies felt like they came quite easily. I wrote the album over quite a long period of reflection when it felt like the world and everyday life seemed to stop. That combined with the end of a long friendship, the death of a friend and the birth of my second son influenced the lyrics. I want to convey a sense of hope and resilience in the face of hard times.
THREE SONGS AND WHAT THEY MEAN
Bothering Me – taken from a line in the song, it’s kind of an understatement because the feelings of questioning myself and my life were far greater than just “bothering me”. I was having a life crisis.
Divine – I grew up in the church where I was taught that the divine was in a deity, but these days I feel it’s best to look around you and search for the divine in the everyday.
Emotions – an ode to the people who feel life and all its emotions so fully that it can be very overwhelming. It’s a song that owns that side of myself because it can be a strength as well as a weakness to be an emotional person.
A SONG THAT CHANGED YOUR LIFE GROWING UP
Pretty Good Year by Tori Amos from her album Under The Pink. I felt like it was speaking directly to me from the perspective of someone who grew up in the church and how it feels. The dynamics in the song – going from the very quiet verse and chorus, to the triumphant bridge really blew my mind. I still think the production is pretty incredible on that album.
WHAT’S YOUR VIEW ON RELIGION TODAY?
I don’t like religion, no, but I do respect faith – people that have a true faith that transforms them and gives them such compassion, resilience and strength. To be honest, I try not to think about religion in my own life – for me the lesson is being present in today and doing the right thing by others, not thinking about whether there’s a God or not. I’m focused on trying to get by in the world.
WHAT DO YOU SEEK FROM LIFE AS YOU GET OLDER?
Joy. In everything – whether it’s what I do or in encounters with others or my children. I want to be joyful and thankful in my old age, not bitter & angry.
WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY?
Seeing my children eat ice cream. There’s nothing cuter. And the sound. It’s just delightful. It’s not great for their teeth though so perhaps I’m a bad parent?!
WHAT DO YOU NEED NOW MORE THAN EVER?
Estrogen! Haha I’m 48 IYKYN!
Sarah Blasko is on her regional tour starting February 2025 – see here for dates.
