Talented Sydney Pop rockers, This Sanctuary, have just released their latest single
I Do and will be playing a number of gigs on the east coast of Australia.
The band has a colourful mix of musical and cultural backgrounds from Egypt, Malaysia, South Africa and Fiji. Band members include: Renee Sieff (vocals), Ben Tan (Lead Guitar), Neil Burmester, (rhythm guitar), Sam Sudhakar (bass), Brendan Tan (drums).
This Sanctuary had a chat with Music News about the band’s early days, their song writing process and the hurdles they have faced on tour from lost instruments to non-existent plane tickets.
Music News - Can you tell me about the early days of This Sanctuary? How did the band form? Brendan - The idea of This Sanctuary began with Renee and I as 14 year olds who loved hanging out and shared the same taste in music. She loved to sing and I loved to hit things so that's where we started. There were only so many band practices we could have before releasing, so we needed expand and the instrument we wanted was guitar. We asked my brother Ben to join and it was trio for a long while. We didn't just want any other guitarist and bass player to fill the gaps; we wanted friends that we knew would become close like family. So in 2011 we found Sam and soon after Neil.
Music News - What genre best describes your music? Sam - Pop rock with a little edge. We've been exploring new instruments in our new tracks. Namely keyboards and synthesisers. It's been fun and definitely where that extra edge comes from.
Music News - You just released your latest single I Do, can you tell me about that? What inspired the song? Renee - The inspiration for this song came from seeing friends around me in long distant relationships and having to trust their spouse as they are away. It made me think of when band members are on tour and get a lot of attention from the opposite sex. "I do" is about staying committed to their partner regardless of distance.
Music News - What is your song writing process? Do you write as a team or individually? Ben - Usually Renee and I will spark an idea and expand it as much as we can on a program called Logic. We'll then spend the next few weeks whilst the idea is still fresh to vibe and create the song as a team. Our last workings on the song will be when we take it in the studio and take the time to work on sounds and try riskier ideas that normally wouldn't work in stage 1 or 2.
Music News - Which artists have influenced you? Renee - We have so many artists that we could go on for days about influences! Heavy Influences for our upcoming album have been Paramore, Panic at the Disco, Fall Out Boy, Sleeping with Sirens. As we are constantly finding new music and genres we are discovering new ways to write so our influences are often changing!
Music News - What is your favorite thing to see in the audience, when you're on stage? Renee - The best feeling is seeing your audience sing your lyrics back to you. It's so rewarding to see people like something that you have created!
Music News - What hurdles have you had to overcome, to get to where you are today? Neil - We have a certain recurring hurdle. That is when we fly. Somehow, something always challenges us when we decide to get on a plane as a band. However, whether it's lost instruments, non-existent plane tickets or completely wrong days booked to fly, we've always overcome it and I think its kind of fun! Ha-ha but in all seriousness, I think the biggest hurdle we've encountered is when we write. We are constantly striving to remain fresh and write music that represents us. We always want to give our fans our best, new music.
Music News - What is next for This Sanctuary? Ben - Next thing for us is to release our Album "Keep Talking, Please" in late August which will be followed with our next video clip "Keep Talking, Please." We are so excited for the world to hear this!
Music News -
Anything you would like to share, from upcoming shows to albums?Our new single
I DO is out now – you can check out the video clip here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxaSEic7IZg Our new album
KEEP TALKING, PLEASE is due out late August – keep an eye out for it!
TOUR DATES August 9 l Breakaway Festival l Chatswood Youth Centre NSW l All Ages l $15
August 21 l Valleyarm Melbourne
August 28 l Valleyarm Sydney
Sept 28 l Risen Youth Festival l Brisbane
Sept 29 l Risen Youth Festival l Sydney
Oct 6 l Blackstump Fest l Appin NSW
For more info and updates visit
www.thissanctuary.com Thanks for having us!
