The Secret Sisters – Laura and Lydia Rogers – return early next year with a new album ‘Saturn Return‘ (to be released February 28th 2020 on New West Records) and a double visit to the UK – the first will be in January for one-off appearances at Celtic Connections and at the Americana Music Association UK’s AmericanaFest in swinging Hackney. The longer tour will be in June.
‘Saturn Return‘ is named for an astrological occurrence that takes place approximately every 29 ½ years – the time it takes Saturn to return to the position in its orbit of the sun that it occupied at the time of one’s birth. The album heralds the arrival of a new era for Laura and Lydia—both of whom experienced extreme change and transformation during the making of the record. Grappling with the grief of losing both grandmothers, while also both becoming first-time mothers, the sisters reflect on their world view, relationships and own mortality through the album’s ten songs. They also, for the first time, sing on their own as well as with their usual harmonising. It was something that the album’s producer Brandi Carlile pushed them towards, as she comments, “It’s really uniquely unified and harmonious when they’re in tandem and very tumultuous and deep when they’re not in tandem and I think for a brief, beautiful moment on this album we caught The Secret Sisters not in tandem for the first time. To be a harbinger for their honesty in these songs and to watch them work together to see the tension was one of the greatest gifts of my career because those are two very powerful people in a very interesting point in their lives.”
The Secret Sisters share their own insights on ‘Saturn Return‘ : “As we age, we face obstacles that are beyond our control. Some forces are internal: insecurity, anxiety, fear. Some are external: the loss of loved ones, an unjust system and the fragility of time. Yet the mark of maturity is how you respond when you realize you’re not in control. Where do you find your resilience? This album is a reflection of us coming to terms with how to find our power in the face of an unfair world. These songs lead listeners past ‘where happy man searches, to a place only mad women know.’ We question our purpose, our relationships, our faith. Trading the fears of our youth for the dread that rages within us as mature women. With ‘Saturn Return‘, our hope is that women can feel less alone in their journey through the modern world. We need each other more than we ever have; the less competition and the more inclusiveness and understanding, the better. We are southern women in the 21st century, convicted by our beliefs.”
The album is due in February – but there’s a taster now of what’s to come.
Tour Dates 2020
January 27—Glasgow, U.K.—Royal Concert Hall, Celtic Connections (w. Milk Carton Kids)
January 28/29—London, U.K.—AmericanaFest UK Showcase Festival
June 10—Bury St. Edmunds, U.K.—The Apex
June 11—Bury, U.K.—The Met
June 13—Gateshead, U.K.—Sage Gateshead
June 14—Sheffield, U.K.—Firth Hall
June 16—Leeds U.K.—Brudenell Social Club
June 17—Milton Keynes, U.K.—The Stables
June 18—London, U.K.—Union Chapel
June 19—Bristol, U.K.—St. George’s
June 21—Tunbridge Wells, U.K.—Black Deer Festival
Photo: Alysse Gafkjen
