What can we expect from Sabrina Lawrie in 2021?

Sabrina Lawrie, with her adrenalin-pumping rock, has returned with a brand new track after a 2-year unplanned hiatus.

'Dreamstate' is officially available on the 8th of January but is exclusively available via the Rockin' 4 The Homeless collaboration album [here] - an album to help raise funds to provide support and services for the homeless people in Redcliffe Peninsula region in Queensland.

We had a chat with Lawrie to find out more about her new single, the Rockin' 4 the Homeless cause and how she has overcome some of her own life-changing challenges.

Congratulations on the new single 'Dreamstate' Sabrina, we are loving the power and rawness of it. Tell us, what is the song about?

The song was originally called Sex Dreams, though not about any specific person in particular but more about the spiritual magic behind the instincts of sexual energy and expressing that through the rock music. It is truly a primal and sacred energy that drives creation itself. I feel as though there is an extreme polarity of how sexual nature is depicted within our society between desensitising and pornographising, there is also a middle ground which is natural that I think as humans in this construct, we are limited to expressing without the stigma of both the extremes being attached in some way. Dreamstate also taps into our interdimensional reality, living out such desires in the dream world, without the limitations of the 3D reality.

When approaching a new song, what is the creative process like for you?

Every song has a unique process and a life of its own in my experience. Some songs are hatched in the band room through a jam and then I take it and finish the music and lyrics later, like with Dreamstate. Others start with a lyrical idea. A lot of the music I have been writing of late has been a collaboration, where my partner and I come up with the drums and bass and instrumentation and I draw down the melodies and lyrics in the home studio, they seem to just flow most of the time, once I align with the energy of the music. Or sometimes it's literally just sitting down with my acoustic and freely playing and I will hear a lyrical melody and start piecing the song together. Some songs are born in that moment and then there are others that are still in parts waiting for the last bridge or outro that have been sitting in my folder of 'Songs To Finish' for years which I revisit regularly.

You've been involved in the music industry (in many different forms) for some time now, how do you feel the industry has changed and what do you wish you knew when you started that you know now?

Having the privilege of working both as a musician and also behind the scenes, what I think has changed most is the way the artist connects to their audience. On one hand, the connection to a bigger audience through the online platforms has been a phenomenal advantage to musicians with the prowess to harness that world and on the other hand, a sense of organic connection to an artist has really changed. Also, the way we experience music as a listener has evolved. Back before streaming and the single song diet that the current music machine feeds us, I think people would spend a lot more time getting familiar with an artist through their full body of work in an album format. Really spending a lot more time feeling the energy and meaning and purpose that musicians express through creating a full album. Also having that tangible product, the cassette tape, vinyl or CD, meant there was a lot more engagement with one particular artist or another compared to how we listen to our music today, through the online world where we latch on to single songs and have more of a fleeting affair with artists music as we make space in our playlists for the next new set of singles. I still thoroughly enjoy the process of making an album and I know many artists continue to release full albums as well, but that landscape has certainly had an unprecedented shift since I started releasing music. I think also with the tools for musicians to record their own music being a lot more attainable, the quantity and quality of music released doesn't hold as much social, spiritual and political connection to the people as it did in the past. I guess I wish I had known how advanced the technology would become in such a short time and taken the time out to learn the technology sooner but I am grateful now that I have had a chance to teach myself and learn these programs and processes and really wrap my head around how I can stay as pure to the origin energy of the music whilst feeding it into our current industry's construct.

You've openly spoken about the challenging few years you've had since the release of your debut album. What has gotten you through that time? Did music play a big role in that?

Music played the central role for me in navigating the past few years. I have hard drives and hard drives of songs sitting patiently waiting to be finished and released. I dropped any expectation of releasing the music during those challenging times and really just allowed a space to freely create, knowing that when the conditions in our life changed, we could draw on the music we had made and start releasing perpetually once we regained our strength and determination, which is now! We moved to the bush, set up a home studio in our living space and set about recording any idea that sprung. Because my partner was in such unchartered territory with his terminal diagnosis, all that was important to us in terms of music was allowing every idea he felt compelled to explore was given the time to be created, even if we never fully finished each song, the inspiration was acknowledged, and in each of those moments, I feel like that was actually a central healing process that also gave him and I a sense that what we were creating something that could be left behind and shared, much like a legacy. It opened a space for me then to also write songs that were in response to that intense time, which even my partner hasn't heard yet. They are pretty raw and revealing, but it meant that pain and sadness was channelled into music and not sitting inside me welling up and getting heavy.

The new single 'Dreamstate' is exclusively available on the Rockin' 4 the Homeless Compilation album until the 8th of January. Can you tell us more about the cause and what it means to you?

I am very honoured to be contributing to the efforts of 'Rockin 4 The Homeless'. For the past four years, Dan Nebe has been driving R4TH with an annual concert that would raise funds for 'The Breakfast Club of Redcliffe' - a not-for-profit organisation that provides meals, services and support to the homeless including small emergency food parcels, supplies for rough sleepers, phone charging, haircuts and so much more in the Moreton Bay Region in Queensland. As a resident in the Moreton Bay area myself and after finding out the statistics of the people struggling in our community, I was just reduced to tears of compassion to learn of the work their volunteers are doing on a daily basis out of Redcliffe. I mean, on one night alone last week they cooked and served up over 67 meals all driven by donations and volunteers. They play a vital role in the local community spirit and that deep connection to real people is something that means so much to me. Anybody can donate and find out the best way to help by following their website here: http://www.TheBreakfastClubRedcliffe.weebly.com/

Now that you have the ball moving, breaking you out of your hiatus, can we expect more from you in 2021?

You can expect a whole lot more from me in 2021. I have two more rock singles to release following Dreamstate with a very social, spiritual and political message as well as launching the collaborative project that my partner and I formed during these past few years called 'Bast N Move'. We have our first single due for release in February. It's a year of sharing and connecting after such a long period of healing and learning.

'Dreamstate' Tour
Friday, Jan 8th - Mo’s Desert Clubhouse - The Gold Coast w/ Elko Fields | Tickets Here
[SOLD OUT] Saturday, Jan 9th - The Zoo - Brisbane | Event Page
Saturday, Jan 23rd - Reddy Set Go Festival - Pilpel Events Centre, Redcliffe | AA Free Event - Event Page