EL PERRO DEL MAR
INTERVIEW BY JUSTIN TYLER CLOSE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY XAVIER ENCINAS
STYLING BY JOY MAIRE
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Sweden, Sarah Assbring says, is kind of boring. “To survive here,” she explains, matter-of-factly, “we have to make something beautiful out of it.” And the Scandinavian native would know – it’s where she retreats to write her music; it’s where the magic happens. Tucked away beneath the warmth of your headphones listening to her one-woman act, El Perro Del Mar, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were snuggled in bed while the Swedish winter howls outside your Gothenburg chalet. The rich musical experience of smooth psychedelics and catchy pop beats has been flattering dimly lit spaces from Stockholm to New York and making a name for itself along the way. Catchy tunes “Change of Heart” and “God Knows (You’ve Gotta Give to Get)”, whimsical videos and breathtaking performances make Sarah more than worthy of some serious Lab time. Here, the serene songstress muses on her collaboration with Finnish Rockers The Rasmus, tells us what English is best used for and lovingly recalls how she became El Perro Del Mar. Sweden may be boring, but it sure makes some sweet music.
JUSTIN TYLER CLOSE—Hi, How are you?
SARAH ASSBRING—I’m good. How are you?
JTC—Good. Finally, we get to talk.
SA—Yeah, exactly.
JTC—I’m glad you made it home safe amongst all the volcano drama.
SA—Me too. I got stuck. The volcano erupted and I was stuck in Paris.
JTC—Mother Earth is a scary place.
SA—Yes!
JTC—Did you just get off a tour? Where did you go?
SA—My tour was mostly in the US and I toured Australia and parts of Scandinavia and Argentina.
JTC—I know you made your way here to Vancouver and played the Biltmore Cabaret. How was that?
SA—It was really nice. I always like to play in Vancouver.
JTC—How is it touring for you? Do you like it? Is it exhausting?
SA—It’s definitely exhausting but it’s kind of a conscious mode you set yourself into and while you’re in that mode it’s enjoyable… I really like it.
JTC—You play the same show and you tour for so long, how do you keep each show fresh? It must be really strenuous to sing night after night.
SA—Yeah. Keeping the show fresh is something you really need to be aware of and always try to work on. It’s definitely like an actor going on stage and having to put themselves through the same emotional…
JTC—Preparation?
SA—Yeah, definitely.
JTC—Having lived with an actor my whole life I know there’s a lot of premeditation and prep work that you have to do before each show and little rituals that performers do as a team. Do you travel with a band?
SA—Yeah, I do.
JTC—Do you guys have any secret handshakes?
SA—We don’t. I just feel like it is extremely important to be close to each other physically and emotionally. It is very important to be close to each other in the fifteen or twenty minutes before you go on stage, just to feel like you’re synchronized and you have the same kind of rhythms in your bodies.
JTC—Can you tell me a little bit about your collaboration with The Rasmus? I read that this was the best recording session you’ve ever had! I know you’ve done a lot of stuff on your own, in isolation, not really collaborating with anyone during the recording process…
SA—It felt extremely natural because we did a lot of talking before actually working together. We’re both very into talking about music and about what we want to do. The thing with him and I was that when we started working it felt like we were twins or something, because it felt natural…
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