The Sea – Sabrina (Free Download / Buy)
The northwest may not be known for it’s sunny weather, but with Portland’s Sabrina, we’re treated to a heavy dose of delightful sunshine in the form of melodic indie pop. Sabrina Velazquez was born and raised in Honolulu, which has had a huge impact on the music she’s currently creating.
After releasing her debut EP, The Anomaly, in 2009, Velazquez found herself at home in the studio and instantly went to recording her first full length. Using the experience of recording The Anomaly and some funds raised using Kickstarter, she teamed up with producer John Askew (The Dodos, Peggy Sue) and created The Hawk & The Hunter. “I liked what he had done with The Dodos albums and he was also a musician himself which is what I needed in a producer. You know when you listen to B-sides and you can hear a door creek or a bird singing in the background? I wanted elements of that in my album. In a song like “Dark Rider,” it was cold and pouring rain the day we recorded it and you can hear the rain in the background.”
The Hawk & The Hunter is a bipolar journey though Velazquez’s emotions. “The idea for the album was to make it sound as raw and personal as possible. I love so many types of music and wanted to make it like a mixtape. Thus, a rock song (“Drum Machine”), a pop song (“Right Time”), a folk song (“Hollow”) and even a dream pop song (“Places”). Somehow they all make sense together. The name, The Hawk & The Hunter came from what the core of the songs are about, desire. I am the hunter and everything I want is the hawk. That constant need. That is what the album is about for me.”
Sabrina recently toured with Cat Power, an experience that she called, “a dream come true.” Velazquez has also spent time performing with Sing the Body, Painted Highways, and House of Wolves. She’ll be hitting the studio this March, and doing some gigs on the West coast. Enjoy the free download above!
