Sasha and the Valentines is More than Just a Dream

You don’t have to be around a lake, but you should. Sasha and the Valentines is best experienced with sand between toes getting in to cracks that stick. They’re the baby of the muddy Midwest and the Phoenix sun, the old photos filtered through Huji trying to recapture the authenticity of grandma’s house. You can chase antiques in secondhand stores with friends on Saturday or you could spend a morning in fall with a living room session of Green. You’ll get the same result, either way.

Green is Sasha and the Valentines’ debut EP. The band, born from cobblestone of the East Coast, met at University of Massachusetts Amherst. With promise of better weather and less expensive rent (Boston, yikes.) The band headed to Austin, Texas to soak up the sun and chase the surfer rock, synth pop sound that became Sasha and the Valentines. Just from talking to them, you can tell their band is concise, their friendship solid and the fluidity of their ebb and pull leaks in to their music.

“We have this connection with each other that I think people feel,” says bassist John Bergin. “We’ve known each other since college and all moved to Austin together. The tissue itself is either between us as performers, us as friends, or the connection we share with the people in the audience.”

The band has been perfecting their craft for years now. Having performed together since college, the five know their strengths. With Alex Whitelaw on guitar, Bergin on Bass, Billy Hickey on drums, Tim Zoidis doing percussion, and Sarah Addi on piano and vocals, Sasha came out of their two previous bands Spirit Ghost and Calico Blue. Although both Spirit Ghost and Calico Blue are still active, with a new single “Billy” from Calico on Spotify, Sasha is their current focus. Moving away from their garage rock surfer sound, Sasha blends more aspects of dreamy synth pop in to the fabric of their rhythm, drawing inspiration from some of their favorite bands.

“I look to sounds like Beach House and Unknown Mortal Orchestra,” says Addi, “I have a higher register but try to model my voice after musicians and songwriters I liked growing up like Elton John and Stevie Wonder. I like that my voice sits in that mid range.”

It’s true Addi’s light shines through with Sasha and the Valentines. Drawing the music’s material from real life influences, Addi pours all of herself in to the lyrics. Writing tunes for the past three years, the band officially started playing shows August 2018. Given the liberty to explore themes that shaped them all, the five pieced together how they would sound by toying with different genres. Addi wrote the lyrics herself and the band fell in place behind her. Since the five were closely knit in previous projects, the natural progression was to form Sasha and help Addi’s lyrics come to life.

“I wanted a project where I did most of the writing. But everyone else’s influences kind of molded in to something unique for us,” says Addi. “The projects are kind of campy in the sense they’re about love and relationships, but they explore specific kinds. Green is a pretty obvious metaphor for jealousy.”

With Addi writing the lyrics herself, Sasha and the Valentines took after artists she had grown up with, the sound modeled after Motown and Billy Joel. Certainly, in their music, you can hear a rhythm that mirrors early 80’s Motown, with a distinctive melody leaning towards pop appeal. Indie Rock is where their strength lies, but going forward pop is a spectrum of style they will flesh out on a full-length album. There’s no doubt in their ability to transition between music genres, as is evident in Calico Blue and Spirit Ghost, so there should be no difficulty achieving a balance between the pop anthems and sad girl rock Sasha and the Valentines’ hopes will be in their future.

It’s easy to say their Freshman EP Green is a seamless experience. Piggybacking off their Bedroom Demos, Green masters the in and out of transitions of music that blends perfectly together, creating an experience ideal for long road trips West. Time passes and the music tells a story that is different with every experience. Maybe the first listen through, you’re carried away by the dream of Sucker’s synth piano. Maybe the second, you focus on being “just a little lost” like the lyrics in Green. It’s something like a dream, Sasha and the Valentines. A dream born of love for each other and love for the audience.

“Even if you don't know us you might be able to sense that we're all very locked in,” says Addi. “I’m very open to talking to people after shows. House shows work best for us because there’s such a seamless connection with the audience. People are there and if they aren’t, we’re playing for each other.”

Taking your shoes off after work to walk on satin rugs is a small treat at the end of a long day. Topped off with Sasha and the Valentines’ Green EP is the only way to make it better, twirling through time of what was, is, and will be. It’s a First Day of School in the Fall feeling that firmly roots you in the present, the good of today and the hope of tomorrow. The baseline is groovy, the vocals soothing, and the music promises to take care of you. Home is all encompassing with Green and live, the band envelopes the audience in to a realm outside reality. A magic re-created in apartment living rooms. As Sarah opens her palms and closes them, she picks her words carefully, saying:

“I know it’s cliché but I want people to feel okay when they hear our music. I over-analyze and over-think everything so when people listen I want them to feel centered and chill in this moment.”

Sasha and the Valentines will be going on tour through the South East this upcoming December. Check out their music and schedule here.