“I always tend to write music that maybe demands some attention from the listener,” Sara Savery, aka Drop the Gun, explains as she discusses her past and present musical endeavors. “The music has a lot of nuances and so you might not discover that until you close your eyes and listen closely.”
This creative mind was born in Copenhagen, Denmark into a family of music lovers and creators, her dad’s side brimming with classical musicians. Sara loved and appreciated classical music but says she never felt comfortable within such a structured and disciplined genre.
“My grandfather on my mom’s side was a contemporary composer and I have a memory of watching him banging on every key on the piano like a madman when I was little and that made a real impression on me and, I guess, sparked a flame,” Sara says.
Though the music that Sara’s grandfather played was very structural, she learned “that music could be very ‘weird’ and different and that you can kind of do whatever you want as long as you are passionate about it because it just sounds, right.”
Sara taught herself how to play Prince’s “Anna Stesia,” and other songs off the Lovesexy album, on the piano, teaching herself how to play chords that would allowed her to accompany herself singing. She eventually started writing her own music, spending hours each day in front of her piano perfecting her craft and recording “weird vocal harmonies” on a four-track recorder.
England became her home for 4 years where she studied music at LCM in Leeds and Middlesex University in north London. She eventually made her way to Brooklyn (her home for the past 7 years) after making a pit stop back in Denmark for a bit.
“I like moving around and love the feeling of being a stranger in a new place,” Sara says. “New York is amazing though because it never stays the same and there’s always something new to explore.”
Sara was fortunate enough to meet Tobias Wilner, founding member of Blue Foundation, through her sister. Along with the other half of Blue Foundation, Bo Rande, Tobias invited Sara to work with them on their past few albums. Sara and Tobias have also worked together on many different projects including writing film and television scores, “doing weird art movies,” and forming a band called Ghost Society.
In 2013, Sara put out her solo album, The Diver, a collection of songs so cinematic and beautiful that it feels like you’re in a movie montage whenever you’re listening to it. It’s fitting because most of the work that Sara has done under her own name has been used in film and television.
Sara has been exploring new things with music lately through her new project, Drop the Gun. She felt like she needed to take a step back from everything she had done in the past and start anew.
“I’m proud of everything I’ve done, don’t get me wrong, it’s just that it’s quite a nice feeling to do a solo project under a different name,” Sara explains. “Fresh start, you know.”
Fresh start indeed. In the past, the music Sara has been a part of creating has leaned more towards an eerie fog-like synthetic wave of darkness. Drop the Gun uses those similar synth sounds alongside a rhythmic R&B bass and pop vocals for a catchier sound. Sara focuses a lot more on the vocals in her new project and is pushing herself to new limits as a singer.
She describes herself as sensual and outgoing, which she thinks is showcased now more than ever through this new project.
“I am good at what I do and know that I am a good producer,” Sara says. “If you don’t like it, it’s a matter of taste and that’s cool.”
Drop the Gun is kind of a celebration of this confidence that Sara has developed in herself and her musical capabilities.
“I am standing on my own two feet as Drop the Gun,” Sara says. “I have learned from all the amazing people I’ve worked with and I am not afraid of showing who I am now.”
Tobias was a mentor to Sara along the way and even helped direct her first two music videos for the album, “Deeper” and “All I Want.” The cover of the EP is also a photo that Tobias took during one of the music video shoots.
“Tobias is amazing to work with,” Sara says. “ He’s truly a very creative soul and not just a dope engineer.”
Drop the Gun’s video for “All I Want” was filmed in Denmark, France and New York with the help of Tobias. It’s a crippling song full of longing and perplexity that anyone in a confusing relationship will be able to relate to. Tobias had the idea to shoot the video with Sara covering her face with her hands and superimpose another video of Sara’s face over that image.
“I feel like the video gives a really cool, artistic description of the inner confusion and feelings that I tried to portray in the song,” Sara explains.
Her favorite track off the album is “Weeknd,” which became the reference track that would shape the rest of the EP.
“It’s a quirky track and maybe not such a catchy track and the song structure is different,” Sara explains. “It’s slow but groovy, introverted but also very honest and direct and I love how the production turned out.”
When Sara was away on vacation in France, she was in a car driving through the mountains when she began listening to her finished product.
“That was the first time where I listened properly outside the studio and away from Brooklyn and I remember thinking that I had finally managed to do something I am straight up really proud of having done,” Sara remembers.
Sara explains that the music industry, in fact, isn’t such a glamorous one, “unless you’re Rihanna maybe,” because it’s so oversaturated and if you’re not a big star you can just feel like another fish in the sea.
“I chose to do music and stick with it because life is super short and I want to try to do what I love the most in life and challenge myself,” Sara says. “If someone tells me they were touched by my music it is just pure joy and makes me feel that it is worth the struggle.”
Drop the Gun’s self-titled EP is out today, give it a listen on SPOTIFY why don’t you!
Article: Merissa Blitz
