(Credits: Far Out / Fraizer Dunleavy)
The evenings are not only getting darker and wetter, but there also seems to be a weight to them at this time of year, as though the nights are bedding down for the long haul and casting a wintery cloak. Or at least that’s how Saint Saviour‘s new track with Orlando Weeks, ‘A Picture Is All I Have’, makes them seem. It’s a duet imbued with the sepia tones of reverie by lamplight.
Speaking about the third single from her forthcoming fourth album, Sunseeker, Becky Jones revealed, “It’s about how great photographs capture the life force of a person. It marks a stage in my life where photos have become my most treasured thing.” In its own humble way, the track itself captures a pinch of the resonance that a memorable snap can induce. With its spacious approach, it happily allows your attention to drift towards a flick-through of your selected past chapter.
It is a hushed lullaby of sorts, marvellously pitted with horns that seem to pipe themselves into the track from a bygone era to create a fitting feeling of the present and an imagined past colliding. Like the previous efforts ‘Poetry’ and ‘Better Than’, the former of which she describes as perhaps her proudest song to date, ‘A Picture Is All I Have’, has a calm air of confident sincerity, Saint Saviour is in a place where Jones can focus on conveying the McCoy of her feelings effortlessly.
So, ahead of her new record, we caught up with Jones for a few quick minutes to get her thoughts on the year’s best music, the comforting ways of ramen, and a whole lot more. This was our quick-fire catch-up with Saint Saviour (thanks for releasing some of the finest singles this year). Enjoy..
Quick-fire Questions: 10 minutes with Saint Saviour:
1. What song would you want played at your funeral?
“‘A Lark Ascending’ by Vaughan Williams or ‘This is How We Walk On The Moon’ by Arthur Russell.”
2. What has been your favourite album of 2023?
“Sundial – Noname.”
3. Dual question: favourite soup and favourite comfort film?
“Ramen and Pom Poko (Studio Ghibli).”
4. Do you believe in ghosts?
“No.”
5. If you have an hour to yourself to kill, what are you doing?
“Walking along any river.”
6. What song features the best vocal performance of all time?
“‘I Got To Use My Imagination’ by Gladys Knight.”
7. What is the best pub in the world?
“There’s a little speakeasy in a crack in the wall of Dubrovnik city wall, late afternoons diving from the rocks into the sapphire sea, cool glass of beer, total paradise.”
8. What song are you most proud to have written to date?
“Oof not sure. I think ‘I Remember’ from my album ‘In the Seams’ is very satisfying but ‘Poetry’ from my new album has that same feeling from my gut as if it’s a perfectly honest piece of work. It has that timeless nostalgic lullaby feeling I am often trying to achieve.”
9. If you could provide the soundtrack for any film, what would it be?
“Ring of Bright Water.”
10. If you had to get a lyric tattoo, what would it say?
“I know you have a little life in you yet,
I know you have a lot of strength left.“
11. What was the first song you learnt to play?
“‘For You’ by Tracy Chapman.”
12. Who the fuck is Mark E. Smith?
“The frontman of The Fall?”
13. What album have you probably listened to most in your life?
“Black Sunday by Cypress Hill (my adolescent/teenage album).”
14. Which venue would you love to play?
“The Royal Albert Hall would be nice.”
15. Are The Beatles overrated?
“No.”
