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Life-altering music

New album From Sarah Mclachlan

It was an exhilarating, slightly unnerving discovery, the day I stumbled upon the music of Sarah McLachlan in the summer of ’94. It was her third studio release, ‘Fumbling Towards Ecstasy’ (FTE, for brevity), and McLachlan’s t imeless signature on music was self-evident. You can quickly find a comprehensive discography on Wikipedia and yet, it’s challenging to write an objective article on her, for it’s hard to imagine the last 14 years of my life without her music.

Clarity. That would be a comforting place to start an article on Mclachlan with, much like the timbre to her voice, which expresses singular precision. I do this to mark the release of her ‘Best Of’ collection, ‘Closer’, to commemorate over 20 years in music.

This Vancouver-based Canadian musician’s lengthy career isn’t surprising, when you realise that she started playing ukulele at the tender age of four and piano at seven. McLachlan has released five studio albums, with many others peppering her musical terrain — live albums, dance remixes, B-sides. The first track of hers I heard was ‘Possession’.

The three-and-a-half minute piece resulted in a musical and spiritual journey that changed my life forever. ‘Possession’ is encased in lilting hooks that meander through a dreamy soundscape, with strikingly simple yet meaningful lyrics. Her voice, often considered her centrepiece, is omniscient.

Indeed, emotionally rich tunes, ambient melodies and decadent rhythms laced with romanticism form the core of this 40-year-old artiste’s repertoire.

On a more personal level, she’s taught me many things about life. FTE reveals the artistic sleight of hand she unflinchingly wields to have a product that resonates with her truest sentiments. She has said that her songs are often about just capturing ‘a mood she feels’.

This is apparent even when you listen to her first album, ‘Touch’, which came out in 1989, when she was all of 19.

The songs are unabashedly ambitious and overflow with emotiveness.

Combined with her ethereal voice, this earned her an almost surreal entry into the music world, being offered a music contract after her very first performance. She says that while luck definitely had to do with this dream entry into the music world, she clarifies that, apart from talent, genuine passion for one’s craft and an uncompromising work ethic, can also open doors. I was in college, struggling with a sense of thwarted ambition when ‘FTE’ came out.

It imprinted upon me through brute inspirational force that while we may not always achieve what we want in the manner we wish to, the nobility lay in using all our chips to the maximum. “I don’t believe in regrets,” she is quoted as saying.

As with ‘Possession’, an almost timeless wisdom finds its place in all her compositions. Another of her iconic tracks, ‘Drawn to the Rhythm’, from her second release ‘

Solace’ in 1992, also follows this vein. Something as simple as being by the beachside becomes a meditation on life. She says that she often ends up communicating all she wants to, with a single line, and then, the challenge ensues in trying to embellish the musical or lyrical phrasing.

Her last two studio releases, ‘Surfacing’ and ‘Afterglow’, have a more grounded yet equally mesmerising tone. ‘Surfacing’, released in 1997, garnered her international recognition, with tracks such as ‘Angel’, becoming an anthem of loss and redemption.

When I look back at my somewhat empty university years, her music was, perhaps, my dearest friend, enabling me to maintain clarity and anchoring me to my dreams.

I also learned how people from seemingly disparate nooks of the world can possibly relate instinctually. Regarding her music, she says: “I think it’s hard to be simple and unique.” This unassuming phrase has sort of become my philosophy on life.

McLachlan’s music is a testament and a tonic of sincerity in our current age of flux. For those longing for something exquisitely inspirational to experience, perhaps you should listen to ‘Possession’. I encourage you to take a deep swig from this snifter of bottled poignancy and wisdom — I’m reasonably certain you’ll be intoxicated — in all of three minutes. That’s all it took for me.

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