Sally Seltmann

It should be stressed, however, that Seltmann has been far from dormant in that window of time: among a myriad of other projects, she has released a new single entitled ‘Dancing In The Darkness’ and has begun reverting her attention to that of the music that solely bares her own name. “I’ve been so busy collaborating with other people in the last few years,” she explains.

“It’s been pretty fun, but I’m pretty desperate to start on my own record. Things keep popping up that I feel like I can’t say no to. My husband Darren and I composed all of the music in an ABC series called The Let Down, and that took quite a while. I’ve also been playing some parts on some friend’s albums and taking on different creative projects. I’ve even gotten a start on the next Seeker Lover Keeper record, which we’re all writing together at the moment. I got to the point where I wanted to have something out there – something to share and something to play some shows on the back of – so that’s where ‘Dancing In The Darkness’ factored in.”

The single is the second that Seltmann has released since Hey Daydreamer, following on from last year’s ‘We Are The Music’. Both are expected – at this stage, at least – to be a part of the tracklist for what will be Seltmann’s third solo album. With hopes for a release some time in the middle of 2017, the prospective work will see Seltmann continue what she describes as an enamoured relationship with the long player. “I’m slowly writing toward an album: I still feel like that’s the best format for me,” she says.

“I’ve had quite a few of my musician friends tell me that it’s antiquated and that the way forward is just to release singles. I’m just not so sure that I feel that way, even though my last couple of releases have just been singles. A whole album just feels complete, with a journey that you undertake in full. I still really appreciate that, so that’s still something I want out of my own music. I still have journals full of lyrics and all these ideas to work through, and I look forward to sitting down and organising all of it into something cohesive that I can present as an album.”

In the last decade, Seltmann has established just as solid a reputation for being a collaborative co-writer as she has for her solo material. Famously, she was one of the people responsible for bringing Feist’s sole crossover hit ‘1234’ to life, while the aforementioned Seeker Lover Keeper saw her harmonising with Sarah Blasko and Holly Throsby for a critically-acclaimed self-titled album. It’s not something that’s lost on Seltmann, particularly given that she notes a great disparity between the attitudes she once held towards allowing other people in on her process initially, compared to its role in her life now.

“What’s funny about it is that I never even considered doing any co-writing whatsoever when I was first starting,” she says. “I never liked it as an idea, really. Now that I’ve written so many songs on my own, I suppose I’m more open to working with other people. Sometimes, you’ll have an idea presented to you by someone you’re writing with that you’d have never thought of yourself. Other times, you work with people that have a really similar line of thinking. That was certainly the case when I was writing songs with Susanna Hoffs, for instance. It can be exhausting, but I find it really interesting.”

For now, however, Seltmann is taking time to focus in on writing by herself. “I think I might prefer it, to be honest,” she adds. “You tend to find that songs come a bit more organically if you’re just working by yourself at your own pace – sessions with other people, as inspiring as they can be, they can really wear you out.”

With ‘Dancing In The Darkness’ out, alongside a short film of her performing it in Portland, Seltmann has two intimate shows planned for the end of October in both Sydney and Melbourne. Rather than enlisting her usual ring-ins and accompanying musicians, Seltmann will be performing solo, swapping between the piano and guitar. Seltmann intends to use the opportunities to work through a few new songs as well as tracks that stem all the way back to her beginnings under the moniker of New Buffalo. “I’m going to be playing some songs that I’ve never played before, as well as some New Buffalo songs and a few tracks from my solo albums,” she says.

“When you’re playing solo, the lyrics that you’re singing come through really clearly, so it’s nice to pull out some songs from the back catalogue that are more storytelling and that connect with the audience on that sort of level. I feel like that’s something audiences really appreciate about going to see an artist playing solo. It’ll also be good to get an idea of whether my new songs are any good or not. When you’re in front of an audience like that, you sense it either way immediately.”

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.

Subscribe to Rolling Stone magazine

Subscribe to Rolling Stone magazine