Interview: Brendan Tan (This Sanctuary)

This Sanctuary are a Sydney band getting ready to launch their debut album, they have been together many years and we got to learn a little more about them in this interview.

Welcome to Beauty and Lace, thanks for taking the time out to talk to us.

Thanks for having us!

Can you tell us a little about how the band formed?

The band formed when Brendan and Renee were 12 years old in high school. They started hanging out, skating, eating food and sharing the same taste in music. There were only so many drum and vocal jams before we needed chords behind the songs we had written which is when Ben came along. Years later we recruited Sam and Neil to the TS clan.

The latest single has just been released, can you tell us a little about I Do?

I Do tells the story of having to see someone leave that you hold close to your heart. The sound behind the song is a great indication in to where we have been with our creativity and sound leading up to the debut album “Keep Talking, Please” which is due out in the next 6 weeks!

What a great video clip for the new single – who did you work with and can you offer us a little snapshot on the final TBC marker?

We worked with Alex Forsyth and Nick Khoo in creating a distressed Renee and a look in to her mind. Our next video clip will be something along the lines of a storybook… That’s all we can say… Ha, but we can say we’ve been letting our minds run wild in planning for a while, so we can’t wait to show you!

There is also an album due for release in late August, what can you tell us about Keep Talking, Please?

Keep Talking, Please is a great insight in to our future for our sound. It’s a sound we all love playing live, so we can’t wait to tour this album! Lyrically it speaks of many personal experiences we have had and how we see the world at this point in time.

What music/musicians do you most love to listen to?

We love bands like Sleeping With Sirens, Fall Out Boy, Memphis May Fire and Phoenix.

Who has been the biggest influence on your career?

Definitely our fans and families. We do what we do for them and if it wasn’t for them we wouldn’t be where we are today.

What has been your career highlight to date?

Being able to tour internationally and see different parts of the world. It gives us the opportunity to meet all different types of people, which we all love.

Where does your songwriting inspiration come from?

Our songwriting usually comes from an experience we’ve had and a place which is almost sacred. It’s like an outlet where we can express ourselves and be honest with how we feel.

Do you have a process for writing the songs?

We have band pracs every Wednesday and we usually use this time to collaborate any new ideas we’ve had during the week to bring them to the table. From there we will idea jam on it and see what comes out or let everyone go away and work on different parts of the song.

Do you have any pre-show rituals or habits that have to be performed before you perform?

We usually stretch so we don’t die the next day and huddle together to psych ourselves up. Neil will probably doing a handstand somewhere in the corner.

You have some shows coming up over the next few months, what can audiences expect from a live show?

Lots of energy and lots of hype. Our one rule for our live show is to go all out so we always encourage each other to do new things we haven’t don’t before.

What’s next for This Sanctuary?

We are excited to release our first full length album in August and tour it soon after! We are playing a whole bunch of shows and festivals that we will announce so follow us on FB to keep up with all our dates! Come hang out with us! https://www.facebook.com/thissanctuaryband

To catch This Sanctuary on their upcoming tour:

TOUR DATES
August 9
Breakaway Festival
Chatswood Youth Centre NSW l  All Ages l  $15

August 21
Valleyarm Melb

August 28
Valleyarm Syd

Sept 28
Risen youth fest
Brisbane

Sept 29
Risen youth fest
Sydney

Oct 6 
Blackstump Fest
Appin NSW