Behind the ethereal melodies and lush instrumentation of Vancouver-based musician Syd Warwick’s latest EP, Sad Astra, lies a message of empowerment. We’ve been trained to hear empowerment from women as a roar, a yell about injustice. But for Warwick, like many women, it’s discovered in quiet self-exploration and delivered in a moment of reflection.

For Warwick, songwriting has shaped her into the person she is today. Writing songs is how she expresses herself and processes the world. Creating Sad Astra has been a progression through healing, as she worked on older songs whose production eluded her and new songs that pushed their way into the world through her creative process. The hardship Warwick experienced in this creative endeavor was amplified by the difficulties of working during a global pandemic and uncertainty about whether or not the music industry would come out okay on the other side of it. For Warwick, being in a room with a friend to record these songs was one way through those hard times — and to see them released feels like a triumph.

Part of what she had to overcome in making the EP was creating the sound she wanted, and finding the right collaborators. That meant letting go of certain rules around the indie folk sound she felt beholden to and exploring more accessible pop production. Finding her sound put her in the same areas as women who have influenced her, including Ashe, Feist, Phoebe Bridgers, Angel Olsen, and Kate Bush. “One of the biggest blocks for me was struggling to find a producer who I felt confident could help bring these songs to life, the way in which I had envisioned,” Warwick says. “It really matters who you work with.” Warwick collaborated with producer Scott Currie (Kuri), who she credits with bringing something special to the table. Learning to center herself in the recording process also meant letting go of perfectionism, which had derailed her creativity in the past.

Syd Warwick previously released EPs under the moniker of Abraham, opening for acts such as Luca Fogale, Haley Blais, Jordan Klassen, and Fionn. Along with four large-scale Canadian tours, she has played many of Canada’s most coveted music festivals, such as CMW, Rifflandia, Westward Fest, Sunfest Country Music Festival and Song & Surf Music Festival. Now preparing to release her highly anticipated debut EP, Syd Warwick is ready to take off. ‘Sad Astra’ is out and available everywhere as of August 26th.