By Jim Barber
There has all the time been a deep wellspring of authenticity, actuality and strikingly sincere self-exposition within the songs of critically lauded and profoundly proficient Canadian singer/songwriter Suzie Ungerleider.
Working below her earlier nom de plume, Oh Susanna, from her earliest days within the late Nineteen Nineties crafted a fame for compelling songcraft and exceptionally evocative, emotional dwell live performance experiences because of the darkish sweetness of her voice and the relatable, revelatory nature of her music.
After shedding the pores and skin of her former model, Ungerleider launched the critically-acclaimed album with the title My Identify is Suzie Ungerleider – an announcement of intent that has opened her creativity as much as limitless prospects as an artist, and as a human.
Her new album, Among the many Evergreens, sees Ungerleider stripping again any sense of pretense, as an alternative opening up fairly intimate points her personal story in a fashion that’s as autobiographically correct as it’s startlingly relatable.
As with many songwriters, there isn’t essentially a cut-off date the place Ungerleider decides, ‘okay, now I’m going to write down a brand new album.’ As an alternative there’s a constant inventive course of that ultimately results in what might be described as a tipping level, when she realizes there’s sufficient new materials to maneuver right into a extra deliberate album making course of.
“As quickly because the earlier report is completed I’m like, ‘okay, I’ve obtained to start out once more.’ However that doesn’t imply I do it. I imply, it’s not a concerted effort. It’s extra like chipping away, principally. Like my final report, I made a decision by no means to attend till the entire report is written. I made a decision, okay I’ve obtained a number of songs, I’m going to report them and see how they really feel. That motivates me to do extra as a result of it then turns into a very enjoyable course of. Doing it the opposite approach, ready till they’re all accomplished is type of daunting. In order that’s how I did this one, and I wasn’t even conscious of the connective tissue between the songs,” she defined.
“The truth is, like the best way the report is organized into that ‘then and now,’ break up over two sides and even the subjects of the songs, I wasn’t actually pondering I used to be going to write down in regards to the issues that I did. It simply occurs. Or in some circumstances I believed, ‘effectively, right here’s an thought. However I don’t know if I ought to write about this.’ A few of the different stuff is not any huge deal. It was only a sample that I noticed after I ready the songs and I might sequence the report in type of a story vogue. And it was actually enjoyable and thrilling to see that every one play out and find yourself being the way it did.”
The album’s identify, Among the Evergreens, is in reference … and fairly probably reverence – for nature and the way Ungerleider attracts inspiration from strolling by the tall bushes within the Vancouver space. She sees her life, and the assemble of the album, resembling bushes in that there’s a strong circularity to them within the rings of bushes, however that these rings, as they construct on high of each other, additionally characterize years lived – with every ring being impacted by the general well being of the tree. A season of wither and drought results in slim rings, whereas years of abundance and well being result in wider rings.
“I write in my head as I’m strolling. Not a lot from scratch, however I could have an concept that I’ve been engaged on after which I’ll exit for a stroll, as a result of I’ve a canine, so I gotta go for a stroll. And I’m fortunate as a result of I dwell close to the Trans Canada Path so I’ll go there so much and I could also be mulling over lyrics. I bear in mind for the tune ‘The Wilds’ I used to be making an attempt to type out the lyrics whereas I used to be strolling alongside the seashore at some point,” she mentioned.
“That was a part of the draw of shifting again right here was to be in nature. I began to really feel like that was increasingly essential to me, whereas once I was youthful though I had all this water close by and it was regular to have all this nature round, it appeared boring, so I made a decision to go the large city place [Toronto] however then I began lacking doing walks in nature, so I moved again right here. Being right here since 2019, I’m beginning to notice that being in nature will get me right into a type of trance. And for me, that’s actually essential in writing, being in a type of reverie. And it’s a lot simpler to get into reveries in a hypnotic state if I’m round nature, particularly if I’m shifting in nature.
“Possibly it sounds cliché, however issues change, or they’ve cycles. I might be in the course of one thing and it feels utterly disastrous, however then one thing else will occur and it will get resolved, or it’s going to transfer into one other place of pleasure and light-weight, or that softness is okay. Nature jogs my memory of that.”
Ungerleider’s music has all the time been deeply private, enchantingly lyrical, open, sincere and eminently accessible. For her, it’s additionally been powerfully cathartic expertise – much more so since dropping her earlier inventive moniker and going along with her personal identify professionally.
“I believe it’s refreshing. There’s all the time occasions while you may get right into a inventive wrestle, like a tune not working within the studio, or one thing occurs and also you’re filled with doubt and it’s emotional. However most of that’s balanced out by the excessive of making one thing and placing it on the market. I bear in mind what a buddy of mine as soon as mentioned to me that the method of writing, even when you’re not doing confessional kind music, it’s simply very cathartic to be arising with one thing new and authentic,” she defined.
“And you realize, I’ve plenty of doubt the place I’m like, ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ve to start out once more. I don’t know tips on how to write a tune any extra. How am I going to write down a tune that I like once more?’ However then there’s the precise feeling of accomplishment – ‘I did it’ – which is form of superb. And I get enthusiastic about it and it looks like every little thing is filled with potential. Though there’s that second after while you notice, ‘oh, I’ve obtained to do it once more.’ Simply while you’re feeling nice about what you’ve accomplished, ‘I did this stuff and it’s fantastic, however I suppose I’ve obtained to do it once more.’
“And the understanding that I’ve to do one thing once more that’s going to imply one thing to me and I’m going to love it or really feel pleased with it or that another person goes to love it. And at occasions that may be an enormous block for me. So I attempt to put these emotions apart and simply concentrate on the thought and simply belief myself and belief within the tales I’m all the time eager about. I’m all the time eager about tales; it’s a pure factor for me. I don’t truly need to work that arduous to write down one thing, though I believe I do. I simply let go of those concepts that it’s laborious and the way I’m going to fill this clean web page and all these sorts of fears, or that I’m not working laborious sufficient and never working at my craft on a regular basis, as a result of truly, I discover that once I’m stress-free and never working, and even eager about working, that’s when the concepts come and I get impressed. It’s these tips that I attempt to discover to make it pleasurable and invigorating, as an alternative of the burden or strain of getting to do one thing. Making a report is filled with potential, full of pleasure after which comes the purpose of showing what it’s I’ve accomplished, as a result of I don’t actually know what I’ve accomplished till I hear the entire thing again.”
It doesn’t get way more private than speaking about key moments in your individual life, together with songs that probe into the yin and yang of the connection between husband and spouse [Ungerleider’s husband is noted drummer Cam Giroux] or of that between a mom and her daughter [Ramona].
The division of the ten songs into ones from the previous and ones from current is a good way for Ungerleider to concentrate on very particular episodes from her life, together with the fantastically evocative tune ‘Juniper’ which is about being in love, after which the equally compelling ‘Mount Shasta,’ the narrative of which revolved round an argument between she and Giroux. Equally, the tune ‘I’m Sorry & You’re Proper’ is riven with battle between mom and daughter and but can be so stunning in its portrayal of sincere and remorse and miscommunication and the will to wish to do higher and be higher – with out all the time figuring out how. ‘The Wilds’ comes from the admiration Ungerleider has for her daughter’s power and distinctive character and the hopes she has for her future.
“Lately I mentioned to my husband, ‘I’m about to go and carry out these songs and I’m going to be on a stage speaking in regards to the songs, and I don’t wish to do something that’s going to make you uncomfortable or say something that feels prefer it’s crossing a boundary.’ However he mentioned he trusts me. And I mentioned the identical factor to Ramona and she or he mentioned it was okay too. However I’m cautious about it. Generally it’s simple to say one thing for the sake of fun and typically it’s simple to get swept away by the impression you’re making or the narrative you’re telling. And what you’re saying could not truly be true, but it surely received’t be clear to the individual on the present who doesn’t have the microphone and isn’t telling the story that it’s not true,” she mentioned.
“It’s a delicate concern, and it’s going to be one thing I continuously need to remind myself to watch out about – the truth that they’re not right here to inform their model. So these songs actually are my perspective. It’s not likely what occurred, it’s what I believe, what I perceived occurred, or what I’m speaking about or the emotional facet of what occurred, from my perspective.”
‘I’m Sorry & You’re Proper,’ just about hits the feels of anybody who has had youngsters, or who has been a child. But the universality of the subject material makes it relatable sufficient to most anybody. It’s the element, the descriptiveness, the shading and colouring and textures created by the lyrical setting that makes the tune an emotional dynamo. In the end these extremely private, relationship-oriented songs aren’t about proper or mistaken, or pure love, however in regards to the gray areas, the muddied waters of life and family members, the decision of battle, – actual life, actual household stuff in all its hues.
“After all that tune began from an actual factor. A whole lot of it is extremely actual. However I bear in mind pondering, am I actually going to write down a tune like this? As a result of I simply had this form of melodic thought after which the ideas, the phrases began popping out, particularly ‘I cornered you within the lavatory.’ I’m like, ‘am I actually going to sing about that?’ It feels bizarre, as a result of it truly occurred, and it was a particular second,” Ungerleider mentioned.
“Simply studying these phrases is bizarre. It felt actually unusual firstly to try this. After which I mentioned, effectively, it’s what’s in my head, I would like to only belief that it’s going to work out. And that’s the opposite factor that I’ve realized; typically I would write and I may not truly do something with the phrases. They’re simply one thing I would like to write down, and so they will not be for public consumption. I believe that’s what I mentioned to myself once I was writing that tune, and that helped me to be open for something.
“At factors within the tune, it’s form of lighthearted sounding. However it wasn’t. It captures this second the place I felt like I used to be displaying a very ugly aspect of myself in that second. After which to write down it into the tune, I ponder, ‘is that moral?’ Or is it that I’m simply being cute? Am I simply taking it simple on myself by writing a tune saying, ‘I’m sorry,’ however am I truly going to be higher? It nonetheless goes by my thoughts ‘am I going to dwell as much as these phrases or is that this only a humorous little anecdote?’ So, yeah, there’ve been sophisticated moments of writing and I’m continuously asking myself what I’m going to disclose and the way a lot am I going to say about it.”
The selection to write down, report and launch music below her personal identify invoked a way of freedom from the restraints of the expectations of others, permitting for a extra versatile inventive course of, the place the one boundaries had been ones imposed by Ungerleider herself. A part of this got here from the truth that as time, and life and the universe, modified and developed, Ungerleider discovered herself tapping into her personal questions and quandaries increasingly as sources of inspiration.
“There’s been a giant shift for me from making an attempt to sing songs that sound like what folks songs are about, which have a type of fact to them by their telling, however that are extremely fictionalized. I suppose it was the Lady in Teen Metropolis report [2017] the place writing about my very own particular life actually opened the door to the place I might really feel individuals actually connecting to this new specificity. Now individuals discuss this on a regular basis, so it’s not an enormous thought within the larger scheme of issues that one thing that’s particular to the artist turns into resonant for different individuals. However I actually started to really feel it – I felt this encouragement and this emotional connection once I began singing songs that had been very a lot autobiographical and that inspired me to go additional,” she mentioned, including that it’s extra the depth of this self-examination is what’s actually grow to be extra pronounced over the past two information.
“I’ve all the time been motivated to precise issues that I really feel strongly about after which I hope that different individuals will really feel that too and join with it. It’s not all that totally different right this moment, it’s simply that what I’m revealing is extra overtly private. However I notice there are other ways to strategy songwriting. Not everyone seems to be writing to have this deep, private, emotional connection. They’re making an attempt to write down to have enjoyable and create pleasure or one thing to bop to. However I’m doing stuff to mine feelings and get nearer to feelings and so if I’m feeling emotional about what’s popping out, then that’s signal, and I ought to transfer in the direction of that, even when it feels embarrassing or weak or unusual, or even when I don’t suppose it’s going to imply something to another person.”
In an age when ‘branding’ is every little thing and linked to so many issues exterior of the particular inventive output, Ungerleider admits there was a little bit trepidation earlier than selecting to emerge from the cocoon of her former identify.
“I had blended emotions about it. I don’t remorse shifting. A part of the rationale why I blew it up was as a result of my music didn’t actually match the branding any extra. And in order that felt actually bizarre to maintain utilizing this identify that indicated an entire slew of issues that didn’t match what I used to be eager about or doing and the fashion I used to be in, or the songs I used to be writing. After which there’s the truth that it [the name was based on a well-known 19th century American song] conjures up minstrelsy and slavery and repression, that was type of the tipping level of eliminating it. So, it did really feel liberating to do away with it, but additionally scary,” she mentioned.
“I took me some time to get used to having my identify be, like, the official artist identify as a result of I’ve all the time felt, ‘what does it imply to anyone else.’ I do know what it means to me as a connection to my household and my ancestors and issues like that. However that was form of a personal, private factor. And now it’s my public identify, which feels nice, but it surely additionally feels a little bit bit nebulous. I can’t management what individuals see or suppose, which is type of the scary factor to really feel such as you’re giving up management over. And I believe that’s what I used to be doing firstly, controlling how individuals would body me.
“And at first it was completely appropriate and it felt actually good, like that was the place I needed to be. After which because the framing started to really feel mistaken, I needed to let it go. However it has liberated me in that I don’t really feel constrained to make sure sorts of music. I believe I’ll proceed to make music that’s, you realize, folky and acoustic – it’s not like there’s any hazard of me making a dance report. However it permits me to be extra private about it, and once I’m onstage, I don’t need to create a thriller persona anymore. I can simply be a model of myself once I’m on stage, which I believe additionally helps with connecting and letting me inform tales verbally, not simply by the music, in a approach that I might be if I used to be conversing with a buddy.”
Since her Oh Susanna days, Ungerleider has labored steadily with famous Canadian producer/songwriter Jim Bryson, with the 2 as soon as once more getting collectively to masterfully produce Among the many Evergreens.
“I suppose we first began our relationship of producer and artist once I made Identify Dropper, in order that was 2012. We began to try this album, however we didn’t fairly end it or launch it for a number of years as a result of I had breast most cancers [in 2013]. So it was 2012 once I got here up with the thought of him producing that challenge, after which we’ve accomplished the previous few tasks collectively fairly constantly. However it’s not like I’m speaking to him on a regular basis. I’m off writing alone after which we talk as mates, however then once I say, ‘let’s do some recording,’ it’s go time. So it’s type of natural that approach,” she mentioned.
“We’ve been mates since 2001 or one thing like that. So we had a decade or extra of simply being mates earlier than we began working collectively. The truth is, the thought of him producing is type of out of left subject as a result of he wasn’t actually producing information on the time. I simply actually favored his weirdness and that he would take me in a distinct path than what another person may. I knew he wouldn’t do the standard stuff that another producer would do. And since we all know one another so effectively, he might be fairly sincere with me and vice versa. Generally that’s a difficulty as a result of because the individual pouring their soul our within the studio, I need a little bit of coddling or no matter, and it doesn’t all the time occur. I imply, we’re type of like siblings in that approach. However general I believe it’s been good. And I belief his judgement and I additionally belief his tempo of labor. For probably the most half, we just about agree on how issues ought to go.”
After greater than 25 years within the music business, and with a robust sense of introspective goal, it’s going to be an attention-grabbing journey for followers and Ungerleider herself to see – and listen to – what comes subsequent.
“I’m nonetheless studying. I’m nonetheless studying tips on how to be human. I’m nonetheless studying tips on how to be in relationship with different people who I care about. And even with the broader world, I’m nonetheless studying. I believe I’m fortunate, too, as a result of as an artist, I’m in a world the place all of that studying and rising is allowed. I’m allowed to navel-gaze. And I notice I’m so blessed as a result of that’s one thing that only a few individuals can do – it’s not a part of their work to be navel gazing, however my work encourages that,” she mentioned.
As for seeing and listening to her dwell, plans are underway for some touring in Canada and different components of the world over the following yr or so.
“I’m doing a report launch present in Vancouver on June 19 and I’m making an attempt to get my shit collectively to return to Ontario in October, so keep tuned for that. I’ve some Alberta dates booked for March of 2026 after which I’m going again to Europe in April and Could of subsequent yr and possibly the UK as effectively,” she mentioned.
For extra data, go to https://suzieungerleider.com/.
- Jim Barber is a veteran award-winning journalist and creator based mostly in Napanee, ON, who has been writing about music and musicians for greater than 30 years. Moreover his journalistic endeavours, he works as a communications and advertising specialist, and is an avid volunteer in his neighborhood. Contact him at jimbarberwritingservices@gmail.com.
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