Deep Dark Savage Heart is Pool’s second studio album. Her first, The Hurting Scene, was released in 2013 to great critical acclaim. “The first record was sort of like a heartbreak record, like a love record,” she says. “This one’s more of a life one, delving deeper.”
The album’s lead single, Love, She Loves Me, embodies the feeling of unrequited love without reverting to the clichés so often found in songs about heartbreak. Original and beautiful, it showcases Pool’s authentic and emotive songwriting style with lyrics such as, “My god, see that ego / It slaps me in my chest / I wish that I could rip it out to show you / You’re just like the rest.”
One might think such emotional depth could only surface after years of painstaking writing, working and reworking songs in order to find the perfect combination of music and lyrics. As it turns out, however, one couldn’t be more wrong.
“It’s quite impulsive really, quite lazy I think,” Pool says. “I usually just write as soon as it comes to me and I don’t ever sit down and make time to write. I just bottle things up for a couple of months and then I’ll sit down and write a song in an hour at most. Just get it out. It’s quite impulsive.
“I think it really does justice to the song. When I overthink it, over-edit or over analyse, I can get too caught up in it and it loses the emotion. It’s just very natural and I feel like if something needs to be written, it will be.”
Pool will be touring Deep Dark Savage Heart around the country next month, starting in Melbourne on May 13. After years playing small solo shows and touring with artists such as Marlon Williams, this will be her first large scale headline tour.
“I’ve done a few headlining tours before, but I guess this will be my first big one,” she says. “I’ve got my cellist and violinist playing and [travelling] with me on the road. I toured a lot solo for a long time. I don’t mind really, I like solo because you don’t have to rely on anyone else’s timing. But it’s nice to have people on the road, especially when it’s my cellist and violinist. They’re really good friends of mine, all girls – it’s a nice little chick tour.”
As for that co-headline tour with Kiwi expat Williams, Pool has plenty of fond memories. “It was one of the best tours I’ve done. It was fun – we didn’t have one fight. We learnt off each other. He sort of introduced me to his fans and I sort of introduced him to Australia and my fans. It was really lovely. I think we learn most about touring when it’s with someone else. Being in such close proximity, there’s no boundaries, no secrets.”
This time around indie rock artist Gena Rose Bruce and alt-country tunesmith William Crighton will be joining Pool on the road. “They’re two of my good friends. I love having connections to bring on the road who are friends. I really support them.”
With her beautiful vocals, sometimes sweetly innocent, sometimes emotionally raw, and honest approach to songwriting, a live performance by Pool is bound to be a magical experience to behold.
BY CASSIE HEDGER
