Rising Act to Watch out For: Saramai

Before Meath band Saramaj formed in October 2015, singer-keyboardist Saramai Leech was a solo artist. She asked her husband, guitarist Cormac O’Keeffe, and friend, drummer Aimie Mallon, to play on tour with her. The chemistry was so natural, that before anyone had realised it, happenstance had brought them together as a three piece.

Labelling their sound is currently a work in progress, though Saramai suggest the phrase ‘euphoric alt-pop’. “Our music is emotional, but it’s not emo,” Leech laughingly explains. “We don’t want people to get the wrong idea. At the moment, I’m really interested in the thick, textural stuff of Beach House, the rhythmic sound of Feist, and the vocal styles of Beck and Gaz Combes.”

At the beginning of the year, Saramaj recorded a live EP in two days at Attica recording studios in Donegal with renowned producer Tommy McLaughlin, who has worked with Villagers, Bell X1 and Soak.

“There’s an honesty to it,” says Saramaj of the live EP. “This is what we sound like. It’s a time in our career that’s documented on record, and hopefully we can bring that approach to our upcoming album as well.”

See: Saramai’s EP launch takes place at Whelan’s on October 19. Hear: Saramai’s top tracks on Spotify.