For the next edition of our Five Minutes with series, we spoke with Australian artist Lisa Caruso about her stunning new EP, Stretching. Channelling the likes of Joni Mitchell and Martha Wainwright, it’s a cinematic and expansive release; available to collect as a Digital Pressing now!

Serenade: Hey Lisa, how are you doing? Congratulations on the release of your new EP, and on your first Digital Pressing release! Tell us a little about it - how long has it been in the works?

Lisa Caruso: Really good thanks! Thank you :) 'Stretching' EP is a project I've managed to get together from pre-production to release in about 9 months. I spent quite a few years on my debut album 'In Feelings', so I really wanted the next thing to be snappier, with the intent to keep releasing that way. The songs are ones I wrote in lockdowns, so they ask questions with aims to provoke thought. And a little something different for me too, is that I went 'synth' in arrangement. It was super fun to layer the songs up with some different sounds.

S: There's a really expansive sound to the EP, with your vocal front and centre on most tracks - which feels very cinematic and wistful. Where does that inspiration come from, and which artists and sounds did you draw from on this release?

LC: Thanks! I’m glad you think so. Music in film is one of the things that drew me to record music. Stemming back to Baz Luhrmann’s ‘96 make of Romeo and Juliet, what a cool soundtrack, and how powerful scenes are when paired with the perfect song to marry them. I also love a bit of drama and theatre in music. My writing starts from an honest heart, but I then like to exaggerate and bring those thoughts to an imaginary world. It’s more fun that way, and helps me to not get bored with the process! Ha. As far as artists and sounds, I was listening to a heap to Sharon Van Etten, Weyes Blood, Jonathon Wilson, and Lana Del Ray, and also drew from some 90s pop nostalgia from my teens :)

S: When it comes to songwriting and producing, what's your process like? How do you tend to get started on a song?

LC: I tend to set myself up at an instrument with a pen and paper and see what comes out. I’ve always been one to write music and lyrics intuitively as I go. It’s where I find the most natural flow. As far as production goes, that also happens as I write. I might hear little melodies or a bass line and sing them into my phone for future. I need to get better at demo-ing on the computer from the get go!

S: You've also experimented with releasing a Digital Pressing with your first EP, which of course we love. What attracted you to trying out this new format?

LC: Yeh! I’m super excited to be joining the digital world. I feel like 2023 has seen a pretty major shift in technology and what we can do to now take back art and make it more user, artist, and environmentally friendly. Collecting online is a very fun concept I’m totally on board with. It’s brand new world out there! And I love the idea of connecting with fans further, giving them a little something more for their interest, and of course, for their support behind streaming!

S: It must feel like a really significant emotional release getting the EP out into the world! What's next?

LC: Oh, yes and no. I guess anything we create holds a lot of importance, but maybe doing it the third time round (I also recorded an EP before the album), there’s more of an ease as you half know what to expect, and have practiced what you’re doing. Moving forward with this recording, I decided I only wanted to keep creating so long as it wasn’t a stressful process. I plan to record another five tracks soon, and just keep doing what I’m doing! More shows would be great, and I’d love to do more collaborating, especially with the art side of things. Hopefully we shall see it all on Serenade soon!

S: And finally, who would your dream collaboration be with?

LC: Tricky one! Maybe Martha Wainwright. She’s my first music love so I’ll stay loyal to her :) I imagine she’d have such a cool approach to writing, and would also just be amazing company, and such a cack! She’d teach anyone a lot about channeling genuinity into any type of art, I think.