Sara Hartman has her feet firmly on the Indie ground, and she stands tall on her own.

 

It’s a very clichéd image of the contemporary musical songstress that she will be involved with either an acoustic guitar, a heart full of blues, a tweed-clad backing group of folksters, or followed by costumed backing dancers as she sings with autotune and/or sexualises herself. So, in many ways, Sara Hartman is a lungful of fresh air.

Her latest single, Two Feet Off The Ground, is a rousing indie track that, while it may have twangs of a folk element, positions her as an exception to a generally-accepted rule. She is a solo artist who isn’t wielding an acoustic and is capable of producing a rallying track with a dominating lead guitar riff and a call-and-response refrain just begging for anthemic status.

The scratchy guitar opening feels as if it could go either way, but Hartman rewards those who don’t dismiss her as just another solo folk female. It feels very aware of its own significance; as if Hartman is deliberately evoking a preconception of the stereotype, just to turn her back on it. Clever.

It’s refreshing to see a solo female artist tackle indie-pop and indie-rock without a backing band. She is capable, talented both musically and structurally, and much needed in the indie scene.