One look at the cover of Seja’s album We Have Secrets But Nobody Cares provides the perfect set of expectations for the keyboardist’s solo debut. It’s a photo of a felt and embroidery analogue synth, handmade by Seja Vogel herself, and it tells you almost everything you need to know about the album. It’s cute, it’s heavy on the 80s synth sound and after years of playing in bands, Seja has finally done it all on her own.
Known for her work on the synths in bands such as Regurgitator and Sekiden (as well as lending her skills to SPOD, David McCormack and The Mess Hall), Seja took some time out from collaborating to see if she could make something on her own. Of course, that’s not to say that she’s all on her lonesome – contributors include SPOD, Quan from Regurgitator and Seja’s own brother Mirko plays the role of producer.
Staying true to her well-known affection for analogue synths, Seja has constructed an endearing pop album situated somewhere between dancing and dreaming. Opening track I’ll Get to You echoes fellow Aussie 80s revivalists Cut Copy in its cosmic sound, both musically and vocally, and leads into Through the Backstreets, a track that could be considered ‘8-bit lite’, a sound that occurs on several tracks of the album.
On Framed You in Fiction, one of the stand-out tracks on the album, Seja enlists the vocal assistance of Saul Jarvie (formerly of Rival Flight) in a duet that is absolutely heart-wrenching and proves that synths are not just for dance music. Sing Me a Song Like You Said is another defining moment on the album – at first it’s very much like the majority of the other tracks on the album (dreamy affairs that will get your head nodding) but Seja’s true love prevails again with a synth line that is incredible in both its simplicity and emotion.
We Have Secrets But Nobody Cares is a dreamy pop concoction, perfect for a warm and lazy Sunday morning. There are moments that will draw you in, but otherwise you’ll be happy to let Seja wash over you and spill into your daydreams.