Sarah Sokal joyfully wades into the battle of the sexes with her groovy new single and video Man Made — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Taken from the Montreal blues singer’s powerful album Twisted Games, this track is a funky, party-starting number that showcases Sokal’s potent pipes while bridging the musical gap between tradition and modernity (and providing a sharp lyrical counterpoint to the James Brown classic It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World).
Co-written by Sokal and Stewart McKie and produced by Marc Dube (who also mixed, recorded, and engineered the song), Man Made brings to mind the likes of classic Amy Winehouse and the late Sharon Jones with its feel-good, uplifting tempo and confident arrangement. Keyboardist Dave Lines complements Sokal’s introductory verse before guitarist Andy Dacoulis, bassist Dray Woods, and drummer Jean Nadeau get so funky they almost out-groove The Dap Kings.
“I feel like being a woman in the industry calls for having a male sherpa to climb up!” Sokal says. “I have always been accompanied by a chosen male advisor / protector. I would love to experience being more surrounded by women creatives in the future, but it wasn’t in my cards that much so far.”
Sokal, who cites Beth Hart and Susan Tedeschi as influences along with icons such as Peggy Lee, Etta James and Dinah Washington, grew up listening to rock and R&B in her teens. That passion resurfaced and solidified after meeting Dube for a coffee in Montreal a few years ago. “I had two songs written, and I had a strong desire to record a full blues album destined to be a vengeance album, turning the ugly I’ve experienced through my journey in the industry into something beautiful and empowering,” she says.
Wanting to put her own stamp on Twisted Games, Sokal found the freedom to “express myself better” with this record and developing her artistic identity and sound. She also says the creative process is what fuels her passion. “It is never fully conscious decisions; I just go along with my instincts,” Sokal says. “I like to paint and write songs without a plan or a proper canvas. That’s where the pure and true energy feeds my imagination.”
Sokal wrote her first song at age five, recorded her first single at 15, and performed as a teenager around Quebec before forming The Sarah Sokal Band. Her previous releases include EPs like Ink and Paper, Your Song and Broken Promises. The singer, who recently performed at Montreal’s Sutton en Blues Festival, was a runnerup in the International Songwriting Contest‘s Song of the Year category. She is also a vocal coach who has worked with Juno-winning artists.
Watch the video for Man Made above, play Sarah Sokal’s Twisted Games below, and roll the dice on her website, Facebook and Instagram.
