When Philadelphia indie-folk outfit Sadurn quietly arrived with their 2022 debut, ‘Radiator’, the record's raw honesty immediately struck a chord. Captured via a serendipitous cold email to Run For Cover Records, their overnight visibility brought an intense wave of scrutiny that songwriter G DeGroot was not entirely prepared to navigate.
“Right after we finished Radiator I already had new songs, but the idea that now there was some kind of expectation did change things in a negative way for me," DeGroot explains. "So much of my sense of self had become tied up in the band, I got kind of swept up in the pressure of these internalised ideas about what’s going to be good for you or your life.”
This emotional weight compounded a period of intense personal upheaval, including a painful relationship breakdown and severe physical ailments. The physical toll threatened to derail everything. “I was having chronic pain, problems with my voice, gut issues, It felt so urgent to try and keep things going, but my body was saying no.”
Thankfully, their resilience has culminated in the announcement of their second album, ‘The Underworld’, arriving this October via Run For Cover and Civilians. The magnificent lead single, 'whole thing', serves as a brilliant testament to this challenging period of self-reflection. Characterised by its gradual, deliberate pacing, the track opens with sparse, organic acoustic strumming that lets DeGroot’s fragile, upfront vocals take centre stage. Rather than rushing the arrangement, the band allows the track to breathe, steadily introducing a weeping pedal steel and a soft, rhythmic drumbeat.
The true brilliance of 'whole thing' lies in its patient structural growth. It slowly expands from a quiet bedroom-pop confession into a richly layered, panoramic indie-rock storm. It is a stunning stylistic evolution that feels deeply therapeutic, mirroring DeGroot’s internal journey through adversity. As a conceptual framework for the upcoming record, this transition represents a conscious choice to emerge from grief stronger than before.
“The underworld is the hard times, but it’s also about getting back,” says DeGroot. “You go into the underworld so you can find clarity about your own being and come back changed. That’s just my fundamental belief about healing, it’s not about wallowing but you do need to move towards the darkness in order to transform it and get unstuck. It’s how you discover your most important powers.”
With 'whole thing', Saturn has delivered a remarkably grounded piece of art that promises great things for their next chapter. Make sure you clear some space on your digital playlists and track Sadurn's journey across their official streaming platforms and Instagram for more updates.
