Sally grew up in Sydney where she was the vocalist and one of the founding members of power pop group Lustre 4, as well as playing guitar in Spdfgh in the 1990s. She then moved to Melbourne, Australia and re-invented her musical style to create New Buffalo. She adopted a sound that replaced guitars with keyboards over smooth paced bass and soothing beats.
New Buffalo's debut release was in February 2000 via Ben Lee's web site by way of a MP3 download of the track "16 Beats". The following year she signed with Modular and released the debut EP, About Last Night, featuring the aforementioned track. It was also released in the United Kingdom through Heavenly Recordings, which saw New Buffalo invited to tour throughout the UK supporting Ed Harcourt.
In 2002, Sally recorded some songs in Los Angeles with Jake Davies, but after Heavenly withdrew their financial support, she decided to set up her own home studio in Melbourne. This where she wrote, arranged and produced her debut album, The Last Beautiful Day, which was released in Australia in September 2004 on Dot Dash and August 23, 2005 on Arts & Crafts in North America. The album features special guest appearances by Beth Orton on backing vocals and Jim White of Dirty Three on drums.
In July 2005 a self-titled EP was released featuring two new songs - a collaboration with composer Rae Howell, and a duet with Sweden's Jens Lekman - plus re-mixes and re-worked versions of songs from the debut album.
On 24 March, 2007, Sally released her second LP, Somewhere Anywhere in Australia, and to North American audiences on August 28, 2007.
Sally also co-wrote the song 1234 (originally called Sally's Song) with Feist which was released on Feist's album The Reminder. The song was featured in a 2007 iPod Nano commercial and transformed Feist's career. By proxy, Sally's New Buffalo project became better known as she was mentioned in a number of publications, including Entertainment Weekly, which named her as an artist to watch in September 2007.
City And Sea
New Buffalo Lyrics
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Half in love with that
Nothing but a change of heart
To set you back
Apples on a tree
Babies on your knee
Taxis in your dreams are screaming
City and sea
Light versus tree
Mapping out the stars inside your brain
Completely different
But the same sort of sound
More easily found
This is what I wanted from the start
The day is light the night is dark
Wires over streets
Birds are building beats
Time and space are washing with your dirty sheets
Buried underground
Look at what we found
Resting and suggesting that we're homeward bound
City and sea
Light versus tree
Mapping out the stars inside your brain
Completely different
But the same sort of sound
More easily found
This is what I wanted from the start
The day is light the night is dark
Oh to be five
Happy and alive
Driving from the city to the countryside
Sameness in the same
Fighting is the game
Nameless is the lady who has gone insane
City and sea
Light versus tree
Mapping out the stars inside your brain
Completely different
But the same sort of sound
More easily found
This is what I wanted from the start
The day is light the night is dark
This is what I wanted
What I wanted from the start
The day is light the night is dark
It's light the night is dark
New Buffalo's song City And Sea is a beautiful exploration of contrasts and contradictions that exist within all of us. The lyrics reflect a sense of being emotionally torn between different loves - half in love with this, half in love with that - and the feeling that it only takes a change of heart to completely upset your life. The imagery used in the song, such as apples growing on a tree and babies on your knee, speak to the idea of growth, nurturing and new beginnings. There is also a sense of urgency conveyed throughout the song, with taxis screaming "wait for me" and the pulsing beat of the music reflecting a feeling of restlessness.
The song's title, City And Sea, speaks to the idea of two opposing elements coming together to create something beautiful. This is reflected in lines such as "light versus tree" and "mapping out the stars inside your brain" where the contrast between urban and natural landscapes highlights the complexity of our thoughts and emotions. The song also touches on the theme of memory and nostalgia, using the analogy of driving from the city to the countryside to convey a longing for a simpler time in one's life. Ultimately, the song suggests that despite our inner conflicts, we are all searching for something that is "completely different, but the same sort of sound".
Line by Line Meaning
Half in love with this
Partially infatuated with a particular thing
Half in love with that
Partially infatuated with another thing
Nothing but a change of heart
The only way to go back to the way things were
To set you back
To revert to a previous state of being
Apples on a tree
Fruit hanging from a branch
Babies on your knee
Infants sitting on your lap
Taxis in your dreams are screaming
Vehicles in your subconscious mind are crying out
"Wait for me!"
Asking to be delayed
City and sea
Metropolis and ocean
Light versus tree
Illumination vs. plant
Mapping out the stars inside your brain
Charting the celestial objects in your mind
Completely different
Wholly distinct
But the same sort of sound
Yet sharing similar auditory characteristics
More easily found
Easier to locate
This is what I wanted from the start
This was my original intent
The day is light the night is dark
Daytime is illuminated, nighttime is shadowy
Wires over streets
Cables strung across thoroughfares
Birds are building beats
Avians are constructing rhythms
Time and space are washing with your dirty sheets
Temporal and spatial elements are marred by soiled linens
Buried underground
Entombed beneath the surface
Look at what we found
Observe that which we uncovered
Resting and suggesting that we're homeward bound
Relaxing and implying that we are headed home
Oh to be five
Oh, the desire to be five years old
Happy and alive
Joyful and vital
Driving from the city to the countryside
Traveling from the urban area to rural locations
Sameness in the same
Similarity in identical objects
Fighting is the game
Conflict is the activity pursued
Nameless is the lady who has gone insane
The woman who went crazy is anonymous
Writer(s): Sally Mary Seltmann Copyright: Songs Of Smp
Contributed by Brayden H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.