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.
It's True
New Buffalo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's coffee cups and magazines
You're breaking up
I hold the phone right to my ear
I'm sick of saying I wish you were here
I got myself into this mess
I chose to wear this stupid dress
My memory's no good for me
You are you are you are you are
It's true it's true it's true it's true
You are you are you are you are
It's true it's true it's true it's true
One million people with one idea
To get the hell right out of here
You've packed your car
You've packed brain
With things to lose
And things to gain
I see you now you're sitting there
With crumpled dreams and messed up hair
It's black and blue
It's black and white
It's exactly what I want tonight
You are you are you are you are
It's true it's true it's true it's true
The song "It's True" by New Buffalo tells a story of longing and desire for a distant lover. The singer of the song is on the phone with someone they care about but are far away from. It's five o'clock in the afternoon, and the singer is surrounded by coffee cups and magazines, creating a sense of mundanity and boredom. The chorus of the song repeats four times, with the phrase "you are you are you are you are" followed by "it's true it's true it's true it's true." This repetition emphasizes how important and true the singer's feelings for this person are.
The second verse of the song describes the singer's lover preparing to leave town with hopes of gaining or losing something new. The singer describes the lover's appearance with "crumpled dreams and messed up hair," creating a sense of rawness and vulnerability. The singer's desire is crystal clear with the phrase "it's exactly what I want tonight," revealing their deep longing for the lover.
In essence, "It's True" uses vivid imagery and repetition to convey the singer's emotional journey of missing and wanting someone who is far away. The song's slow, quiet melody adds to the sense of melancholy and introspection.
Line by Line Meaning
Five o'clock
The time of day when the events in the song are taking place.
There's coffee cups and magazines
There are objects in the physical environment around the singer.
You're breaking up
The person on the other end of the phone is losing cell service.
I hold the phone right to my ear
The singer is using a mobile phone to communicate with the other person.
I'm sick of saying I wish you were here
The singer misses the other person and wishes they were together.
I got myself into this mess
The singer is responsible for the situation they are in.
I chose to wear this stupid dress
The singer made a regrettable decision in their choice of clothing.
My memory's no good for me
The singer has a bad memory and it is causing them problems.
There's one place where I want to be
The singer has a specific location where they want to be.
You are you are you are you are
Repetition of the subject 'you.'
It's true it's true it's true it's true
Repetition of the statement that what is being said is true.
One million people with one idea
Many people share a common idea.
To get the hell right out of here
The common idea is to leave the current location as soon as possible.
You've packed your car
The other person has prepared to leave by getting in their car.
You've packed brain
The other person has mentally prepared to leave.
With things to lose
The other person is carrying possessions that they could potentially lose.
And things to gain
The other person also has objects that they could potentially gain.
I see you now you're sitting there
The singer has a visual image of the other person sitting in their car.
With crumpled dreams and messed up hair
The other person's emotional state is in disarray and their physical appearance is unkempt.
It's black and blue
The singer describes the color scheme of the other person's surroundings as dark and bruised.
It's black and white
Alternatively, the singer sees the other person's surroundings as being very clear-cut and stark.
It's exactly what I want tonight
The singer desires to be in the same situation as the other person, despite their difficult surroundings.
Contributed by Eli N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Derp Yerp
this woman is amazing. im absolutely in love with the new album
STC
this song feels so light and delightful like watching a balloon fly up in vast empty fields~
ctspectator
Beautiful. Her album is amazing.
candice andress
very majestic and float like, soft thoughts of love and caring enter my mind when I listen to this, she sets the tone of Love to a sweet medium, lovely!
Scott Herford
The harmonies are pure Avalanches.
54spiritedwill54
love it
Boojispud
First time a video itself made me want to buy an album... Glad I did.
Kanonamos
They just played this on ABC Dig music radio. I love those geniuses.
geohelkaz1
Beautiful.
gwz
Easily the best song from 2007 in my book. The video doesn't really catch my impression of the song, but I guess nothing does...