The duo has released nine studio albums so far: Under Feet Like Ours (1999), This Business of Art (2000), If It Was You (2002), So Jealous (2004), The Con (2007), Sainthood (2009), Heartthrob (2013), Love You to Death (2016) and Hey, I'm Just Like You (2019). They also issued the live album/DVD Get Along in 2011 and their memoir High School in 2019.
Tegan and Sara initially played as Plunk in 1995, and lacked a drummer and bass player. In 1997, they used their school’s recording studio to record two demo albums: Who's in Your Band? and Play Day.
In 1998, they made an early breakthrough by winning Garage Warz Battle of the Bands, a local music competition in Calgary. Since then, the two have toured with Neil Young, Rufus Wainwright, Kaki King, The Pretenders, Ben Folds, The Killers, Rachael Cantu, Vivek Shraya, Cake, Gogol Bordello, Hot Hot Heat, Ryan Adams, Veda Hille, Little Birdy, Iron On, Little Brazil, Bryan Adams, and Weezer, and they performed a show at Sarah McLachlan's Lilith Fair.
They are signed to Neil Young's Vapor Records in Canada, and to Sire in the United States as their previous label, Sanctuary Records, is no longer releasing new music in the United States.
When they were competing in Garage Warz, they were known as "Sara and Tegan" because that is how their mother registered them on the competition forms. Their first album, Under Feet Like Ours, was initially released under the name "Sara and Tegan". While both twins are similarly involved in vocals and playing instruments, the singing of the lead melody usually goes to whichever twin wrote the particular song. The two hardly sang together in the recordings of their early records, but they started to more on their later records and when live.
On their 2004 album, So Jealous, the two lend their unusual voices and simple guitar riffs to power pop ballads about love and emotional, haunting songs such as "Walking With a Ghost".
The fifth album, The Con, released July 24, 2007, showed a shift in style towards darker tunes compared to the relatively upbeat indie pop of So Jealous. The singles "Back in Your Head", "The Con" and "Call It Off" were issued to support the album. The twins toured the album for over a year and a half.
Their sixth studio album, entitled Sainthood, was released on October 27th, 2009, to generally positive reviews. The album included the singles "Hell", "Alligator", "On Directing" and "Northshore".
Tegan and Sara also collaborated with many other artists, including Tiësto for the single "Feel It in My Bones" (from the album Kaleidoscope, 2009), and Morgan Page for the single "Body Work" (from the album In the Air, 2012).
"Closer", the first single from their seventh album was produced by Californian pop producer Greg Kurstin. The song was made available for download September 25, 2012. On 29 January 2013, Tegan and Sara released their seventh studio album, Heartthrob.
The duo's eighth studio album, titled Love You To Death, was released on 3 June 2016. The lead single Boyfriend was released on 8 April. Greg Kurstin returned as the producer.
On October 20, 2017, the duo released a compilation album titled Tegan and Sara Present the Con X: Covers, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of The Con. The compilation contains covers of each song performed by various artists, as well as a previously unreleased demo “Miami Still”, performed by the duo. The proceeds of the record and subsequent tour benefitted the Tegan and Sara Foundation, which raises money for self-identified women and girls in the LGBTQ community.
The duo released their memoir, High School, on 27 September 2019. It recounts their childhood and adolescence growing up in Alberta in the 1990s as well as their musical beginnings. The book debuted at number fifteen on The New York Times Hardcover Nonfiction best-sellers list. Along with the book, Tegan and Sara's released their ninth studio album, Hey, I'm Just Like You, which contains re-recordings of unreleased demo songs that the duo recorded as teenagers. The record was produced by Alex Hope and is the first Tegan and Sara record produced, performed, engineered, mixed, and mastered by a team of all women. The band embarked on a US, Canada and UK tour to promote the book and album, playing mostly acoustically, reading excerpts from the book and incorporating old video footage from the band's teenage years.
The current live touring band members include Ted Gowans (guitar; 2004-present), Jasper Leak (bass; 2012-present), John Spence (keyboards; 2012-present), and Adam Christgau (drums; 2013-present). Former live touring band members include Johnny Andrews (drums; 2006-2010), Shaun Huberts (bass; 2007-2010), Dan Kelly (bass; 2007), Chris Carlson (bass; 2001-2005), Rob Chursinoff (drums; 2001-2005) and Jason McGerr (drums; 2012).
Official site: http://www.teganandsara.com
Don't be Cruel
Tegan and Sara Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
and what you don't know is that i love the way you make my heart tear up
so come on come on come on come on
yeah come on come on come on come on
don't be so cruel
don't be so cruel
don't promise me anything
i've got everything that i need
and what you don't know is that i love the way you make my heart tear up
come on come on come on come on
yeah come on come on come on come on
don't be so cruel
don't be so cruel
don't promise me anything
i've got everything that i need
i need love in a good way
i'm feeling fine
gotta get away
i need love in a good way
i'm feeling fine
gotta get away
i need love in a good way
i'm feeling fine
gotta get away
i need love in a good way
i'm feeling fine
gotta get away
come on come on come on come on
yeah come on come on come on come on
don't be so cruel
don't be so cruel
don't promise me anything
i've got everything that i need
don't be cruel
don't be so cruel
don't promise me anything
i'm everything that i need"
The lyrics to Tegan and Sara's song Don't be Cruel convey the theme of a longing for a relationship with love. The singer confesses that she hasn't seen love in a long time and since then hasn't been worth much. It feels like years since they last saw each other, even though it hasn't been that long. The singer admits that the last time they were together, it could have worked out better, but they belong together, and love shouldn't be a stranger in their life. Love knows its way around the singer's heart, but the problem is that love doesn't see well in the dark. So the singer leaves a light on, assuring love that there's no reason to get scared, any time of day or night, love is always welcome to come back. In the past, when love left, they separated on a bad note, and the singer cried, but this time, she wants to be smarter, try a little bit harder, and not wind up in tears. Now that they're talking, the singer hopes that love will come around more often and not be a stranger anymore.
The song's message is emotional, and its lyrics have a sense of longing, anxiety, and hope. The song's title, "Don't be Cruel," has an ironic effect on the lyrics of the song because it contradicts the actual meaning. The song is about a heartfelt appeal to love not to be cruel, and this contrasts with the title that suggests the opposite. The structure of the song alternates a chorus and verses, with the chorus having a slightly different melody from the verses. The song's melody is catchy, and the harmony of the two sisters' voices is pleasant. The general sound of the song has a pop and folk feel to it, with a hint of indie rock.
Line by Line Meaning
Love I haven't seen you in a long time
I haven't felt genuine love in a while
Since then I ain't been worth a dime
Since I last experienced love, I haven't felt valuable or worthy
Hasn't been that long
Although it hasn't been a notable amount of time
But it feels like years
It feels like a long time without love
Last time it could have worked out better
The last time I experienced love, I could have done things differently to make it work better
But you know we belong together
Deep down, you know we are meant to be together
Love don't be a stranger round here
Love, don't be distant or a stranger here in my heart
You know your way around my heart
You understand and know how to make my heart feel love
But I know you don't see well in the dark
I know that love can't see clearly when things are difficult
So I leave a light on and you won't get scared
I'll keep a light on for love so it won't be afraid to come back
In the morning or even at midnight
Anytime, whether it's early in the day or in the middle of the night
You can come on in its all right
Love is welcome to return without hesitation
Don't worry bout the danger
Don't fret about the risks or challenges
Love I'm a little bit smarter
I've learned and grown a bit since the last time we were together
And I'll try a little bit
I'll put in effort to make things work out this time
This time I won't wind up in tears
This time, I won't end up crying like last time
Love now that we're talking
Now that we're discussing our situation
Maybe you'll come around more often
Perhaps love will return more frequently
Last time you went away
The last time love left my life
You made me cry, cry, cry
You caused me to shed tears
Said I didn't need you anyway
I tried to convince myself that I didn't need love
But I lied, lied, lied
But in reality, I was lying to myself
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Bas Peters
sounds awesome i would like to listen to an album in this style
Lori Payne Benker
Great song...have never heard...am finding they have alot of unreleased songs that are hard to get ahold of...loooove me some T&S! :0)
tiffany amato
id KILL for a new recording of this
iamthelisa007
Awesome!!! A bit of influence from the Doors? So want this Mp3!
Schelsea94
I love tegan and sara, If you still have this song can you send it to me and any other unrealesed songs by them, ill message you my email. Thanks!!
drawyouafloorplan
I always loved that picture of her. So cute.
joelybgood
Great great song.!!
Krisher
haha wow this sounds very cool!
andrea
i think i will send you a message with my email to :D i want to listen to the song whenever i want ,it's a very good one.
elinahermansson
would you please send me this? :) never actually heard this one, cool!