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
Welcome Home
Tegan and Sara Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
no they cast down such a wonderful heat
masking beauty
by a terrible fate
if you fly too close and then you turn too late
the night still confuses me
we'd all get tired and have to sleep eventually
regardless of the sun's demands
you moved so far that I know how far
and then you got so sad that I, I bought a car
yes I'll come get you
and I will bring you home
I'll come get you
and I will bring you home
he sat me down
he said he was incomplete
he thinks true love's gonna get him back on his feet
he said you only find love once in your life
so I guess when you find it
you're gonna hold it right
you'll hold it right
it makes no sense
cos there's no sense in it at all
we all wait around
we wait for you to get tired and fall
as your shadow it resumes in me
yes your shadow it was made for me
she speaks clearly
he speaks loudly
I speak only clearly loudly
yes she speaks clearly
he speaks loudly
I speak only clearly loudly
yeah my shadow well it resumes with me
yes my shadow well it was made for me
she told me love will come once in your life
so I guess when you find it
you're gonna hold it right
you're gonna hold it right
you hold it right
you moved so far that I knew exactly how far
and then you got so sad that I, I bought a car
yes I'll come get you
and I will bring you home
I'll come get you
and I will bring you home
I'll come get you
and I'll say
welcome home
The lyrics of "Welcome Home" by Tegan and Sara are open to various interpretations, but they seem to revolve around the theme of love, distance, and the desire to come back home to the one you love. The opening lines suggest that the rays of the sun, or the harsh realities of life, don't bother the singer because they are masking the beauty that lies in deeper emotions. The reference to flying too close and then turning too late might be a nod to the myth of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and melted his wings. It could also suggest a fear of getting too close to someone and then realizing too late that you've lost them.
As the song progresses, the singer talks about the confusion that comes with nightfall and the inevitability of rest, regardless of the sun's demands. The idea seems to be that love and relationships are like the sun: they demand attention and effort, but there's only so much you can do before you need to take a break. The line "you moved so far that I know how far" suggests that the singer's loved one has gone away, physically or emotionally, and that they are feeling the distance. The line "he sat me down, he said he was incomplete" could refer to a conversation with a friend or lover who is struggling with their own sense of self-worth and place in the world. Through it all, the singer seems to be holding onto the idea that love will come once in your life and that when you find it, you're going to hold onto it tightly.
Overall, "Welcome Home" is a song that speaks to the universal desire to connect with others and find a sense of belonging. The lyrics are rich with imagery and metaphors, but at their core, they are about the human heart and the yearning for love and intimacy.
Line by Line Meaning
the sun's rays don't bother me
I am unfazed by the heat and brightness of the sun's rays
no they cast down such a wonderful heat
in fact, the sun's rays possess a wonderful warmth
masking beauty
though sometimes the brightness of the sun conceals the beauty around us
by a terrible fate
and its brightness can also lure us into unpleasant circumstances
if you fly too close and then you turn too late
just like flying too close to the sun and getting burned, sometimes we realize too late the dangers around us
the night still confuses me
despite the challenges of the day, I still find the mysteriousness of the night perplexing
we'd all get tired and have to sleep eventually
everyone gets tired and needs rest eventually, regardless of the sun's demands
regardless of the sun's demands
despite the expectations or pressures of society
regardless if it made much sense
even if the actions or decisions made may not completely make sense
you moved so far that I know how far
you moved away from me so much that it is now clearer how much of a distance there is between us
and then you got so sad that I, I bought a car
when you became upset, I took it upon myself to take action and bought a car to come and get you
yes I'll come get you
I will make the effort to come get you
and I will bring you home
and I will bring you back to a place you feel safe and comfortable
he sat me down
someone sat me down to speak with me
he said he was incomplete
he confessed that he felt unfinished or lacking
he thinks true love's gonna get him back on his feet
he believes that finding true love will help him feel better and more complete
he said you only find love once in your life
he shared that he believes that love is rare and only comes around once
so I guess when you find it
thus, when love is found
you're gonna hold it right
you want to keep it tight and not let go
it makes no sense
sometimes things happen that cannot be explained
cos there's no sense in it at all
because there is no logical explanation for it
we all wait around
we all stand idly by, waiting
we wait for you to get tired and fall
we wait for you to reach your limit before we take action
as your shadow it resumes in me
your presence still lingers within me like a shadow
yes your shadow it was made for me
your shadow feels like it was meant to be with mine
she speaks clearly
she communicates her thoughts and feelings effectively
he speaks loudly
he is vocal and assertive
I speak only clearly loudly
I may not be assertive, but when I speak, I am clear and direct
yeah my shadow well it resumes with me
my shadow remains with me
yes my shadow well it was made for me
it feels like my shadow was always meant to be by my side
she told me love will come once in your life
she shared with me that love is a rare occurrence
so I guess when you find it
thus, if you are lucky enough to find it
you're gonna hold it right
you're going to make sure to hold onto it tightly
you hold it right
you make sure to hold onto love appropriately
and I'll say
and I will speak
welcome home
to welcome you back where you belong, to feel safe and loved
Contributed by Adeline Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.