Holy Nowhere - Soft Return
Led by a hypnotic swirl of bouncy rhythms, plucked bass strings, warm and lilting guitars and a compressed electronic beat, the track shines with honeyed vocals as he sings of hours of quiet contemplation. – Earmilk
Holy Nowhere is an exciting new endeavour, led by the creative talents of New Jersey native and Seattle-resident, Steve Sachs. Formerly known for crafting guitar-driven, fuzz-pop anthems with his band YJY, Sachs’s journey took an unexpected turn, leading him to the west coast and a moment of profound introspection. – Plastic Mag
New Jersey native and current Seattle-resident, Steve Sachs made a name for himself writing guitar-driven, fuzz-pop bangers with his former band, YJY. After putting out a handful of well received EPs, an album and playing countless sweaty, wall-to-wall packed basement shows throughout The Garden State, they called it quits. Sachs anxiously moved to the west coast for a fresh start, and like many singer-songwriters, found himself writing less and less. Then out of nowhere he experienced a panic attack so profound that for a brief moment everything in his life was called into question. His feelings, desires, fears, the whole world around him. It was a shock to the system and to his total surprise, it would reignite the creative fire inside him and he soon found himself cranking out new demos that felt organic, unforced — inspired.
On a whim a friend introduced him to distinguished (and mega talented) artist/producer, all-around-creative, Dana Why (Yawn Mower, Dana Why, Grasser), who was open to collaborating on the songs and the rest is history. Dana helped build and shape the demos into an album’s worth of next-level ear-candy unlike anything Sachs had done before. Blending catchy, intoxicating elements of electronic pop and indie rock, razor sharp lyricism, and ultra polished production, the result is his deeply personal, new solo project, Holy Nowhere.
Sachs and Dana’s collaboration was accomplished one hundred percent remotely — The Postal Service-style — sending ideas back and forth from coast to coast over the course of a year and a half. And despite having met only once face to face, the LP is airtight. Sachs sent Dana rough ideas, and then, as he describes it, “Dana would then send me a beautiful, incredible instrumental version of my song—this usually felt like hearing it for the first time and was a very exciting part of the process.” One listen to “Save You”, and it’s easy to see why Dana has been featured in publications like AltPress, American Songwriter and on MTV.
In context of its full musical weight, Sachs’ lyrics feel far from disheartening. In fact, they feel more like a gracious invitation to face the world honestly, without crutches. The meaning is ultimately up to the listener. “I hope that some people find this song reassuring and that some people find it nihilistic,” says Sachs. “My position is that it’s both and neither.” But whatever the message may mean to you, the soundtrack is a hit.