Salvation through song _{by Madelaine Empson}

Titled after a lyric from the closing track Goodbye – “about losing someone you love, but also losing a version of yourself in the process” – Belong to Someone Else is an alt-pop, soft-edged snapshot of a period of untethering. Edwards wrote and tracked it all within the month following one intense week in November 2025.

You say that week ‘saw an inescapable need to express and seek salvation through songwriting’. Are you comfortable elaborating?

It was definitely a hectic week. I was grieving a lot of changes happening in my life while I was living in Dunedin and it got to the point where I needed to spend a week back home in Christchurch to reset. It turned into a bit of a dopamine detox. I locked my phone in a drawer and spent the first couple of days reading and going on long walks. Up until then I’d never really felt the need to write songs for myself. Playing in bands and collaborating had always been enough, and I think I was a little scared of what my writing would sound like if it was just me.

Eventually, I picked up a guitar and all that self-judgement disappeared. Suddenly, I couldn't stop writing. I had this feeling that the motivation might not last, so I wanted to make the most of it. I started pulling together old riffs and melodies I’d written over the years that had never found a home in my bands.

The biggest hurdle was always lyrics. Writing and composing music has always come naturally to me, but singing something so personal felt incredibly exposing. I remember telling myself, ‘It’s going to feel cringe no matter what, so I may as well say exactly what I want to say.’ That ended up becoming the defining characteristic of the EP. Every song is completely honest and, regardless of how I feel about the finished product, I’m proud that it’s genuinely me.

Considering your experience playing live in bands, how are you feeling about the upcoming solo tour?

I’m beyond excited... These shows will be a different experience from playing with The Beatniks and other such projects. Those gigs are all about energy, dancing, and creating chaos in the best possible way. My solo music is a little more reflective, so I can’t promise any stage dives, but I’m looking forward to taking the audience on more of a journey and letting the songs tell a story.

That said, the Wellington show will see some of that chaos return. To close out the night at San Fran, I’m bringing The Beatniks together for our first show in Te Whanganui-a-Tara since late last year, which should make for a pretty special stop on the tour.