TASH SULTANA Generates Over 1 Billion Streams Overall + Critical Praise For ‘Terra Firma’ Album
DATE: MARCH 16, 2021
FROM: MARCEE RONDAN/MITCH SCHNEIDER
TASH SULTANA
BUILDS ON GLOBAL SUCCESS
WITH MORE THAN ONE BILLION STREAMS
GARNERS FIRST #1 ALBUM
WITH ‘TERRA FIRMA’
IN THEIR NATIVE AUSTRALIA
EARNS CRITICAL ACCLAIM
FOR SOPHOMORE ALBUM RELEASED FEBRUARY 19
ON MOM + POP MUSIC
WORLDWIDE TOUR DATES KICK OFF SEPTEMBER 1
With their sophomore album TERRA FIRMA, TASH SULTANA continues to expand their global success with more than one billion streams and their first #1 album on their native Australian ARIA Albums Chart, along with a Rolling Stone Australia cover story.
The February 19 release of the genre-defying 14-track album on Mom + Pop Music, composed, arranged, performed, engineered and produced by TASH, has been greeted with an array of critical accolades praising the artist’s artistic evolution. TASH–singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and electrifying performer–has added to the looped and layered jams with a dazzling patchwork of soul, funk, R&B, folk, rock, hip-hop–you name it. The result is TASH’s most ambitious triumph to date.
NME (UK) noted in their review that “The Aussie star embraces all sounds but maintains a delicate vulnerability on album number two…” with THE GUARDIAN (UK) saying “TERRA FIRMA is as expansive and chilled as we’ve come to expect from Sultana…” GUITAR PLAYER in the U.S. says: “It’s a deceptively crafty concoction that feels thoroughly organic and effortless.” NPR’s “All Songs Considered” also shined a light on the album in their “New Music Friday” coverage.
“Australian singer Tash Sultana released their sophomore album Terra Firma this week, offering up the grounding track ‘Blame It On Society.’ True to her sound, Sultana combines dizzying guitar chords with her measured lyrical delivery, pointing out the flaws that are ingrained our society.”
–Carolyn Droke, UPROXX, 2/23/21
“…proficiency in around a dozen instruments, all contributing to the vast, looping sonic landscapes of Terra Firma…In many ways, Terra Firma reflects a centered, cerebral moment for Sultana. From the opening instrumental ‘Musk,’ Sultana launches into a bizarro world that’s awash in layered psychedelia. The whole album is like falling down a rabbit hole of serenity, punctuated by Sultana’s inevitable, crescendoing instrumentation.”
–Raffaela Kenny-Cincotta, RELIX, 1/29/21
“…Terra Firma is Tash’s most expansive effort to date. The final product pairs staggeringly raw songwriting with intricate instrumentation and lush production, fusing jazz, soul, funk, psych rock, and R&B influences along the way. Thematically, the album builds toward a sense of liberation, with the closing number literally called ‘I Am Free.’”
–Matt Wallock, AMERICAN SONGWRITER, 2/17/21
“Terra Firma is a record that listeners can get lost in. Sultana’s sonic presentation is spread across a collection of deeply introspective songs that touch on soul, funk, pop, R&B and hip-hop. There are dashes of rock and even folk. It’s a deceptively crafty concoction that feels thoroughly organic and effortless. Intoxicating guitar loops on blissed-out tracks like ‘Pretty Lady’ and ‘Sweet & Dandy’ bury themselves into the thicket of one’s senses, and the cavernous soundscapes that form the musical beds of ‘Coma,’ ‘Let the Light In’ and ‘I Am Free’ unfold like dreams. It’s all dynamic, head-turning stuff…”
—Joe Bosso, GUITAR PLAYER (print), March 2021
“Terra Firma is a masterful mix of R&B, soul, indie-rock, alternative and shoegaze.” 9/10
–Miguel Costa, MUSIC CONNECTION, 2/23/21
“…Terra Firma is mostly rooted in laid-back, gentle grooves (you can slow dance to it, but this isn’t exactly a funk-fest), with more room for personal introspection and ruminations on relationships and one’s place in the larger world (as well as occasional observations on the unexpected consequences of fame)…Sultana’s vocals have gained some range and nuance since their first album, and there’s a welcome sense of the artist embracing the joys of pushing the boundaries; the guitar work here is very fine but not flashy, and shares the stage with keyboards and other flavors that give the tracks a rich and varied sound. In short, Terra Firma confirms Tash Sultana isn’t interested in being your new favorite guitarist as much as they want to be a musician and songwriter with the talent and ambition to go in any direction they choose…they have the talent and vision to be an artist who is going to be around for a while, and it’s fascinating to imagine where they can go next. Terra Firma shows where they are now is already pretty impressive.”
—ALLMUSIC.COM, 2/19/2021
“Without a doubt Terra Firma is a relatable masterpiece made for the hearts that long to be mended by the power of music. Its intoxicating grooves and hypnotic riffs are instantly inviting, but with depth that reveals its rewards the more you absorb it. From the previously released evocative ‘Greed’ to the enthralling ‘Beyond The Pine,’ Tash departs from looped and layered jams towards meditative combinations of soul, funk, RnB, folk, rock, and hip hop. The 14-track album takes root into far-reaching sonic territory, while each song stands out with its individualistic flare and sound. Ultimately meshing together to create a flawless album that showcases Tash’s musical and lyrical growth.”
–Gibson Shaffer, GRATEFUL WEB, 11/30/2020
“No one makes music like Tash. Their ear for densely layered orchestration culminates in this transcendent, slightly psychedelic new track that reminds listeners that You are enough, to live in the present moment away from negative distractions. As Tash demonstrates their famously proficient guitar ability in the intro, the instrumentation quickly grows to include increasingly intoxicating layers of angelic chimes, organic samples, rich horns, fleeting harps, and much more…”
–Austin Miller, THIS SONG IS SICK, 1-22-21
“Groovy ‘Willow Tree’ is filled with colorful horns and the whimsical guitar, keys, and bass loops that made you obsessed with Tash in the first place. You glide through this magical journey, with Jeome Farah and Tash’s soulful vocals perfectly complementing each other, and you can’t help but get lost in it.”
–Nicole Proctor, EARMILK, 12/22/2020
“Terra Firma remains a remarkable experience that finds a way to demonstrate real human vulnerability while building mystique around its creator. Sultana learned guitar at age 3, reportedly plays 20 different instruments and composed, arranged, performed, engineered and produced just about every note of their first two albums–all by the age of 25. There’s nothing they can’t play and less they can’t do. But it’s the restraint shown in the minimalist moments that show why slowing down was the right choice for Sultana on Terra Firma.” 7/10
–Skott Bennett, RIFF MAGAZINE, 2/15/21
“…soulful and sublime outing. Whether she’s waxing mystical or being more forthcoming, Sultana’s art here is striking.”
–Kevin Wierzbicki, ANTIMUSIC.COM, 2/19/21
“Multi-instrumentalist Tash Sultana’s sophomore effort Terra Firma bumps along, dripping with layers of early 90’s R&B, indie rock, and dream pop escapism. Playing all sounds while delivering floating vocals, Sultana is a musical force over the fourteen neo-new jack swing and soul/pop offerings.”
–Shawn Donohue, GLIDE MAGAZINE, 2/19/21
“Tash Sultana’s Terra Firma is a masterful piece of art that bends sound and genre to her will and gives us an unfettered look into her soul.”
–Austin Miller, THIS SONG IS SICK, 2/19/21
“Tash Sultana’s long-awaited second record Terra Firma firmly secures their intrinsic, holistic artistry. And like the ponderous smoke-tendril of burning incense, Sultana’s slow jam snakes around your earholes with an enchanting athleticism.”
–Cassia Briscoe, HAPPY MAG TV, 2/19/21
“’Terra Firma’ maintains Sultana’s instrumental opulence but with a more mature and seasoned perspective that is flecked with vulnerability… This record definitively shows off the balance of Tash Sultana’s skills as a musician and as a songwriter as they try to find firm ground to stand on amidst the chaos of the world. Sultana is truly gifted, and their biggest challenge right now seems to be finding new ways to innovate and build upon an already complex, remarkably unique sound.”
— Claire Stephens, B-SIDES TV, 2/20/21
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Billie Eilish (Credit: Dan Garcia)
BILLY IDOL (photo courtesy of House of Bone)
SLASH (photo courtesy of House of Bone)
DITA VON TEESE (photo courtesy of House of Bone)
Pictured, from left: Richie Furay and Timothy B. Schmit
Pictured, Richie Furay and his daughter Jesse Furay Lynch
