Sadie Horler is a young singer songwriter from Exeter in Devon. Playing a mixture of her own original material and unique covers, Sadie accompanies her guitar with her compelling crystal clear vocals.
We caught up with Sadie at the recently opened Exeter branch of 'The Prawnshack' where we chatted about desert island discs, disappearing Jaffa Cakes and watching 'Barney' rocking with a guitar, here's how we got on....
Hi Sadie, all I know about you is that you’re a singer songwriter from Devon, please tell us more about yourself and your music….
I'm 14 years old and live in Exeter, Devon. I grew up listening to a lot of punk music which may explain why I've gone for a more mellow sound! I've just recently started to write my own songs and if I'm honest I find it quite challenging, but it's a great sense of achievement when I have finished one. I'm hoping that the songwriting will get easier.
Tell me something about you that even Google doesn’t know….
I'm a prawnatarian......Meaning: I will never eat a prawn... EVER!
What does music mean to you?
Everything and more!
How would other people describe you in only 3 words?
Curley-Wirily Girly!
What is your claim to fame?
Winning 'Year 6 Has Talent' at my primary school.
Do you have a party trick (apart from playing music)?
I do have a secret talent of hula-hooping!
You recently took a holiday to Lanzarote and you wrote a ‘summery’ song on your ukulele, are you planning on making this available after you have reworked it on your guitar?
Yes, but it may be Winter by then!
Can you eat 6 jaffa cakes in under 1 minute without having a drink? Please do try and report back….
If I had a packet of Jaffa Cakes in the house I'd be up for the challenge, but sadly we haven't since my dad ate the WHOLE PACKET in well under a minute!
Do you get out and about to play locally? If so, where can people see you?
I do busk quite a lot around Exeter, mainly in Princesshay and at the Exeter Street Food Market in the Guildhall. (they have the best food in Exeter) and I love going to the occasional local open mic.
What was the very first gig you ever attended? Who was it and where was it?
My first gig was when I was 4 and I went to see Barney the Purple Dinosaur, Baby Bop and BJ at Wembley Arena.... Barney rocked that guitar!!
What was the last gig you attended as a paying customer?
The last gig I went to was Band Of Skulls at the Lemon Grove with a friend and they were amazingggg!!! But if you had of asked me that in a couple of weeks time it would Ben Howard (I'm so excited!) and that's in Plymouth Abbe Martin!! ;)
What are your views on local independent music venues closing due to poor attendance figures?
It's a real shame because there is nothing quite like the atmosphere of a small intimate gig.
If you could have just one ‘Super Power’, what would it be and why?
To scale tall buildings very fast like Spider-Man just for the hell of it!
What has been the silliest thing you have ever done?
How long have you got?...
What was the last photo you took on your phone/tablet?
This photo! (Me and my dog Noodles)
I love your cover version of ‘Thinking Out Loud’ by Ed Sheeran, do you think that people really do fall in love in mysterious ways?
Yes! Apart from Peter Andre who fell in love with a mysterious girl.
Who would you say are your biggest musical influences?
I don't really have any musical influences, I just have people I like to listen to. But I must admit I do have a girl crush on Beyoncé.
If you were to spend a month on a desert island and could only take 3 CD’s with you, which would you take, explain why?
- The Kooks 'acoustic' because it reminds me of my holiday.
- Pulp His and Hers because I've grown up listening to it with my parents.
- And lastly Beyoncé because of the above reason.
What has been the best advice you have ever received? Who was it from?
Live it like you love it - My Grandad
Being so young, have you sat down to think about how you can take music forward once you have finished your education? Is it something that you would like to do as a career?
To be honest I'm just gonna take it one day at a time. I love music, singing and playing but I'll leave it up to fate.
Are you planning on attending or playing at any Devon based music festivals this summer?
I'm really excited to be attending Beautiful Days festival, it's my favourite festival! One day I'd like to play there.
I have a few festivals I am playing at this year, starting off with:
South West Festival of Food and Drink on April 26th
Exmouth Festival on May 27th
Respect Festival on June 6th
Glas-Denbury Festival on July 11th
Wonder fields Festival which is happening from July 17th-19th. I'm not too sure what day I'm playing yet.
Sid mouth Folk Festival on August 4th & 7th.
If you could invite 3 musicians to come and play alongside you, who would you have and why?
Well obviously Beyoncé! Ed Sheeran because he could loop pedal for me and Thom Yorke because I've covered many of his songs so it would be great to sing them with him.
Do you think that streaming services like SPOTIFY will eventually replace CD’s and Vinyl records?
I hope not because I think that you can never beat the pure sound of Vinyl and it's nice to build on your collection without it being digital.
As you know, we put all interviewee's through our 'Quickfire Quistion' round regardless of who they are or where they come from, we even managed to get the drummer from The Boomtown Rats to answer a couple before he hung up on us! Here's how Sadie got on....
Hot Chocolate or Cappuccino?
Hot Chocolate!
Easter egg or Hot cross bun?
Easter egg
Easter Bunny or Father Christmas?
Hmmm I'm gonna have to go with Farther Christmas. Ho Ho Ho!
Regular gig or festival gig?
Festival gig!
Sunbathing or Snowboarding?
Sunbathing
Facebook or Twitter?
Fry up or Sunday Roast?
50/50 I can't decide!
Ed Sheeran or Bob Dylan?
Ed Sheeran although I do know and love a few Bob Dylan songs.
Picnic or BBQ?
BBQ
YouTube or Soundcloud?
YouTube all the way!
MP3 or CD?
CD
Apple or Android?
Apple!!
God or Google?
We'd like to thank Sadie for sparing her time to chat to us and we wish her every success with her future gigs, festivals and getting that summery track laid down with her guitar before the harshness of winter 2015 finally sets in! I have listed Sadie's social media sites below, PLEASE take a few minutes to go and browse them, I'm sure there'll be something there for everyone and if you're heading to any of the festivals mentioned above, make sure you go and check her out, she'll be grateful of your company!
Social Media
Interview by Steve Muscutt