Questions about "Lessons Not Learned"

I'm sure that you're all huge fans of the latest EP from SARIKA, "Lessons Not Learned". I know that I can't stop listening to it. But whenever I find music I really enjoy, I want to learn all I can about it. I can only assume that you feel that way as well. Thankfully, SARIKA was willing to answer a few questions about the EP so we could all appreciate it even more.

Here's what she had to say!

What do you want listeners to know about EP?

The EP took over a year to record fully–we started in the fall of 2023 and finished just last month. I wrote the oldest song (“Something Blue”) in 2018 and the newest (“Paper Mind”) in 2024. It’s a pop EP overall, but there’s definitely a lot of different styles in there–”From Inside The House” has a very musical theater-y sound, “Paper Mind” draws from alt/indie rock influences, and “Nightrunner” is almost country pop (controversial take given people’s strong opinions on what is and isn’t country, but I’ve heard it from enough people that I don’t think it’s entirely off base). 

How did you come up with the name for the EP?

“Lessons Not Learned” is a lyric from “Nightrunner,” the last song on the EP. I chose it because when I was looking for a common thread between all of the songs, I realized they’re all kind of about either me being foolish or someone else being foolish: “New Spring” is partially about me being emotionally clumsy in a relationship and putting my foot in my mouth; “Something Blue” is about pining over a man who has moved on with someone else; “From Inside The House” is about hypocrites who lack self awareness; “Paper Mind” is about my tendency to put others on a pedestal and base my identity on them; “Everything’s On Fire” is a critique of people who only care about their immediate bubbles in the face of climate change and global turmoil; “Nightrunner” is about getting back with an ex multiple times. 

Do you have any favorite memories of the recording process?

Five friends came into the studio with me to record the gang vocals in the bridge of “From Inside The House.” It’s a home studio on the third floor of a house, it was the middle of the summer, and the AC was making noise so we had to turn it off while recording. We all got very sweaty and very close (literally and figuratively). I remember all sticking our faces in the fan and window between takes to cool down. But we got it done! And got some yummy food and drinks after!

------

I want to thank SARIKA for taking the time to share this look at her EP with us. 

Be sure to follow her on Instagram, and Spotify to be sure you won't miss anything (including her two most recent singles)! You'll also want to check out every other time SARIKA has appeared here on Section 36 Music!

Thanks again SARIKA!

Some of the Songs on "Lessons Not Learned"

By SARIKA

One thing that I find really interesting about the EP as a whole is that only half of the songs are about romantic relationships. As a pop artist I feel like the norm in my genre is to write primarily about love or breakups, and especially when I was younger, I felt a lot of pressure to write about that stuff even when it wasn’t a super significant part of my life. That’s how I ended up with songs like “Something Blue” and “Nightrunner,” which, fun fact, aren’t actually based on personal experience–I’ve never gotten back with an ex or had a dream that my ex was marrying someone else.

The three songs that aren’t about romance are “From Inside The House,” “Paper Mind,” and “Everything’s On Fire.” I think “Everything’s On Fire” in particular is interesting because it’s supposed to sound like a love song on the surface, but it’s really a critique about people’s preoccupation with their own individual lives and indifference to collective problems like the climate crisis. This meaning becomes especially clear in the bridge. 

“Everything’s On Fire” also stands out to me sonically. I generally love a song that builds dramatically from the beginning to the end, but this one does it in a particularly drastic way, starting off with a super simple piano and voice arrangement, then growing to include very sweet sounding backing vocals and instrument parts, then finally taking a dark and chaotic turn in the bridge.

------

I want to thank SARIKA for taking the time to share this look at her EP with us. 

Be sure to follow her on Instagram, and Spotify to be sure you won't miss anything (including her two most recent singles)! You'll also want to check out every other time SARIKA has appeared here on Section 36 Music!

Thanks again SARIKA!

The Story Behind the "Lessons Not Learned" Photo Shoot

By SARIKA

I knew I wanted the artwork to include an unlit candle or a lightbulb that wasn’t turned on, to symbolize an idea that was never had, or a lesson that was never learned. And I also knew I wanted to wear the red corset that’s in the cover art, but initially I was just planning on sitting in a chair or something.

Then some friends and I were at the Tasty Burger in Fenway after one of them performed nearby, and we had had a couple of drinks. The counter and hand dryer in the Tasty Burger bathroom are bright red, and I was wearing a red sweater, so I was like “guys take a picture of me sitting on this right now.” I posted it on my Instagram and someone commented that it needed to be album art, and she was totally right.

So I went back to Tasty Burger in my corset and nice outfit with a photographer, wrapped string lights around my neck, and sat my ass back on that counter! I was kind of uncomfortable because between the tight corset and string lights around the neck I felt pretty constricted, plus we had to hide the battery pack by shoving it in my corset (plus editing out the wire and weird boxy bulge from it later), and I’m actually not resting my legs on the trash can at all because of how high my heels are, so it was kind of a work out to sit like that.

But any discomfort was totally worth it, because I was super happy with how the photos turned out! Then I wanted the hand dryer and soap logos gone, and I thought it’d be fun to incorporate the EP title and my artist name in a creative way, so I had another photographer friend Photoshop the hand dryer to say “SARIKA / Lessons Not Learned” instead of the “Xcelerator” logo. So that’s how my tipsy impromptu Instagram photo became the official EP cover!

------

I want to thank SARIKA for taking the time to share this look at her EP photo shoot with us. 

Be sure to follow her on Instagram, and Spotify to be sure you won't miss anything (including her two most recent singles)! You'll also want to check out every other time SARIKA has appeared here on Section 36 Music!

Thanks again SARIKA!