Sam Buckingham has a way with words. Her sweet voice and hard-hitting lyrics are an intoxicating mix.
"You know the saying, you trap flies with honey..... then you smash them with your words? Or something like that," she said, laughing.
The singer-songwriter from Byron Bay has just released her third album Dear John and it's a significant departure from her previous folk-Americana albums I'm A Bird (2013) and The Water (2017).
Dear John delves into alternative pop and is her most personal album yet.
The songs stem from the breakdown of a toxic relationship and the lyrics touch on female empowerment, gender equality, men's violence against women, and self expression.
It's honest, raw and emotive storytelling.
"I knew I wanted to - had to - write these songs and share them, but I had to battle a lot of demons and do a lot of work to be OK with it," she said.
Embracing an alt-pop sound wasn't a conscious decision. It just happened.
"It was more about following the sounds that best served the song," Buckingham explained.
"At first it felt strange but once I settled in to the idea that I was allowed to make any sounds I wanted, it felt like I was in a playground.
"Working with Kent Eastwood as co-producer was so cool. We've known each other for years and he's played keys and guitars on my songs for a long time, so we were able to keep everything feeling really authentic to who I am as an artist, while exploring different sounds.
"We created a blueprint for the album, writing all the parts for the studio musicians, and then they came in and took everything to the next level."
These are "wake up, not break up" songs. The distinction is important to her.
"Even though the album is called Dear John, it's not really about 'John'. A break-up was the catalyst for this album, but it goes so far beyond that," Buckingham said.
"I wanted to delve into how I had found myself in a toxic relationship that I thought I had to stay in, out of duty to the man.
"It's a tough thing to navigate in song because at no point is a woman responsible for the shitty ways she's treated - but at the same time I was going through a process of unlearning conditioning, patterns and coping mechanisms, and educating myself on the bigger picture things that lead to women being abused and oppressed.
"I was working to break free so that no 'John' could ever do that to me again - and the album documents a lot of that process. It's about waking up to the ways women are treated as second class citizens and saying 'My eyes are open now. Just try me'."
Buckingham's music videos are thought-provoking, quirky and creative. She comes up with most of the ideas herself.
"I'm very hands on with my videos these days, and go to the videographer with a fully formed concept in mind ... then we collaborate to make it even better," she said.
"A video is such an important extension of a song - it helps tell the story if you do it well.
"I love being in front of the camera and then jumping behind it and directing the clip. It's really creative and so satisfying to see the finished product and feel really connected to it."
While touring has been scarce over the past two years, Buckingham managed to secure some sold-out shows of her own, along with sell-out performances as support to Kate Miller-Heidke, Paul Kelly, Ben Lee and Tim Freedman. Now, following the release of Dear John, she will finally get to launch the album around the country throughout May and June.
"It's been more than two years since I've done a big tour, with new music. Excited would be an understatement! I almost can't believe I get to do this again. I'm so happy that live music is back."
