This Album Changed My Life: Cassi Marie on ‘evermore’ by Taylor Swift

Inspired by songsmiths like Missy Higgins and Kasey Chambers, Cassi Marie has been singing and performing since the age of 9. A graduate of the CMAA Academy of Country Music, the award-winning singer-songwriter has performed across Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast and into NSW, at many festivals and gigs. In 2019, she released her fifth EP, Pieces Of My Heart, which debuted at #2 on the Australian Country iTunes Chart, and her latest single Walls in 2021.

Cassi is also part of the Brisbane-based duo, The Kindly Ravens alongside Steve Boom. A little Americana, alt-country, folk and country, their first single, Silver And Gold is a song about love, how precious it is and how it should be treated with care – it’s our Song of the Day! Their forthcoming debut album, Cemetery of Broken Hearts is due to drop in early 2022.

To get to know Cassi a little better, we asked her to tell us about an album that changed her life.

Cassi Marie on ‘evermore’ by Taylor Swift

From a young age, I’ve been a huge fan of Taylor Swift, especially her early albums. I have so many memories of listening to her album Red on road trips with my mum, and going to the concert when I was 13. There was something about the way she could capture a whole story in a song that I just loved and I think it really influenced the way I write.

When she released evermore in December of 2020, it changed my whole perspective on songwriting. As I had started young in the industry, my music grew up with me and evolved as I got older. Last year, I was in a point where my style was beginning to change and I started writing music with influences from multiple different genres. I felt I was stuck in this middle point and not quite sure where to go. My first thought after listening to this album in full was “this is it … this is what I love. This is what I want to do.”

From the moment I heard the first track Willow, I fell instantly in love with this world that she had created. With lyrics such as “The knife cuts both ways, if the shoe fits, walk in it 'til your high heels break” from Long Story Short, and “writing letters addressed to the fire” from Evermore, I realised just how much Taylor had grown as a songwriter and it made me reflect on my past 10 years of writing as well.

I started to look at music in a different light, especially after watching interviews of her discussing the creative processes and inspirations behind these songs. The way she has created an entire picture and scenery to bring these songs to life just amazes me. Every time I hear it, I feel as though I have been swept into a world in between winter and autumn with these characters and emotions that just feel so real.

This album has reignited my love for storytelling and has influenced me so much these past few months. It has taught me to think about the words that I am putting to paper and the real meaning behind them.

For more of our This Album Changed My Life series, go here.
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Image: via Facebook