SAINT SAPPHO KICKSTART THEIR DEBUT ALBUM WITH THE RECORD’S HAUNTING, HIGH-BAR FIRST SINGLE ‘CRACKS’
SINGLE REVIEW | SAINT SAPPHO – CRACKS by Martha Munro
Since 2022, Glaswegian alt-rockers Saint Sappho have been making their mark on the indie scene with their creative concepts, nineties nostalgia, and heavenly, hazy sound. From musings on societal attitudes in Fall Into The Lie to Floating’s wistful theme of time passing, members Tammy Dyson and Zoe Young have, over the past year or so, been slowly building up to the next big step: their debut album.
The record, Between The Lines, is set for release 6th March 2026, but not without its early tasters, the first of which being Cracks, a single laced with Dyson’s heavy, industrial trip-hop drums and Young’s slash of existentialism. It ‘traces a journey from fragmentation to resilience,’ toying with the idea of an unravelling identity within the duo’s signature haunting, retro sound, and exploring the vast pool of their 90s influences.
As per usual, the track begins in mystery with a haunting, Stranger-Things-esque string line, soon joined by some groovy drum and bass lines to amp up the intensity. Saint Sappho have a knack for achieving delicacy and heaviness in their sound all at once, resulting in something really magnetic and addictive.
This is only elevated when Young comes in with her hypnotising vocals; the lyrics are teeming with introspection – ‘Not sure what to make of me’ – and sound blurry and swirling, daring to cross the lines of the bars and always surprising you, ever joined with that consistent undercurrent of trip-hop intensity. The result is both weird and exciting, pulling you directly into the centre of the sound before it suddenly reduces. Those initial, haunting, foundational lines are isolated, along with the vocals, singing ‘I don’t know who I used to be.’
This section, clearly building up to some sort of climax, is hugely reminiscent of the duo’s 2024 single Fall Into The Lie, perhaps even too reminiscent – while Saint Sappho’s sound is something clearly consistent and, yes, brilliant, here it feels slightly same-y. Perhaps a bit more movement in the composition could bring that sound to new heights, something that could really put an album in particular over the top.
That being said, the next section of Cracks is without a doubt the highlight. Acting as a kind of chorus, it suddenly breaks into 90s dance-inspired euphoria and develops the rhythm so that it sounds faster and more energised, without actually changing the tempo at all. Young’s vocals also reach their summit, if subtly, singing the hook ‘I won’t stop now / I feel too alive’ with more insistence and urgency. The result is something similar to the more fast-paced tracks of Lorde, if much more alternative and retro. Either way, it’s a highly addictive, earworm-worthy track that leaves you with lots to think about after it fades out.
Although parts of it sound a little repetitive when compared to earlier work, one thing that really stands out about Cracks is its unconventional structure. Where Young and Dyson have previously stuck to the pop song structure (or close to it), here they branch out – and it’s definitely intentional. The non-conventional trajectory of Cracks makes it even more unpredictable as you listen to it, forcing you to step into the world of the music and take it as it comes: a truly immersive listening experience. Don’t miss it – or its accompanying music video – on 12th September 2025.
