Origins is a recurring series that gives artists a space to break down everything that went into their latest release. Today, Australian singer-songwriter Angie McMahon is back with her new song, “Saturn Returning.”
“I’m gonna dance every day ’til I’m old,” Angie McMahon vows on her new single, “Saturn Returning,” which marks her first original music in four years. It’s one of a few pledges in the song’s bewildering chorus; as the fluttering piano keys and dreamy synths begin to roar, McMahon follows suit. “I’m gonna love every inch of this body/ The limbs that I’ll write in each day of this story/ I’m gonna surrender my keys to the universe,” she belts, each phrase radiating with a kind of vulnerable warmth.
Her promises are right in line with the song’s title. In astrology, your “Saturn Return” is a coming of age of sorts; it signals a change, or transformation, that will take place during a specific astrological period. So, McMahon is embracing this transformation head-on. “Your Saturn Return is like a teacher,” McMahon writes in a statement, “The biggest lesson I’ve had in this chapter of my life is the value of a gentle and loving relationship with myself, no matter what.” That self-love bubbles up and bursts out of “Saturn Returning,” and the artist sounds completely renewed.
As the first original track for the Australian singer-songwriter since her 2019 debut, Salt, it’s a welcome return — McMahon not only possesses some serious vocal chops, but her guitar work and songwriting command are always at the fore. On “Saturn Returning,” she opts for a more free-form structure, letting the song’s grand crescendo mirror an outpouring of love and emotion.
The accompanying video opens with an acknowledgment that it was filmed on Aboriginal land (“Always was, always will be Aboriginal land,” reads the message in regards to the video taking place on Bunurong and Barapa Barapa land). Throughout, McMahon stands and sings amidst a refreshing breeze, wanders around the ocean, and dances with a delicate piece of fabric as it billows in the wind.
Watch the video for “Saturn Returning” below, followed by Angie McMahon’s breakdown of the song’s Origins.
