Pamela Never Set Out to Find Their Sound, They Simply Followed the Feeling.

"We are not trees. If you don't feel good somewhere, move," Josh tells us during our conversation. Now it’s a simple sentence, but one that quietly runs through everything Josh and Sarah create. Whether it's leaving behind careers that no longer fit, refusing to force a particular sound, or allowing each song to become whatever it wants to be, Pamela's music is rooted in instinct rather than expectation.

With their new EP, It's Nice to See You Here, out today, we spoke about following the feeling, creative freedom, and why the best decisions in life rarely make sense on paper. We also discussed their new single, Pandemonium, accompanied by a music video directed by Sarah herself and filmed across Sydney, Athens, and Iceland.

ROE MAGAZINE: I want to start by getting to know you both a bit better. Are you both Australian? Tell me a little bit about your backgrounds.

JOSH: Sarah was raised by a single immigrant parent in the western suburbs of Sydney, and I lived between the contrasting worlds of Brisbane and Johannesburg. I think it's fair to say that both of us share themes of transience, resilience, and a restlessness to grow up.

As a teenager, Sarah used to skip school to sell lollies at Campbelltown train station, earning enough money to catch the train into the city. She was convinced there was a much bigger world waiting for her beyond the suburb she called home. She dropped out early to start a blog, teaching herself how to photograph, film, and tell stories online.

Before adulthood, I had been held at gunpoint, robbed a few times, watched my house burn down, and lost my sister the year I began writing music. It only recently occurred to me that she never heard a single one of my songs. My childhood is filled with joy, but we lost a lot too.

Life has been a ride, but all roads led us to Pamela.

ROE MAGAZINE:  You initially met as roommates in Kingsford, Sydney. How many years ago was that? Had you already been involved in making music before you met?

SARAH: Yes! It was completely by chance that we even met. We had one mutual friend who suggested Josh check out the room in my place. We connected straight away. Josh liked the art I had hanging up, and I liked that he was wearing a beret. That first night, we lay on the living room floor listening to music. It was a bit of a hint from the universe about things to come.

Both of us had been writing music from a really young age. For me, songwriting was a kind of diary I kept alongside my other creative pursuits. Josh was the kid who wrote love poems to girls in class and occasionally got teased for it. By the time he met me, he thought professional music was behind him.

But eating pizza and writing songs in the living room turned out to be the beginning of something special.

ROE MAGAZINE:  Do you have a favourite or funny memory from being roommates that stands out?

 JOSH: I have a couple that come to mind. Sarah's unapologetically a night owl, and I'm much more of a morning person. I have a few hazy memories of Sarah getting home in the early hours of the morning with a bunch of friends, setting up the sound system, and pulling me out of bed to dance in the living room. There was also a period when she decided to move her mattress into the living room because she didn't like the vibe in her bedroom. I just rolled with it. Haha.

ROE MAGAZINE:  Your music has been described as modern alt-pop, reminiscent of a mix between The Marías, The Strokes, and The xx. Are those some of the bands that have had the biggest influence on you? If not, what music has shaped you both the most?

 SARAH: Honestly, any plans we make around having a certain sound go completely out the window the moment we actually start writing. It's completely instinctual and based on following a feeling.

The result is that our catalogue is really wide-ranging and diverse. We love those references you mentioned, but our individual tastes are eclectic. I'm crazy about Billie Holiday and house music, while Josh loves Devendra Banhart and Rodriguez.

We definitely wear our influences on our sleeves, but Pamela is also an environment where anything feels sonically possible. It's very liberating.

ROE MAGAZINE:  I'm a huge fan of Royel Otis, and Shady Nasty has deservedly risen in popularity recently. Including Pamela, so much incredible music is coming out of Sydney. What makes Sydney's music scene so special, and how does living there inspire your music?

 JOSH: So much about living in Sydney is spending time outside your house and with your friends, which naturally creates a great environment for music. Australia has never been short of inspiring artists, and we think you are what you eat. If you're lucky enough to watch great bands every weekend, you're much more likely to feel inspired to make music yourself.

ROE MAGAZINE:  How do you approach songwriting? Are certain songs based more on one person's experiences, or do you usually bring your ideas together?

 SARAH: It really depends on the song. We're both constantly writing privately, and even more so when we're together. Something that's really special about our collaboration is that we spend a lot of time talking about our lives and experiences, so when it comes to writing together, we have so much to draw from.

ROE MAGAZINE:  Josh, your Instagram bio includes the quote,

"If you don't go when you wanna go, when you do go you'll find yourself gone." 

How do you interpret that, and how has it resonated in your own life?

 JOSH: Leaving law to pursue music was a big one for me. I had hard-won security, and it felt like everyone in my life was urging me to stay on that path. Now I'm technically still working as a bartender in Bondi to pay my rent while I make music; assuming they take me back after this tour! And yes, it's scary. But I'm happy.

Becoming a lawyer felt rewarding because I love using my brain, and I'm a good problem solver. But the reward was never truly satisfying. As an artist, I have to work just as hard, but even the smallest wins feel infinitely more meaningful. That's how I know I'm on the right path. I want everyone to know what that feels like.

That quote is a reminder that we are not trees. If you don't feel good somewhere, move.

ROE MAGAZINE:  Sarah, do you have a quote or mantra that you always come back to? Looking at everything you do; from music to modelling and acting, I think of Cher's famous quote, "Mom, I am a rich man." Has focusing on substance, rather than taking yourself too seriously, helped you navigate being in the spotlight?

 SARAH: One line I always come back to is

"Just let the art speak for itself."

At the end of the day, if the work connects with people; and if I love it myself, that's all that really matters. I've been around the block long enough now to have developed pretty thick skin, and returning to the reason I create in the first place always cuts through the noise.

ROE MAGAZINE:  Your upcoming EP, It's Nice to See You Here, is released on July 10. What can people expect, and what's the story behind it?

 JOSH: In an unexpected way, the EP represents the highs and lows of a relationship; from attraction and intimacy to heartbreak, resolution, and ultimately evolution. We've had the pleasure of collaborating with producers from Mexico, the United States, Germany, and Australia across these six songs.

We hope it soundtracks your happiest memories; or, if not, helps you through whatever comes next.

ROE MAGAZINE:  Do you each have a favourite song from the EP?

 JOSH: I'll pick two. Better Than Before changed my life the most, so far. It reminds me of the stronger person I became after my first heartbreak, and it's the first song we've ever heard an audience sing back to us at a show. Then there's Standing in the Rain, because it came together so effortlessly in one afternoon in Coorabell. I have a feeling it'll be the one I keep coming back to years from now.

 SARAH: Half of Me Is You is my favourite. It's the most personal.

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Photo © Pamela Photographed by Pierre Toussaint (@pierretoussaint)