By: Patrick Saunders
Senior Writer
“I might fall in love with a woman. I haven’t yet, but the opportunity hasn’t presented itself,” says Sarah McLachlan when asked if she might start dating women now that she’s single.
It’s that honesty and forthrightness that has helped Sarah McLachlan gain a worldwide following—and make the lesbians swoon in the process. The multi-platinum artist is touring behind her new album, “Laws of Illusion,” and appears at Chastain Park on Thursday night.
The album is McLachlan’s first of original material in seven years. In that time, she put out a Christmas album, separated from her husband, put out a greatest hits album, performed during the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics, and took time to raise her two daughters.
“I’ve had the luxury of being able to pick and choose what I want to do with my career, and I’ve had the great luxury of being able to just be a mom,” she says. “I didn’t want to miss that, so I definitely slowed down my production.”
But she finally felt the itch to get new music out there, so we have “Laws of Illusion.” It’s a catharsis for McLachlan coming on the heels of the separation from her husband, a time she calls “two years of huge, hard growth and change.” The growth and change is reflected in the music, but it isn’t all doom and gloom. The first single, “Loving You is Easy,” is a cheerful, optimistic tune that audiences have immediately latched onto.
And gay audiences continue to latch onto McLachlan, especially for her willingness to discuss the issues affecting them. She is proud of gay artists like Ricky Martin, Chely Wright, and Jennifer Knapp who have recently decided to be themselves and come out. “Every time a celebrity comes out, it does soften the blow for people in the world who are scared of it or don’t understand it,” she says. “It makes them question, ‘I really like that person, but they’re gay? Does that make me like them or the art they create any less?’”
Fans will be sure to like the art of Sarah McLachlan at Chastain no matter which way she swings.
“It doesn’t bother me the least bit if people think I’m gay because I don’t really label or think of people as gay or straight,” she says. “I just love people, and the way I define love has nothing to do with gender. You fall in love with the person and soul behind the face and body.”
Photo By: Raphael Mazzucco
Design By: Christopher Barker
