Sara Landry released her second album, Divine Intervention, on October 16 through her own label, HEKATE. The 14-track record follows her 2024 debut, Spiritual Driveby, and starts somewhere her fans might not expect: a psytrance-driven title track made with Electric Universe.
The German project, founded in Hamburg in 1991 by Boris Blenn and Michael Dressler, is one Landry has credited as a mentor in her psytrance work, according to EDM.com. Opening the album with that collaboration sets the tone for a record that moves well beyond the hard techno she is best known for.
Redirection as a theme
Landry wrote the album between tour dates and during a break from the road earlier this year, EDM.com reports, and the plans changed along the way: some intended collaborations became solo tracks, and sessions meant for one song produced others. That shaped the concept.
“Sometimes, you think you’re going in a certain direction, and the powers or factors that be end up pulling you a completely different way,” she said in a statement published by EDM.com. “It might not make sense at the time, but when you look back, you realize that rejection is redirection.”
What’s on it
After the opener, “Interesting” sets Landry’s own spoken-word vocal over hard techno, and “Energy”, with Ali James, is built on a driving bassline. “Expansion”, made with Aaron Hibell, is one of the album’s gentler moments. “Decon”, with Godtripper, leans into cybernetic textures, and the closer, “Feel 4 U” with Alt8 and Saint Monet, ends the record on an atmospheric note. The Beatport release page also credits Alex Farell, Sikoti and O.MMY among the album’s artists.
DJ Mag notes that Godtripper and Alt8 are both HEKATE signees, which makes the album a showcase for the label as well as for Landry. She previewed it with the singles “Angel Dust”, “Shake That” and “Awakening”. When the album was announced in August, she told DJ Mag it was about the idea “that sound can’t be boxed into categories”.
Why it matters
Hard techno’s top names are under pressure to keep raising the tempo. Landry has taken a different route here, widening her palette towards psytrance, bass music and quieter passages while keeping the release in-house on HEKATE. It is also another example this week of an artist using their own label as the main home for a major project.
Divine Intervention is out now on HEKATE (catalogue number HEKLP001E).
