Behind Jordan Laser’s 'Holiday', A Haunting New Chapter

A private ache played out in widescreen — grainy, slow-burning, and comfortable to haunt you a while.

Jordan Lazer: Alt-pop romantic, soft-focus storyteller, architect of ache.

Jordan Laser – ‘Holiday’

There’s a certain spell that Jordan Laser seems

to cast with every release — a kind of slow, cinematic unravelling that can very well leave you sitting in the dark with your own feelings.

On new single ‘Holiday’, the Sydney-based songwriter leans even further into that mood. It’s smoky, haunting and heartbreakingly clear-eyed, exploring the ache of being someone's escape rather than their destination.

Jordan Laser's 'Holiday' was co-produced with Alex Markwell (The Delta Riggs) and is the second taste of her upcoming EP and a masterclass in quiet intensity — drawing from the same wells as Lykke Li, Mazzy Star and Lana Del Rey, but delivered with Laser’s unmistakable touch: elegant, raw, and emotionally unflinching.

With a background that includes mentorship from members of Midnight Oil and co-signs from triple j, Double J and RUSSH, Jordan’s journey is one of steady, artful evolution. We had a chat to her about complicated love, 90s nostalgia, and what’s waiting just over the horizon.

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‘Holiday’ feels like a candle-lit confessional — full of longing, doubt, and emotional complexity. Can you tell us about the headspace you were in when this song was born?

'Holiday' was written quite a while ago now, but I do remember the feeling at the time of knowing I was with the wrong person. It’s a really lonely and confusing place to find yourself in.

You described that feeling of wondering “Am I the destination, or just a pit-stop?” — and oof, that hits hard. So many people have felt like a placeholder in someone else’s story. Was that a moment of emotional clarity for you, or something you’ve wrestled with across time?

There’s no exact moment I can pinpoint. I think the wonderful thing about writing is that you don’t really know what something is about till after it’s written.

There’s a distinct cinematic quality in your music — moody, slow-burning, almost like scenes from a lost Sofia Coppola film. What kind of visual world do you imagine when you write?

That’s a really nice reference. I’m always saving images that I find beautiful and refer to them when I’m piecing it altogether. I love painting with watercolour too so that has probably crept into my taste in visuals as well.

Your sound nods to artists like Lykke Li, Mazzy Star and Lana Del Rey — but with a definite Jordan Laser fingerprint. How do you strike the balance between influence and individuality?

I have no idea. I notice that whatever I’m listening to at the time will always influence creative decisions, but then no matter how much you’ve ‘copied’ someone or been unconsciously influenced by them, you’re still just stuck with yourself at the end of the day. So hopefully that balance finds you.

You were mentored early on by Jim Moginie and Rob Hirst from Midnight Oil — heavyweights in their own right. What did those formative sessions teach you that still echoes through your process today?

That was a special time and I’m very grateful to them for everything they poured into me and my little songs during that period. Being in the studio with Rob and Jim was always a fun and nurturing experience and they helped me feel like my voice mattered.

This EP feels like a new chapter. What did you learn from making Howling and Holiday that surprised you?

I’ve definitely learned to back myself more, and when I listen to the songs now, I feel proud of some of the production choices I made at the time. The nicest surprise is always being able to hear yourself and not cringe.

There’s a beautiful tension in your voice — strength wrapped in vulnerability. Do you think vulnerability is a kind of power when it comes to songwriting?

I think there’s power in vulnerability when it comes to everything, not just song writing. Vulnerability is the key to connection.

You’ve self-produced some stunning singles in the past, but this time you’ve co-produced with Alex Markwell. How did that collaboration shape or shift the sonic direction of the new material?

Alex and I have been working together for a while now. We just have a lot of fun together. He’s a total wizard and he has zero ego when it comes to making music.

What’s the connective thread — sonically or emotionally — that ties together Howling, Holiday, and the rest of the EP?

Me and my perpetual self-doubt

Lastly, what kind of listener do you imagine this EP reaching — or maybe, who do you hope stumbles across it when they need it most?

I just hope anyone who stumbles across the song listens to it for longer than 20 seconds