Yours Truly, ‘TOXIC’ | The Album Story

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When everything around you falls apart, you essentially have two options.

You can resign yourself to sitting stationary whilst watching all you’ve built crumble down, or you can choose to rebuild, in the hopes that something better may come to stand in its place.

Waving goodbye to two of their bandmates after the release of 2022 EP ‘is this what i look like?’, Yours Truly’s Mikaila Delgado and Teddie Winder-Haron found themselves at that precise crossroad last year. Pushing down the heartbreak whilst rounding off their touring obligations, once their diaries were clear, they hit the pause button. 

With their biggest ever Australian headline tour still fresh in their minds, as the pair discussed the future, the thought of calling it quits seemed impossible. Seeing thousands of voices singing their songs, and hearing hundreds of stories from fans touched by their music, they knew they had something to fight for. 

“People care about this, and we care about it too, so it’d be a shame for us to just give up,” Mikaila nods.

“Teddie and I were the two original members of Yours Truly, and as long as we were still there, we owed it to ourselves to give it another shot. That’s why we decided to do this record.”

Ten songs that document the tumultuous cycle of frustration, anger, sadness, and acceptance that follow any type of grief, ‘TOXIC’ is a rebirth for Yours Truly. Enlisting drummer Henry Beard into their ranks, it marks the start of a new era, one in which Mikaila and Teddie are done playing by anyone else’s rules. 

Growing more in the last twelve months than they have since their formation in 2016, as you hit play on ‘TOXIC’ – prepare to reconsider everything you knew about Yours Truly. The now-trio’s boldest and most confident statement to date, Rock Sound sat down with Mikaila to find out more.

THE SOUND

Tasked with reestablishing the purpose and vision of their project, in the initial stages of the creative process, no idea was turned away. Armed with a playlist populated with everything from pop-metal to drum and bass and a team of collaborators all firmly focused on making the biggest Yours Truly songs to date, Mikaila and Teddie set out to define the future of their band’s sound.

“We stepped into the poppier side of heavy music with ‘is this what i look like?’, and I felt like I wanted to perfect that sound with this record,” Mikaila explains.

“It’s not like we set out to make an angry record, but there was so much frustration within us. I wanted to tell the story of what the band had gone through, but also what I was personally going through at that time.”

Heavier and darker than anything we’ve heard from Yours Truly before, every moment on ‘TOXIC’ radiates catharsis. Bursts of sporadic energy that build to sheer euphoria, amidst the streaks of darkness are flashes of powerful light. Reminders of the trio’s growing confidence and self-belief, as well as a striking declaration of their band’s future, Mikaila and co. are seizing their moment. 

“We’re giving it everything that we possibly can, because if this isn’t the best album that we could possibly create, what does that mean for Yours Truly?”, she shrugs.

“After going through everything that we went through, we’re not taking things for granted anymore. Everything can change from one day to the next, and if this is our last record ever, we need to make sure we are proud of it.”

“You can hear the fight in these songs. That desperation comes through in the vocals and the playing, and I’m a different singer now than I was when I wrote and recorded the past records. When we wrote our first album, I was only 18, and I’ve learned a lot more about my voice and what I want to sound like. On these songs, you’re hearing the fight, but you’re also hearing that growth.” 

THE LYRICS

A self-confessed “venter”, when it came to penning lyrics for ‘TOXIC’ Mikaila had no trouble settling on subject matter. Documenting the story of how Yours Truly overcame their most challenging period so far and began laying the foundations of a new beginning, these ten songs serve as a reminder to fight for what you love.

“Every single Yours Truly record is about a chapter in my personal life, but also a chapter in the band’s life. This was the shittiest time, but I learned that I can’t play the victim anymore,” the vocalist asserts.

“I’ve got to write from a place of true honesty, and I wanted to tell stories on this record rather than just expressing how I felt. I remember having a conversation with Sam [Bassal, producer], and he told me that I needed to write a song that wasn’t about having my heart broken or losing my bandmates. That sat with me, and I realised that I needed to tap into different ways of telling the same story.”

Challenging herself to consider alternative perspectives and find fresh ways of expressing her emotions, the songs on ‘TOXIC’ are undoubtedly some of Mikaila’s most candid to date. From the loss and confusion of opener ‘’Back 2 U’ through to the soaring confidence of closer ‘Call My Name’, each track offers an insight into the lessons she has learnt about herself and her relationship with others over the last year.

“I’m a fixer. I can’t walk away from situations, and I think I can fix everything. You can hear that at the beginning of the record, and that’s one version of me,” she says.

“By the end of the record, there’s this confidence of being able to say, ‘It is what it is’. Between those two points though, there are highs and lows. With trauma, the healing is not very linear. When you’re involved in a toxic situation, the highs are high, the lows are low, and they’re ever-changing.”

From encouragements to be present and appreciate time spent with loved ones on ‘California Sober’ to reminders to trust your gut on ‘Sour’, after finding the clarity to respect her self-worth and the confidence to stand up for herself, Mikaila is hoping that the journey of the record can also inspire others to fight for what they deserve in life. 

“I was drawn to alternative music because people in this world are so honest about their mental health and their own personal struggles,” she nods.

“I’ve sat crying in my car whilst listening to records many times because I resonated with them so deeply. That feeling is so validating, and it has helped me in so many ways. When people come up to me at shows or send me messages to say that our songs got them through something, I think of all the times artists have done that for me. To be able to soundtrack those moments for someone else is incredible.” 

THE TITLE & THE ARTWORK

On the penultimate night of tracking the record, producer Sam Bassal turned to Mikaila and made a statement that would come to define this entire collection of songs.

“You know, Mikaila,” he said.

“… You’ve been through a lot of toxic shit.”

A five-letter word written in all capitals, the short and sweet sentiment ‘TOXIC’ is expanded in its visuals, created by conceptual artist Xavier Irvine. The animated figure of a girl with broken angel wings and a sword, headphones covering her ears, the album’s cover is a reminder of the powerful healing properties music can hold.

“Originally, we wanted it to be a photo, but there was a Gorillaz poster on the wall in Sam’s studio. I kept looking at that poster, and the more I looked at it, the more I realised that I wanted the artwork to be animated,” Mikaila recalls.

“In my head, I saw this green, black, and white animation of a girl listening to music in a toxic wasteland. It goes back to the idea that when you listen to music that resonates with you, you feel like you can get through anything.”

THE COLLABORATORS

Working to tight time constraints and with two of their long-term collaborators departing the band, ‘TOXIC’ would not have been possible without Mikaila and Teddie reaching out to a wide network of friends and creatives. 

Pushing themselves out of their comfort zone and working with several artists across Australia and beyond, they were able to take inspiration from each one of them, allowing the tracks to blossom into something far bigger than they ever imagined. 

“It’s the best thing that we’ve ever done,” Mikaila smiles.

“We’ve always been open to collaborating, but when we started out it was a bit of a dirty word. People thought that if an artist collaborated with other songwriters, it meant that they don’t write their own songs, but that’s not the case at all. If someone collaborates with someone, it’s simply about learning.”

“If you can learn from someone else, you should do it. I did a 10-day LA trip writing with all these different people, and whilst only two songs came out of it, it undoubtedly made me a better writer. Watching how other people approach the process is so inspiring.”

Produced by Ocean Grove’s Sam Bassal and featuring several contributions from the band’s longtime collaborator Stevie Knight, ‘TOXIC’ also serves as an introduction to drummer Henry Beard. A sticksman with “huge golden retriever energy” according to Mikaila, his recruitment has provided the burst of energy she and Teddie desperately needed.

“We didn’t know how to deal with it in the beginning!” she laughs.

“He was so excited to go to America for the first time, and he just wants to enjoy himself. Over time, we found ourselves laughing again and spending so much time together. Now, we’re in awe of Henry’s enthusiasm. Being onstage and turning around to see someone so animated and passionate behind the drum kit is incredible. He’s aggressively positive, and it’s given this band a new lease of life.”

THE FUTURE

Despite everything that’s happened recently in the Yours Truly camp, the trio are feeling positive about their next chapter. Relationships reinforced, friendships strengthened, and the future of their sound seeming more limitless than ever, as Mikaila reflects on the rollercoaster they’ve endured together, she’s grateful for the two men now standing beside her. 

“Teddie and I always joke that we’ve gone through things that would break up married couples. We’re still here though, we’re still doing it, and we have so much respect for one another,” she finishes.

“We’ve gone through so much, and we’re family at this point. There were some tough times for us, but we love this. We love each other, and everything’s going to be okay. Regardless of what life throws at Yours Truly next, we’ll be able to get through it.”

A reminder to put yourself first and make peace with your pain, the band who first sat down to write ‘TOXIC’ are almost a completely different band to the one now playing these songs live. Three musicians with a renewed energy and a vibrantly positive outlook, as they prepare to unveil their latest era to the world, Mikaila and her bandmates are hoping to inspire the world to strive for happiness.

“Life is not perfect,” she finishes.

“There are going to be shit moments, but you’re always going to be able to make it to the other side. You need to know your own self-worth, and it’s okay if you feel weak sometimes.”

“Going forward, we’re aiming to be extremely present. There’s been a rebirth, and we feel like the 19-year-old kids we were when we first went out on tour. We’ve found a lot of new energy, and a lot of new life, and that partially comes from regenerating our love for music. Often there are things going on behind the scenes that can make you forget why you’re doing it, but now we’ve remembered why it all started. It’s just because we love music.”