Sophie Auster vocals · Marie Davy piano · Chris Farr drums · Erez Frank guitar, bass
Sophie Auster shares that the title of her album Milk for Ulcers came to her during a dinner table conversation about old-fashioned remedies for vascular ailments: “Although milk may momentarily soothe the pain of an ulcer, it can actually make it worse. It’s like putting butter on a burn.” The irony is clear, but what to do with wounds and how to heal them remains an unsolved mystery that Auster refuses to answer with clichés. Milk for Ulcers, she says, “is about closing open wounds, even if some of the treatments are only temporary.”
The songs on this album reflect the complex emotions felt when losing a loved one—defense, rage, grief—but also the hope and joy that came with becoming a mother. The final track of the album, Blue Team, was written for Sophie’s father, Paul Auster. She rushed to finish it: “I’m very glad he was able to hear it before he passed.”
