Sarah Elaz: Anything Is Possible
Sarah Elaz’s journey to becoming one of the Brooklyn, N.Y. jam-scene’s most dynamic new bassists began not on stage but in the crowd. “I was a fan first,” she explains, having seen over 150 Phish shows since 2010. A professional dancer who holds a degree in that art form, Elaz possessed a deep knowledge of rhythm and composition, and when the pandemic hit, she picked up a bass and began to add melody and harmony to her musical tool kit. A fearless performer, she documented her progress on TikTok, quickly gaining a following by way of her viral “BASSCAM” series.
Now a nationally touring bassist with Bearly Dead and a founding member of the theatrical jamband Boojum—an exercise in “dramato-funkology,” as she puts it—Elaz’s playing is as unique as her story. Self-taught, she describes her style as “funky, melodic and a bit quirky.” She admits, “I do things a little bit weird, and I love leaning into that.” Her goal is always to make an audience dance, a mission informed by influences like Tina Weymouth and Bootsy Collins.
Beyond the music itself, Elaz is also known for her bold approach to fashion. “The costume is part of the performance,” she says, highlighting a value instilled by her late mother, who was a fashion designer. Elaz never repeats an outfit, sourcing looks from thrift stores and clothing rentals in her Bushwick neighborhood and sharing them via her social media “Fit Check” series. For Elaz, her expressive dancing and vibrant outfits are about creating an inclusive invitation for the audience to be themselves.
While she tours constantly, her main creative focus is Boojum, which sits at the intersection of improvisational music and stagecraft. The band is currently developing a sci-fi rock opera, and Elaz is preparing to release music under her own name. “What I’ve learned from this journey,” she says, “is that anything is possible.”
