THE ROCKY ROAD TO HARMONY A caravan snakes its way across the Nullarbor; singer-songwriter, husband, toddler and Rascal the dog ensconced within as dust billows into the late afternoon air and a burning sun casts a warm glow over their travels. That’s the scene as Catherine Britt heads out on another adventure, just one of … Continue reading
SONGS OF THE SILVER SCREEN Twilight On The Trail is the musical intersection of a childhood of Saturday morning western movies and formative years spent on the edge of the Mojave desert. For Jen Mize and Mark Sholtez, their tribute to the great cowboy songs and crooners of the 1940s is a project forged in … Continue reading
SONGS FROM THE BROKEN RADIO “I was nominated for best new talent and I was in my 40s and everyone else was in their 20s so I was the oldest new guy in country music which was nice.” That’s singer/songwriter Michael Waugh discussing his nomination for Best New Talent at the 2017 Golden Guitar Awards. … Continue reading
BRASH OPTIMISM & SONGWRITING PROPHECY Striding the early morning Los Angeles pavement and scared about returning to his life in Melbourne, the musician had revelation. Maybe he could just disappear? Dissolve into the weird and wild world of LA. That thought was quickly tempered by reality but it did result in a song about just … Continue reading
NOTHING GOOD COMES FROM WAR On his new album, Empire, William Crighton widens his sound and the subject matter of his songs. He talks with Chris Familton about his creative process, Astral Weeks and parlour guitars. The best songwriters are the ones who treat their craft like a journey where life experiences, awareness and self-education … Continue reading
One day, in her late teens, Tori Forsyth wrote a composition that she considered her first proper song. It was that song, ‘Johnny And June’, that she played to producer Trent Crawford and began the journey that led first to her debut EP and now her full length album, Dawn Of The Dusk, produced by … Continue reading
PAYING HOMAGE TO OBSCURE BLUES Eilen Jewell recently visited Australian shores for a run of shows showcasing her album Down Hearted Blues, but as she reveals to Chris Familton, she’s already been in the studio working on her next album of original material. It’s an overcast spring evening in Boise, Idaho when Eilen Jewell answers the … Continue reading
SMART CARS, COSMIC FOLK AND BIRDS Iron & Wine are returning to Australia where they’ll play the Opera House for the second time. The band’s sole proprietor, Sam Beam, talks with Chris Familton about writing and performing his new album Beast Epic. “I’m still in the past,” says Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam, down the … Continue reading
SOBRIETY & SINCERITY So often artists are touted as the best new thing or re-inventors of a genre or style. There is of course a time and a place for all those things but there’s equally much to be said about an artist who captures the purity and authenticity of a style. An artist like … Continue reading
THE SONIC DIARY OF SUICIDE SWANS Over the last six years the QLD town of Toowoomba has been been echoing to the strains of Suicide Swans and their fascinating blend of folk, cosmic country and psychedelic rock. On their latest album La Jungla they’ve expanded their sound into new musical terrain. Kyle Jenkins is the … Continue reading
BOMBS AND BURIED OPTIMISM Davey Craddock’s first album was an impressive collection of Australian Americana music from the west coast of the continent, but on his second album he felt the need to mix things up and explore the pervasive sense of anxiety in these changing, uncertain times. When Craddock sat down to start writing … Continue reading
His debut album heralded the arrival of a timeless and exciting new country and folk voice, yet for Marlon Williams he’s only just starting to realise his songwriting ambitions with the baroque pop sound of his new album Make Way For Love. Down the phone line from New Zealand, Marlon Williams has just landed at … Continue reading
RESHAPING ROCK ’N’ ROLL REPUTATION From his home in Nashville, TN, Deer Tick head honcho John McCauley rasps down the line and fills in Chris Familton on the evolution of their live shows and why they’ve released two new albums. Living on the cusp of bar-band rock ’n’ roll and ragged alt-country, with a carefree punk spirit, Deer … Continue reading
IN THE WAKE OF THE NASHVILLE SOUND Ahead of his recent return to Australia with his band The 400 Unit, Jason Isbell took Chris Familton through what he’s been up to in the wake of last year’s The Nashville Sound. “I still don’t think of myself as a country musician,” says Jason Isbell, talking about the … Continue reading
EMOTIONAL RESCUE Ahead of Blair Dunlop’s second visit to Australia, he took the time to chat with Chris Familton about his new album – it’s blend of English folk and American country music and the role that anxiety played in its genesis. With his brand new fourth album, Notes From An Island, in his back … Continue reading
