EMMA YUE SHARES INTIMATE BALLAD ‘LONELY LOVER’ AND ANNOUNCES SINGLE LAUNCH AT THE GASO UPSTAIRS ON MARCH 28
A glistening yet gritty journey into self-reflection, the brand new single Lonely Lover (out today) is the ultimate indie rock ode to independence and the pursuit of connection from Melbourne singer-songwriter Emma Yue, who will be celebrating the track’s release with a gig at The Gaso Upstairs on March 28.
Continuing Emma’s knack for weaving addictive hooks with raw lyricism, Lonely Lover thrives with serene textures and spirited vulnerability, with the track driven by buoyant instrumentation and Emma’s crystalline vocals. A compelling earworm, Lonely Lover initially began life well beyond its firm indie flavours, with Emma drawing on long-term sonic influences to shift the new track to its latest form alongside newer muses. And while Lonely Lover may stem from bittersweet sentiments, its ultimate effect is one of hope, as Emma explains, “This single is probably the most honest and raw song I’ve released so far. It represents so much of my reality and feels so authentic to myself, which makes it sort of terrifying to share. When that fear and doubt comes up in my mind I’ve gotten into the habit of reminding myself that I really want to share it so that maybe people who can relate feel a little less alone and a little more optimistic. Around the time of writing it, I was really getting into some Aussie bands like Spacey Jane, but also absolutely obsessed with the song Kilby Girl by The Backseat Lovers. I think those influences came through a bit, while also having grown up listening to Taylor Swift all through my teenage years, her lyrical influence is definitely felt too. When I originally wrote the song, it was far more singer-songwriter and had a country rock feel to it, which I wanted to lean away from a bit. I worked with an incredible producer, Gus Cannon, who took the song and my description of how I wanted it be and gave it the sound it has now. He has been a huge influence on the finished product that we’re both incredibly proud of.”
With Marcelina Permatasari on drums, Gus Cannon on co-production and backing vocals, and Brad Jackson on co-production, mixing and mastering duties, Lonely Lover not only carries stylistic nods to Emma’s past and present; it also captures her own personal experiences with loneliness and isolation, emerging with a catchy yet universally relatable sonic gem. “When I wrote the song it was after a night out with a friend of mine and her long-time childhood friend who had come to visit her,” Emma explains. “I had such a lovely time with them both, but seeing their familiarity and effortless closeness made me feel incredibly lonely and got me thinking about my friendships and how moving countries at age 10 and 12 had played its role in them. That was about three years ago now, and since then the meaning of the song has very much changed to being about the loneliness of having a difficult emotional relationship with my parents. I was also reflecting on other parts of my life so far where I had felt lonely, growing up as a woman of colour in a predominantly white society, being a member of the LGBTQ community and being neurodivergent were all things that had made me feel socially isolated at various points too. While the song sounds upbeat and defiant and like an anthem of independence, it really is just about a girl who has a soul-deep loneliness and realises the only way that’s going to change is to become everything she needed for herself.”
A self-confessed purveyor of the phrase ‘do it for the plot’, Emma Yue has been capturing her effortlessly poetic creativity since an early age, first penning lyrics in the dark when she was eight before transforming her words into songs in her teens, channelling her craft as a form of self-expression and catharsis that has carried over into adulthood. Embodying the rollercoaster ups and downs of your early 20s, Emma pairs her personal experiences with themes of self-identity, sex, relationships, and mental health fused with genre-blending indie, pop rock, and punk sounds. Deeply driven by emotions, Emma’s musical vibe transports you to deeply intimate and familiar places; think wine drunk on the floor with your closest friends, speaking about taboo topics, stomach sore from laughing while knowing you need to be up early the next morning for work. Emma also firmly carries this feeling onto the stage with her five-piece band, and while her latest single Lonely Lover may be releasing on Valentine’s Day in 2024 – it certainly isn’t your average love song for the broken hearted, as Emma concludes, “To be honest I just thought it was a bit comical, I knew I wanted to release the song in mid-February and it didn’t occur to me to release it on that day until I saw the automatic “Valentine’s Day” event that Apple has in my calendar. While the song isn’t actually about romantic relationships, it definitely could be interpreted that way, and we absolutely love the kickass single independent queens of the world.”
Lonely Lover is out today, Wednesday February 14.
Tickets are available now to The Gaso Upstairs on March 28.
LONELY LOVER SINGLE LAUNCH | THU 28 MARCH | THE GASO UPSTAIRS | TICKETS
SAINTHILL SHARES ASTRAL NEW SINGLE + VIDEO ‘THE BLACK BULL’ NEW ALBUM ‘DREAM ANIMAL’ SET FOR RELEASE MARCH 1
Drawing you into a world of dreamy shoegaze and pulsating charm, the new single The Black Bull out today from Melbourne-based artist Sainthill is a lush and evocative journey taken from the talented artist’s impending new album Dream Animal, set for release on Friday March 1. A track many years in the making, The Black Bull also arrives today accompanied by an aptly whimsical music video.
Equally melancholic and intimate yet up-tempo and immersive, The Black Bull’s origin story stems back to 2018, with Sainthill, aka Tom Larkey, first tracking drums for the track pre-pandemic. With sonic inspiration from artists like Slowdive and Interpol helping to conjure the captivating single, the journey to creating The Black Bull can also be traced back to Sainthill’s extensive collection of dream journals, as he explains, “The Black Bull is a fairly up tempo song with pulsing bass and shoegaze elements like a mega-reverbed tremolo picking in the chorus. Also, I was learning to play So. Central Rain by R.E.M. and realised I’d lifted half the chord progression quite by accident! The origin of the song, like others on the album, begins in the hundreds of dream journal entries I have kept over the years that have an exceptional amount of animal appearances, and these were the frameworks for lyrical narratives. The Black Bull takes a potentially obvious metaphor (a black animal as depression) and then tells the story of someone taking matters into their own hands – in this case to train as a matador and overcome the bull (as grotesque as bullfighting is).”
Working once again with John Lee at Phaedra Studios (Lost Animal, Mod Con, Grand Salvo), with Lee mixing both The Black Bull and the broader Dream Animal album as well as playing and recording all of the drums, Sainthill also teamed up with Pip O’Brien, Grantley Smith and an obliging friend to step into the role of the titular bull to bring the accompanying music video for The Black Bull to life, as Sainthill reveals, “There are three characters in the clip: Blue Guy, Red Guy, and The Black Bull. The Blue Guy is the part of us that is optimistic, curious, but struggling. The Red Guy is our inner strength, and he essentially saves the day – by way of a good old fashioned sword fight with stick.. The Black Bull is the obstacle to overcome. At first mysterious, frightening, oppressive, but ultimately something that can be made peace with. Pip O’Brien helped me shoot the initial scenes (she shot a beautiful clip for Cold Hands Warm Heart). I needed some further footage, so an old friend Grantley Smith who happens to be a director and quite handy with a camera, helped me out. I also managed to convince my friend Tom to be in the clip as ‘The Bull’ and wear a ridiculous helmet.”
Partially recording Dream Animal at home (“in the evenings when the birds stopped chirping outside” as Sainthill reveals), the overall album is a fascinating foray into imaginative and innovative dreamy, shoegaze-laced rock. Five years in the making, Dream Animal trips the light fantastic in pure chameleonic fashion, between its heavy synth fever dreams (Lyrebird), melodic rock-meets-chamber music opuses (Cat Called Gram), galloping melancholia (The Clydesdale), eastern-hued enchantment (Leporine Lover) and digital dreamlands shaped alongside organic instrumentation (Nothin’ Except Dream). “I dream a lot, and I have hundreds of dream journal entries,” Sainthill explains, unfurling the stylistic threads throughout Dream Animal. “I noticed an exceptional (or perhaps disturbing?) amount of animal appearances, and these encounters became the basis for metaphorical stories of lost cats, vulnerable horses, and sinister bulls. Chiming guitars and swirling keys ebb and flow, while sprightly rhythms carry simple yet elegant melodies Each song features some sort of narrative (mostly including animals), and these narratives are frameworks for moralistic tales and reflections on the subconscious. The themes include love, loss and renewal, romantic elusion, depression, dream symbols, setting things free, looking after the planet, and music-making itself.”
Hailing from Tasmania and now based in Melbourne, Sainthill was seemingly destined to create bewitching, bittersweet rock, named not only for his mother’s maiden name St Hill, but also for his first cousin twice removed, Loudon Sainthill; an iconic Australian artist and stage designer whose work in the 1950s was described by his lifelong partner as having ‘a special quality of enchantment, mixed so often with haunting sadness’. Growing up in Hobart and spending bountiful time in nature, Sainthill’s love for music and creativity in general blossomed from a young age, discovering Bruce Springsteen when he was five before going on to release his debut EP I Am a Monster in 2009. Now with three albums under his belt, Dear Victoria, Man Alive and Folk Romantic, Sainthill continues to explore character-driven narratives alongside a gamut of hard-hitting themes, and his upcoming full length, Dream Animal, is a celebration of dream pop soundscapes forged with indie rock and folk; and it’s also one that promises untold beauty and intrigue for the listener, as Sainthill concludes, “Dream Animal is a concept album of sorts; the songs are borne from sleep, and thus make the perfect soundtrack to close one’s eyes to, and lose oneself in.
The Black Bull is out today, Friday February 2.
Dream Animal is due out on Friday March 1.
MAMMAL SHARE FUNKED-UP NEW SINGLE + VIDEO ‘THE PENNY DROP’ NEW ALBUM ‘THE PENNY DROP’ SET FOR RELEASE MARCH 6 ANNOUNCE FREE SINGLE LAUNCH GIG AT 170 RUSSELL ON FEBRUARY 9
Bringing the noise and funk in incomparable Mammal fashion, the Narrm neo punk/funk warriors return today with a swaggering new single The Penny Drop. Launching with a free show at 170 Russell (Melbourne) on February 9 with support from I Built The Sky (solo) and Bushido, and accompanied by a gleefully colourful and chaotic music video, The Penny Drop also offers a further peek into the group’s forthcoming new album of the same name, with Mammal’s sophomore album The Penny Drop officially due out on Wednesday March 6, available on vinyl, digital and CD formats depending on how you like to face the funk.
Following on from their fiery recent single Keanu Reeves, Mammal are coming in hot in 2024 with both a new single, The Penny Drop, and the confirmation of their anticipated new album which also shares its name with the brand track. Brandishing trademark spitfire Mammal flair amongst sonic nods to Earth Wind & Fire, Parliament, Skindred, Pantera, Motley Crue and The Killers, the end result for The Penny Drop single is one of unbridled energy and a razor-sharp call to arms, campaigning for long-awaited justice, as frontman Ezekiel Ox impassions, “The Penny Drop is a plea from the front-line for justice. It’s the voice of those who have struggled for decades in, or in solidarity with, the poor, dispossessed, displaced, sick, disabled or criminalised people around the world. It’s a celebration of the wins we’ve had, however big or small. People say the system is broken, but it’s not, it’s working exactly how the racists, land thieves and war criminals intended. Destruction, death, and environmental collapse are here – just be sure to take your reusable bags to the supermarket and turn your lights off and we should be fine, right? Now more than ever, we need to strut like a catwalk model and demand ceasefire and health, housing, water, and education rights. Who’s with the mighty Mammal?”
Teaming up with cinematographer Samuel Vella, director Tristian Braines, and edited and colour graded by David Krebelj to bring some beautiful visual mayhem to life for The Penny Drop’s accompanying music video, Mammal serve up some unforgettable scenes that’ll hurl you relentlessly into the Mammal psyche (and potentially also have you wanting to raid the nearest dress-up drawer). “We met Sam [Vella] through a friend and he filmed our show at The Evelyn,” shares Ox. “We were super impressed with his work so approached him to do our video clip. He brought his production team onboard, and the rest is history. The clip is a circus, a clusterfuck of camp mincing, costume makeup and disco glitter. Aliens ascend, pimps roam free and disco bears pummel beats and strings. Bring your dancing shoes.”
Mammal have never been ones to shy away from tenacious themes throughout their career. Breeding music with a heartbeat that blisters and awes, the same tireless spirit that has accompanied Mammal’s journey over the years burns brightly on their upcoming second album The Penny Drop. Pulsing with pure rock’n’roll at its core, The Penny Drop calls out the wrongs of the world around us while emphatically flexing the group’s revitalised sonic direction and eclectic sonic influences. From stomping fuzz on its opening track Moscow, through to sensual swagger on Slings and Arrows, polished melodics and salient alternative rock on Doubt, irreverent nu metal-laced rage on Live Bold And Dangerous and toe-tappin’ funk/rock fusion on closing track Five Days, The Penny Drop wields a vast palette while also consistently holding up starkly accurate thematic mirrors. “The main themes on the album are politics,” shares Ox, “setting up guillotines, smashing the fash, punching up, our inability to tolerate fools. Musically, fresh, mature, sexy bare bones rock and fucking roll. This album is not for the kids. It’s frown up fun. Pete [Williamson] wrote 100 riffs in 30 days, Zane [Rosanoski] turned them into songs with his V-drums and laptop in another month, then I came down from Newcastle and free-styled for 24 hours over two wild days in Melbourne. After that Jimi Maroudas came on board to produce and hone the 17 best tracks, which became the 12 on the album. After plenty of arguments, compromises and massaging by Forrester [Savell] later, we decided we were done.”
Since forming and releasing their debut self-titled EP in 2006, Mammal have toured relentlessly while also crafting a formidable reputation for their animated live performances, timeless sonic creations and authentic, working-class political activism that has garnered the quartet an ever-growing cult-like status across the globe. Revered as a “must see” rock’n’roll juggernaut, Mammal’s back catalogue includes their striking singles Smash The Pinata, The Majority, Hell Yeah and Think, with their touring history also spanning headline shows in London, Perth, Auckland, Brisbane and everywhere in between, as well as supports with some of the heavy scene’s towering giants, including Kiss, Avenged Sevenfold, Sebastian Bach, Cog, Grinspoon, Spiderbait and Shihad to name a mere few. A band who also walk the walk alongside their musical calls-to-action, Mammal have also previously volunteered their live services, raising much-needed funds for various charities, supporting Interchange, the Refugee Action Collective and Fitzroy Legal Service over the years.
A band who says what they want, how they want to, as loudly and proudly as possible, The Penny Drop is set to be a natural continuation of the ever dynamic and growing Mammal legacy, with The Penny Drop single itself offering a swaggering disco-slap grind to tide you over until the release of the impending new album. “Mammal is riding high on the energy. It was a different process for us this time, it took over a year to finish from riff to master,” says Ox. “To be honest, we just want to get it out and see everyone at the shows when we play it live”. And for those hoping to witness the new Mammal material live in person themselves, the band are fighting inflation and the cost of living crisis for fans of rock and roll with a FREE ENTRY “People’s Night Out” show at 170 Russell on Friday February 9, supported by I Built The Sky (solo) and Bushido. For those fans in other states, some exciting news undoubtedly lies ahead. “This album is built for the live stage,” Ox concludes. Watch this space.
The Penny Drop (single) is out today, Thursday February 1.
The Penny Drop (album) is set for release on Wednesday March 6.
MAMMAL | THE PENNY DROP SINGLE LAUNCH | 170 RUSSELL | FEBRUARY 9 | DOORS 8PM – 11:30PM | FREE ENTRY