Sunburnt Country Music

Elly McK & The Unbelievers are an alt-country band from Melbourne who released the single 'Bones' earlier this year and, before that, the single 'Down on Your Luck'. They are embarking on a tour of New South Wales and Victoria in support of their new single 'The Wind Up'. McK explains that ‘The Wind Up’ is about the decision to make a change, whether it's in a relationship, a job, or any other...

Two Tone Pony is a five-piece band with an extensive musical lineage. With Greg Richardson on drums, Graham Puglisi on bass, Ian Rhodes on mandolin, harmonica and guitar, and Glenn Wiley on keys, it was founded by David Kirkpatrick, who was named after his father – who was otherwise known as Slim Dusty. The title of Two Tone Pony’s debut album,  Born on the Road , is taken from the song of th...

Matt Ward is a South Australian singer and songwriter who has released two albums that have reached #1 on the ARIA Country chart,  Heartland  and  If I Was in Dallas Tonight . His latest album is the deeply personal and introspective  The Long Way Home , released through Ward's own label, Heartland Music Australia.  The eight-song collection is a testament to the...

James Johnston is a two-time Golden Guitar winner who has amassed an impressive 75 million streams for his anthemic songs, which include ‘Raised Like That’ and ‘Country Boys’, both of which appear on his 2023 debut album,  Raised Like That .  From my first interview with Johnston it was clear that he had taken his time to develop his craft, and art, as a performer and songwriter. He’d pl...

Lisa De Angelis grew up in Sydney and now lives in Brisbane, where she makes cowboy music for city slickers. She is a multifaceted artist who seamlessly blends her talents as a songwriter, performer, and storyteller. She’s also a dream to interview, giving thoughtful, interesting and often funny answers, so I hope you enjoy listening to this conversation as much as I enjoyed having it. The re...

Ella Powell has a habit of writing and recording truly lovely songs, including the singles ‘Along the Way’, ‘Country Love’ and ‘Paper Town’. She’s now collecting these singles in an EP,  The End of the Beginning , to mark this creative part of her life.  In this interview Powell shares insights into her artistic evolution, the joys and challenges of collaboration, and the lessons she's l...

Dave Kent is a singer-songwriter from the south-west of Western Australia who cut his musical teeth in punk and in Margaret River. He has released the singles ’80 Proof’ and ‘Country Music’ and his third single is ‘Honky Tonk Dreams’. The Beginnings of a Musical Journey Kent’s musical roots can be traced back to his childhood, where he was exposed to the The Beatles and classical music during...

In this insightful interview, I talk with rising Sydney-based artist Braydin Good to discuss his musical journey, the inspiration behind his latest single ‘Honest’, and his experiences playing live in Sydney.  Good’s love for music was ignited at a young age, with his father teaching him to sing and play guitar in early childhood, with Good recording his first song in his dad's friend's studi...

Dean Weston , an artist hailing from the central coast of New South Wales, has had a remarkable musical journey that has spanned decades. His lifelong passion for music began in childhood, when he and his sister received their first guitars for Christmas.  As a young musician, Weston found inspiration in the music of his parents' record collection, which included the likes of Elvis Presley, T...

Adele Oliver grew up in the wheatbelt of Western Australia and now lives in Broome. She grew up partly in the adrenaline-fuelled world of car racing and her favourite sport now is rodeo – and it led to the creation of her latest single, ‘Wiley Blue’. The song's origins lie in a chance encounter with a bull of the same name, which was ridden at a rodeo by her partner at the time. In the song Oliver...

Saralyn  is a singer and songwriter from the Hunter Valley in New South Wales who released her first single last year in the wake of attending a songwriting retreat at Kasey Chambers’s Rabbit Hole Studio. Since then Saralyn has consistently released lovely singles, and consolidated her impact by just winning the 2024 Mother Tone Talent Search at the Gympie Music Muster. It was clear from spea...

At 21 years of age Lucy Parle has already released an EP and several singles. She took out first place in the teen category of the International Songwriting Competition in 2020 and was named a standout performer in Triple J's Unearthed High in 2020 and 2021. In this interview, we delve into Parle’s beginnings in the EP course at Palm Studios to her recent successes, including her latest single, ‘B...

Originally from Michigan in the USA, singer, songwriter and performer  Sandee Facy  now lives in Melbourne. Her musical journey is one of passion, perseverance, and profound personal experiences.  Facy’s musical roots run deep, as I discovered during our recent interview, in which she recounts her early days training as a mezzo-soprano at the prestigious Interlochen School of Music...

Melanie Dyer is a rising star in Australian country music, captivating audiences with her irresistible blend of country and pop. In a recent interview, she opened up about her creative process, the inspiration behind her latest single ‘Had to Be There’, and the exciting plans for her upcoming East Coast tour.  Dyer's musical journey has been marked by a series of accolades, including Golden G...

Luke O’Shea has won 16 Golden Guitars for his albums and his videos, including the single  ‘South East Queensland’ from his album  Different Drum .  In this interview, we delve into the stories, inspirations, and creative processes that have shaped his acclaimed albums and live performances. O’Shea’s music is a testament to his dedication to the craft of storytelling through song, f...

Singer-songwriter Billie-Jo Porter  was a 2022 Toyota Star Maker Grand Finalist and she released her self-titled debut albumlast year. She now has a brand-new single, ‘Howl at the Moon’, which is all about the liberating power of embracing our primal instincts.  Our conversation begins with the inspiration behind ‘Howl at the Moon’ as Porter recounts a serendipitous moment at a twil...

Kirsty Lee Akers is the only artist in history to have won three of the major prizes in Australian country music - Toyota Star Maker, Telstra Road to Tamworth, and a Golden Guitar - and she’s done it with a combination of great songs and high-energy live performance. Her most recent album,  Wild , took the #1 spot on the ARIA Country chart, it was the fourth  highest-selling country...

Ashleigh Dallas has won five Golden Guitars and that’s because she is an artist of considerable talents as a singer, songwriter and musician. It’s those same talents that see her invited to perform in festivals such as Red Country in the Pilbara, where she’s just visited, and the Gympie Music Muster , which is coming up in late August. She’ll be taking her new single, ‘Love Still Has Something’. R...

Brad Butcher is a two-time Golden Guitar winner from the central Queensland coast who has released five albums – the latest being  East of Everything  – and one compilation,  Storyteller . He writes with clarity and insight about life and love and family, and has a habit of creating unforgettable songs. He’s about to take some of those songs to the Gympie Music Muster in late August...

Helen Townsend is an artist from Fremantle in Western Australia whose music is a fusion of roots-rock, blues, country, and folk. With her band the Wayward Hearts she’s on tour in New South Wales, Western Australia and Victoria throughout August and September, with her new album, Take It or Leave It , released on 2 August. Townsend's musical life began at the age of 40, although she had long been k...

Born and raised in Gympie in Queensland, Linc Phelps released his debut EP in 2022 and since then the single ‘Sing a Little Louder’, which came out earlier this year. His latest single is ‘Hundred Percent’. Growing up Phelps was immersed in the music of Australian artists such as Graeme Connors , John Williamson, and Colin Buchanan, then subsequently gravitated towards American country stars like...

Born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and raised on the South Island of Aotearoa New Zealand, Holly Arrowsmith released the album A Dawn to Remember in 2018. She has won several awards for her songwriting, including most recently the APRA Amcos NZ Country Song of the Year for ‘Desert Dove’, which is a single from her sublime new album Blue Dreams , which was released on 26 July.   Our wide-ranging co...

Jen Mize is a singer, a songwriter, a producer, a mentor and a great collaborator, having created music with her band The Rough N’ Tumble as well as writing songs with other artists in addition to releasing solo music. Her latest solo song is ‘My Buzz’. ‘I wrote “My Buzz” after realising I can sometimes be a total Debbie Downer when I'm talking to people,' says Mize. ;The song calls me out for alw...

Nathan May has been a musician since childhood and over the past couple of years has been releasing singles such as  ‘Fix It Up’  and  ‘It’s Gotta Start Somewhere’  that showcase his wonderful voice as well as his storytelling. In 2019 he won the award for Young Aboriginal Artist of Year in 2019 and in 2022 he won the Creative Young Achiever. May’s latest single is ‘Love F...

Patsy and Dave are Patsy Doop and Dave Baird and they used to be known as The Long and the Short of It. Their 15-year collaboration – writing, recording performing music together – has resulted in albums, the latest of which was  Midnight Choir . As Patsy and Dave they have a brand new single, ‘Dream Vacation’. They first met by chance at a local tavern where Patsy was impressed by Dave's sin...