Sunburnt Country Music – Details, episodes & analysis

The music of Sydney-based singer-songwriter Justine Eltakchi came to my attention because she released a country music single, ‘If I Could’, with Timothy James Bowen. She isn’t a country artist per se – in that it’s not one of the genres she has mostly written in, for artists such as Casey Donovan and Abby Christo. But truly Eltakchi could create songs in pretty much every genre and be great at it, because it becomes clear from the first time you listen to her debut album, Big Dream Baby, that she is an artist with not only exceptional songwriting skills but a voice to match. And, beyond that, the willingness to show us her heart and bring us her stories as a way of fostering connection. 

There’s a bravery in that, in an artist showing us – rather than telling us – that her ambitions are as big as her talent. Because it is a big ambition – a big dream, of course – to want to connect with others, on any level. There’s no guarantee they’ll accept what you’re offering, or accept it in the spirit in which it’s offered. They may not understand. They may reject you. That risk creates a vulnerability for the artist, and it’s also there in Eltakchi’s songs – in both lyrics and vocal delivery. What’s most there, though, is a love of life in the details and the big themes. 

The title song has already been released as a single, as has ‘Daughters and Sons’, which Eltakchi recorded with Donovan, ‘Petals’ and ‘Six Weeks of Summer’. There’s a lot more to explore on this album, and you will want to listen to it over and over, for its musical and lyrical richness. In speaking to Eltakchi about it, it became clear that the richness has developed over many years, from a robust musical upbringing, and from not only that open heart but open mindedness. There are many genres on this album because she has chosen the style of music that is best for the song, and given herself the freedom to do that – or, probably more likely, taken it, because being eclectic is not often the path travelled when artists have pressure to sound a certain way. 

I loved talking to Eltakchi about her background and her work as a songwriter for others and creator of songs for herself. I’m sure you’ll enjoy meeting her too. And if you’re in Sydney she’s launching Big Dream Baby at Lazybones Lounge in Marrickville on 30 April, with special guests appearing in her set. 

Big Dream Baby is available now. You can find it on Bandcamp.

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Melanie Dyer is one of Australia’s most-streamed country music artists, and she’s also been nominated for three Golden Guitars and three APRA AMCOS Most Performed Country Work awards. Currently resident in Nashville, Tennessee, Melanie has released a new single, the heartfelt ‘Golden Girl’.

Dyer has long been an in-demand co-writer – you can find a playlist of songs she’s co-written on Spotify, and the list of artists who have recorded one of her songs includes Amber Lawrence, James Johnston and Hayley Jensen. She has the skill of writing melodies that are memorable but not obvious, and lyrics that are accessible and which can also go places you don’t expect. This is also true of songs she writes to record and release herself.

The latest of these is ‘Golden Girl’, which was inspired by her parents’ love story in their – and her – home town of Inverell in New South Wales. Her mother worked at the Golden Fleece truck stop – hence the title of the song; the music video – which was filmed by Dyer’s partner, Jackson James – features that truck stop and an old Holden car with a story, which Dyer reveals in this new interview. 

'Golden Girl' was produced by Grady Saxman. ‘It’s really written by my parents and their love story,’ says Dyer. ‘Bringing that to life in Nashville was a really cool way to have that hybrid of where I'm at in my life between Australia and Nashville.’

The song was recorded as part of a full album tracked in a single day in Nashville, with all musicians live in the room simultaneously – a first for Dyer, and an experience she describes with barely contained disbelief. The album is due to roll out soon, with Dyer carefully selecting singles to give each song its own moment.

Dyer and James moved to Nashville about a year ago and have flourished since, with Dyer recently performing at SXSW in Austin, Texas, and playing and writing regularly in Nashville. There’s a solid community of Australians living there too – plus Dyer had been visiting for a decade before she moved. It’s stood her in good stead as she settles in. While she’s there for the long haul, we’re lucky to still have her songs being released here – she’s a valuable part of Australia’s country music community too, regardless of where she lives. 

‘Golden Girl’ is out now.

Listen to ‘Golden Girl’ on Apple Music

Listen to ‘Golden Girl’ on Spotify

Watch the video for ‘Golden Girl’ on YouTube

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Savanah Solomon is a singer-songwriter from Western Australia who has released the singles 'Magnolia' and 'I Don't Know You Anymore', as well as the 2023 EP Where the River Meets the Sea. Her latest single is 'Someday Somewhere', and it is a warm, hopeful song with more than a few great lines in it.

The song was written a couple of years ago, during a period of involuntary limbo. Solomon had just found out she'd secured a fly-in fly-out job, but the start date was months away. With no income, no momentum and a lot of waiting, she turned to pen and paper. What emerged was something close to a personal mantra – a song about sensitivity as a strength, about humour as a survival tool, and about trusting that good things come to those who keep showing up.

One line in particular lands with the elegance of something that sounds obvious only after someone else has said it: Worry is a waste of the imagination.

'Someday Somewhere' was produced by Josh Dyson at Villa Studios in Western Australia; Dyson also plays bass in Solomon's live band and contributes much of the instrumentation on her recordings. The video, directed by Emma Smart, was filmed near Solomon's home and features Solomon riding her father's red lawnmower down golden roadside fields, dressed in a blue op-shop jacket that she'd bought two years earlier with no specific plan, just a feeling it would come in handy. It is, as intended, an exercise in pure joy.

Watch the video: https://youtu.be/xizjqiA020o?si=2mkWASRCYi5BocA-

Since releasing 'Magnolia' last year, Solomon has expanded her reach considerably, supporting Kingswood in Albany, playing Melbourne's Newport Folk Festival (to which she's returning in June), and completing a run of shows in Esperance and Nannup. 

An album is on the horizon – a blues and folk-leaning collection focused on storytelling – though Solomon is letting it develop at its own pace. More singles are in progress in the meantime.

‘Someday Somewhere’ is out now.

Listen to Savanah Solomon on Apple Music

Listen to Savanah Solomon on Spotify

Listen to Savanah Solomon on YouTube

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Perth duo Scarlet’s Way – whose members are Katey Gabel (vocals) and Shayne Savic (guitar) – are one of the busiest acts in music, not just in their home town but, as I found out during our recent interview, on the high seas too! Not to mention at the Tamworth Country Music Festival, where they spent several days this year performing as well as cementing connections made at previous festivals.

Their travel came in handy for their latest EP, Scarlet’s Way 3, as they wrote the songs while driving across the Nullarbor Plain. The EP was then recorded at their home studio. You’ll only hear those songs, though, if you buy a physical copy of the EP – and that’s a decision we discuss in this chat. 

Just as I was wrapping up the interview – or thought I was – I spotted a word on Gabel’s T-shirt that intrigued me. It turned out the slogan on the top was ‘I run on insulin and Diet Coke’. Figuring she wouldn’t have that on a T-shirt unless she was, in all likelihood, a diabetic, I asked her about it, and this led to Gabel talking about how she has managed her type 1 diabetes over her time as a performer. I’ve interviewed Scarlet’s Way before but we’ve never spoken about that, and it adds an important dimension to the band’s story.

So in case you need an incentive to watch/listen to the end … I very much hope you stick around for that story!

Listen to Scarlet’s Way on Apple Music

Listen to Scarlet’s Way on Spotify

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When I saw on the Instagram page of Central West NSW artist Chloe Swannell that she was playing a bass – something that I hadn’t noticed her playing before – I decided to ask her about it when we had an interview for her latest single, ‘Loves’ a Lil’ Bit’. There was no way to know the story that would unfold about what led to her learning that instrument in what has to be record time, nor the other stories that would come from asking her about it. 

In short: Swannell has had – and continues to have – a life full of rural danger (in this case, a serious hand injury caused by a horse) that is also rich in both creating and teaching music. She learnt the bass quickly because she had to; her ability to do so arose from the fact that she’s a seriously accomplished musician. 

Swannell’s passion for music is evident in the music she’s released, including her latest single, ‘Loves’ a Lil’ Bit’, which is about the different ways to love.

‘We all sat there,’ says Swannell about writing with her producer Tarquin Halls-Corbett, ‘and we went around the room and we wrote down what we loved. And for me it's my favourite farm boots. It's watching a man in a suit come down the aisle, waiting for his bride on a wedding day. For Tarquin, it's hanging around the campfire with me and [band mate] Izzy. 

‘So we wrote all these things down and we just worked them into the song. And that's what it's about. It's just about what we love. And we hope that you can find what you love in that as well.’

You’ll find out more about Swannell’s music – including her teaching of it – in the chat, and also find out more about her fascinating life. She is clearly not a woman who is deterred by difficulties, driven as she is by her love for music and, fundamentally, making the most of each day.

Listen to Chloe Swannell on Apple Music

Listen to Chloe Swannell on Spotify

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Ruby Shay is an artist from the Central Coast of New South Wales who was impressive out of the gate when she released her debut single, ‘Sinner’, in late 2023. Since then she’s kept impressing, and her new album Hitch a Ride is a moving collection of songs about life and how we forge our way through it.

I first interviewed Shay at the time of the release of ‘Sinner’ and she was so interesting to talk to. Her singing voice is a great embodiment of her personality: rich, layered, direct, uncompromising in the ways that matter. When she sings, you feel that you are really seeing her through song – she is not hiding anything. And, also, she has lived through so much that has brought her to have this voice that commands attention.

That voice is married with the array of stories on Hitch a Ride, which were written either by her or by her bandmate in The Red Horse, Shaun Wilson. In our recent interview, Shay talks about how she and Wilson came to choose which songs would be included on the album, and how the songs he wrote seem so much like they would be songs of hers.

This is a conversation with an artist who is technically emerging yet feels emerged – even established, because she knows herself so well that she has arrived in this first album as a complete artist who is at the beginning of what she can share with the world. What you will see and hear in the interview is what’s on the album: a woman with a life that has yielded stories of good and bad times, of shifting sands and learning to stand firm. She’s such a fascinating artist and I so look forward to seeing what she comes up with next. 

Listen to Hitch a Ride on Apple Music

Listen to Hitch a Ride on Spotify

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Rory Phillips is still in his teens and has been playing on festival stages since he was seven. He is a graduate of the CMAA Academy of Country Music and has also been an intern there. He plays with the Bushwackers, he’s been in Sara Storer’s band, and that’s really the tip of the iceberg of his achievements, which include releasing the singles ‘The Truth’ and ‘Because Boys’. He now has a new single, ‘Dear Mum and Dad’.

‘Dear Mum and Dad’ was written at the CMAA Academy of Country Music in Tamworth, as a collaboration with student Andrew Scharf, who had the original idea, mentor Jayne Denham, and Alan Caswell. It was produced by Bushwacker co-founder Roger Corbett at The Valley Studio, and features the voice of fellow Bushwacker Dobe Newton OAM, co-writer of the anthem ‘I Am Australian’ (which last year was released in a Youth Collaboration version, featuring Rory’s vocals). It’s a song about war and sacrifice, released in time for Anzac Day 2025.

Rory is one of the busiest humans around – of any age – yet he found time to film a music video for the song and we talk about the making of it, including the uniform he wears in it. We also speak about his work at the Academy, as well as touring with Sara Storer, and how he’s fitting in his musical life around uni studies. He’s been passionate about music since he was very young, and if anything that passion has only grown as he’s developed more skills and had more experience. He may be young but his sense of service to music is inspirational. 

Listen to Rory Phillips on Apple Music

Listen to Rory Phillips on Spotify

Watch the video for ‘Dear Mum and Dad’ on YouTube

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Vixens of Fall are a sister trio from south-east Queensland who released their debut album, Magick in the Chaos, in 2023. While their sibling harmonies are undeniably a big part of their appeal, the Vixens - Nina, Wren and LuLu – also have great, heart-tugging songs that convey their story and what they hold dear (‘The Long Game’, ‘Crooked Crown’), and others that are hugely entertaining while also offering a story. 

They’re also gathering a large following, often through festival performances. At the time we spoke for this interview, they had not long returned from the massive CMC Rocks festival in Queensland, so of course I asked them about it – and about several upcoming appearances, including how they prepare for festivals. 

The Vixens are a close unit, and that closeness is part of their strength in the studio and on stage. They understand how to work together as siblings, and the push and pull that come with that. So it’s perhaps no surprise that they formed a bond with The Buckleys, another sibling band, which led to the writing of ‘Sinkin’ Spirits’, the latest song from Vixens of Fall. We talked about how they met The Buckleys and came to work with them, and the story behind the song.

It was an absolute pleasure to talk to these vivacious sisters again – our first interview in a while. It’s a long chat because there was a long to chat about! But they will entertain you, just as they do with their music. 

Listen to Vixens of Fall on Apple Music

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When interviewing an artist for the first time, I have no expectations about how things will go. I have my questions prepared, and that means that there will be some sort of conversation, even if it’s brief. While it’s possible – usually likely – to have a sense of how the interview may go within a couple of minutes, I always leave room for it to change and for the conversation to open up.

 So there was room there for Melbourne artist Tom Nethersole to range when I interviewed him for the first time recently. And range he – we – did. Nethersole was an absolute pleasure to talk to – open, thoughtful, gracious and with so many interesting things to say about life and music, including his mental health advocacy and how he has become increasingly vulnerable with his songwriting. 

The reason I haven’t interviewed Nethersole before is because he hasn’t released anything in the country music genre before. A pop artist, he has performed at festivals such as Midsumma’s Pride Street Party, Rockhampton River Festival and Always Live. He’s also the creator of his own music videos, and has collaborated with fashion brands such as House of Campbell, Silk Laundry, Van Heusen, and Mimco.

Nethersole’s new single, ‘Ardmona Rd’, was, it turns out, not meant to be a country-pop single. He went into the studio with the makings of it and its country sound evolved during the recording. As Nethersole grew up in the country, outside of Shepparton in Victoria, that seems appropriate. 

‘Ardmona Rd’ is gloriously heartfelt and uplifting – a love song that is about the grandest of romantic gestures: showing the loved one the places and people that are most meaningful to you. In the case of this song, that is taking them home to Ardmona Road. 

Nethersole says that the song is 'deeply personal but also relatable, especially for queer listeners who are searching for that fairytale moment we don’t always see reflected in music.’ We talk about that, and a lot more, and I hope you enjoy meeting Tom Nethersole as much as I did. 

Listen to ‘Ardmona Rd’ on Apple Music

Listen to ‘Ardmona Rd’ on Spotify

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**Contains the track 'Country Singer' from Faith & Sweat**

Linc Phelps hails from the country music centre of Gympie in Queensland and he has just released his debut album, Faith & Sweat, which has already produced four chart-topping singles. 

The album has been a long time coming for Phelps, who has practised what he preaches in the album’s title by putting in a lot of sweat over the years to develop his music to the point where he’s ready to release this album, keeping faith in his craft all the while.

As he says, ‘There is so much in this life that's worth aspiring to and worth chasing.’

The album was produced by fellow Queenslander Gavin Carfoot, who co-wrote some of the tracks, and in fact the album was an all-Queensland affair, as it was mixed by Gold Coast resident Jared Adlam. It contains collaborations with The Wolfe Brothers on ‘Sing a Little Louder’ and Melody Moko on ‘Dear Mind’.

Faith & Sweat is a set of origin stories for Phelps, although there are still more left unrecorded and unreleased. Perhaps the most impactful story on the album is the one he wrote in memory of his daughter Denver Grace – the last track on the album, ‘Green Valley’. 

In this interview we talk about ‘Green Valley’ as well as other songs on the album, and about Phelps’s rich life in music, which encompasses not only recording and performing but working with emerging artists at Song Muster and elsewhere. That faith and sweat has culminated in an album that is both meaningful and entertaining, a reward for the listener who wants a deeper layer of story to connect with while also tapping their toes in time to the music.

Listen to Faith & Sweat on Apple Music

Listen to Faith & Sweat on Spotify

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