Tell us about your new single/ album/ tour?
My second album ‘Astral Debris’ comes out on Friday 2 September. I was lucky enough to work with acclaimed electronic producer Tim Shiel (Faux Pas; Gotye; Bertie Blackman) on some of the album tracks, as well as capturing some songs live with my band. To celebrate the release I’m playing a string of shows, starting with a very special hometown gig with my full band and string quartet on Thusday 25 August at The Toff In Town (Melbourne).
What’s your favourite work at this point in time?
I recently released the single ‘Open Orange’, featuring one of my most favourite artists on the planet right now, Phia. We had a heap of fun with kaleidoscope projections, arm doubles and obscene amounts of eye glitter when we made this video with director Rohan Spong…
Tell us a quick, on the road or studio, anecdote.
If you ever have food poisoning in Guatemala and you have to take a 12-hour bus trip to Mexico, you can vomit into an empty Pringles can. It has a lid so you can reseal it. Pro tip.
What, or who, inspires you?
When I was writing ‘Astral Debris’ I was very inspired by mythology, fables and archetypes. I was reading Greek myths and revisiting fairytales and listening to pop music, trying to understand how artists like Robyn and Bat For Lashes and Sally Seltmann distill archetypal human stories into catchy parcels of pop. So with this album, I had my gaze skyward. Since having a baby last year I’ve found myself drawn more inward, getting inspired by my neighbours, stories from my friends and family, and my inner landscape.
Which song do you wish you wrote?
The new song that I am currently trying to finish. I wish I could write that one!
How would you describe your sound in food form and why?
It would be some kind of pie, with layers. It would be sweet but also the main course. It would have just the right amount of cheese. And fairy floss. And potatoes. And capers. Bjork takes it out of the oven, and brings it over to your table on a silver tray. As she sets it down and lifts away the silver tray lid,
Mariah Carey jumps out of the pie singing ‘Dream Lover’. Small pieces of pastry fall out of her hair. You sing along.
What’s next for you?
Last year I wrote my first feature-length film score for the documentary ‘Winter at Westbeth’ by Australian filmmaker Rohan Spong. The film had its premiere at the Sydney Film Festival last month, and is about to screen at the Melbourne International Film Festival in August. I’m looking forward to seeing how audiences respond to the story – the film chronicles a year in the life of three truly exceptional and elderly artists in New York City, capturing what inspires them to keep creating even into their 90s. I’m also looking forward to playing some summer shows and maybe even some more festivals later in the year!
What’s your scene?
I spend a lot of time in my imagination, which can be a lonely place, which is why I fill it with songs. So my kind of scene is the one where there are songs
And pies. And maybe a unicorn.
About Georgia Fields
Georgia Fields steps into a realm of her own with the release of her highly anticipated second album Astral Debris. Ambitious, boldly orchestrated and emotionally rich, the record heralds a newfound assuredness for the Melbourne-based multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter. Fields launches Astral Debris with a run of tour dates August through September.
Featuring a production collaboration with acclaimed electronic artist Tim Shiel (Faux Pas; Bertie Blackman; Telling), a guest appearance from Berlin-based art-pop melodist Phia, and the sweep and splendour of a live string section, Astral Debris is glitter and grunt; shimmer and sweat; lipstick and blood. Near-naked piano ballads stand alongside retro-futuristic synth-pop gems, and in testament to Fields’ undeniable charisma, it all works.
Astral Debris’ first single, ‘Hood & the Hunter’ is a feminist retelling of the Red Riding Hood fable. The track evokes a forest-green lushness, with Fields’ vocal swiftly darting from goose-bump intimate to a commanding, war-cry wail. Second single ‘Open Orange’ features a guest appearance from Phia and her trademark African kalimba. Both hailing from Melbourne but living in separate corners of the world, the singer-songwriters had met randomly in Europe several years prior. But it was Tim Shiel who suggested getting Phia on ‘Open Orange’, despite the oceans between them.
Tour Dates
Thursday 25 August
The Toff In Town, Melbourne
Sunday 28th August
The Bridge Hotel, Castlemaine (Matinee show)
Thursday 1st September
High Tea, Sydney