Even if you don’t know the artist name, you might recognise the voice behind Hevenshe.
Tonight Alive lead singer Jenna McDougall launched her solo project under that name last year, and this month saw the release of her debut solo EP, Wild Wild Heart.
And McDougall was certainly eager to get going as a solo artist. “The EP is a curated collection of songs that would allow me to get on stage as soon as possible because I wasn’t prepared to wait,” she recently told Dork.
Over six tracks as Hevenshe, she displays insightful songwriting and formidable vocals, particularly on the standout title track.
Produced by Wayne Connolly (Babe Rainbow, Boy & Bear) and mixed by Mark Trombino (blink-182, Jimmy Eat World), “Wild Wild Heart” was equally influenced by desert landscapes, heartache, and the expansive sound of The War on Drugs.
“‘Wild Wild Heart’ came through in about an hour. I didn’t have an instrument with me, I just sang the entire song into my phone watching a sunset,” McDougall reveals.
“I’d ended a tour of the States in Tonight Alive with a solo van trip of California. It was a healing and introspective period with a lot f night drives and nature. I was integrating a significant breakup at the time.”
According to McDougall, the track is “about fate and a fork in the road. I elude to a higher power in the song because I felt powerless to the separation, it was painful but a rite of passage.”
You can watch the accompanying music video for the title track below. “It was SUCH an honour filming the video in Australia’s central desert! Have you seen it yet?” Hevenshe said about the clip on social media.
McDougall is far from done with Tonight Alive. The Aussie pop-punk favourites were recently added to the When We Were Young 2024 lineup, where they will perform their album, The Other Side, in its entirety.
Released in 2013, Tonight Alive’s second album earned heaps of praise from critics, and was nominated for Best Album at the Kerrang! Awards that year.
Hevenshe’s Wild Wild Heart EP is out now.
