With their new self-titled EP, recently released, we thought we’d get to know the rising indie-pop duo Curly Blonde better.
Curly Blonde are Melbourne pair Brynn O’Connor and Fergus Selkirk-Bell. Their EP arrived at the perfect moment, just as summer begins to bloom. Their shining and shimmering indie-pop belongs to hazy and happy days spent in the park or at the beach with friends.
They sound reminiscent of fellow Australian favourites such as Ball Park Music or The Jungle Giants (one of the EP’s tracks is even titled ‘King Gizzard’).
Their rhythm may induce a blissful atmosphere but the duo deal with the dissatisfaction and monotony of feeling stuck in your 20’s, as poppy arrangements meet contemplative songwriting.
The bright ‘Room 309’ is a particular highlight: “Behind the rolling riffs, dreamy rhythms and vocals, the lyrics of the song stipulate someone who had such big imaginings for their life and set aspirational goals growing up, yet, they’re extremely unsatisfied with how things have turned out and whether they can ever have a meaningful life,” explained Brynn.
“It’s a pretty pertinent song, because I think most people in our age demographic are starting to realise and have thoughts along those lines, and the song captures a moment where you either make the move and live out those dreams, or whether you fall into the masses and go through the motions.”
The pair created an encapsulating video for the track, shot entirely during the boredom of COVID-19 lockdown in Victoria. “The concept of the video clip was to capture the isolation and monotony of being stuck in the same place but wanting to get out of there,” Brynn said.
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“The video clip resonates really well with the song, because ‘Room 309’ is about someone having such high hopes for life, but not being able to reach any goals. The COVID lockdown situation sort of helped us in a way, because not being able to go anywhere and having to do the same things over and over again fitted so well into the music video.”
We had a chat with Curly Blonde as part of our popular Get To Know series to learn more about their influences and career.
How did your artist name come about?
Our name pretty much comes from what’s sitting on top of our heads! We wanted a name that was unique and cut through, but also something that resonated with us and we thought our hair is something that is really distinguishable. We also like how it’s a name that creates a bit of intrigue and mysteriousness as to what act we are.
How would you describe your music to your grandma?
Great for a sunday afternoon stand-up chandy with the gals.
Tell us about a few of your tracks; their titles and what they’re about?
‘Room 309’, which is our latest single, is a song that’s been floating around in our heads for about 3 years now. The track is basically about someone who grew up having such high goals and aspirations, and is extremely unsatisfied with how things in their life has turned out. From there they can either choose to continue on that path of life, or they can make a move and try and live out a meaningful life through those dreams.
What do you love about your hometown?
There’s a lot to love about Melbourne! The sport, the nightlife, the food, the culture, the music venues are just a few of the reasons why we love it here. We both moved here about 5 years ago and we both agree that there’s no place like it. It’s such a unique place to live. We love the fact you can go to the footy, grab an awesome cheap meal, have a beer at a cool pub, and then see a gig, all in one night and so easily!
Career highlight so far?
We’d probably have to say releasing our latest single ‘Room 309′. With this year being such a crazy year, we’ve loved being able to get this done and out there for people to listen to. It’s motivated us through the lockdown in Melbourne, and it’s something we’re really proud of. It’s so awesome to hear from people and see that they’re loving it too!
Fave non-music hobby?
Backyard cricket for sure. We’re out on our backyard pitch everyday (very competitively) rolling the arm over.
What’s on your dream rider?
A personal masseuse, an unlimited supply of tea, backyard cricket set for spare time, and of course Margot Robbie.
Dream music collaboration?
Probably have to go with Tame Impala or Glass Animals. They’re both bloody talented artists and the things they do blow our socks off! And Kev’s hair is so luscious.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Hopefully on the festival circuit! Playing at any of the major festivals in Australia is a massive dream of ours. We’d also love for people to just still be enjoying our music and getting good vibes from it. That’s probably the number one thing that we love to see.
What’s your go-to karaoke song?
Ferg – ‘Wonderwall’ – Oasis
Brynn – ‘Hey Ya!’ – OutKast
What’s on the cards for the future?
We’ve got heaps of ideas for new stuff so we’ll definitely be doing some recording. Hopefully we can throw in a few live shows as well with Melbourne starting to open back up, so that’s pretty exciting.
Check out ‘Room 309’ by Curly Blonde:
