Hailing from the tiny Bruny Island in Tasmania, singer-songwriter Maddy Jane has been kicking goals all over the place lately. She’s not only been busting out some of the best sounds that the state has to offer at the moment, but she was also hand-picked by one of our favourite Perth musos Abbe May to attend a songwriting retreat, she’s supported Montaigne, played Party In The Paddock, and was selected by Tash Sultana to support her on her two sold-out Hobart shows.
One of the outcomes of Maddy’s songwriting getaway was her rollicking new ‘Drown It Out’, which she’ll be launching on December 2 at The Republic Bar in Hobart. Full of the unabashedly Australian vibe that Maddy Jane employs in her music, it’s an awesome result for the young songwriter that’ll no doubt be gaining her lots of fans from across the water.
With so much on the cards, we were keen to chat to Maddy about what it’s like being a musician on a tiny island-within-an-island, and how she came to be noticed by some of the most impressive women in music.
Chatting With Maddy Jane
Cities like Perth have developed their own very unique scenes in recent years. Is there a particular scene that’s sprung up in Hobart or Tasmania?
Yes! I think Tassie definitely has a unique scene, and it’s only really just getting started. Everyone involved in the arts scene in Tassie has been working really hard and creating such a unique experience that really represents the different aspects of Tassie.
It’s a real down-to-earth vibe that we bring, along with something that’s always a little different. I think everyone is a bit excited about what is coming out of Tasmania at the moment, I’m not sure if we quite know what we’re on to yet, but dayum it’s happening.
Has it been more challenging as an emerging artist in Tas?
I definitely think it is harder as an artist in Tassie to get it happening in the rest of Aus than artists based on the ‘mainland’ say. But I think it’s just a different thing building a following in a relatively small community, and then the rest of the country. It’s relatively easy to build a following and a name in Hobart, keeping that can be harder in small communities, you can almost over play in Hobart.
Lots of artists move away, which is great, you kinda start again, which is a little weird. But you go about it differently in say, Melbourne for example, and then you’re called a Melbourne artist! Like Courtney Barnett, for example. There is still that element of dismissal towards people that come from a place, but they’re just jealous of what they are too scared to find out what we have. But yeah, I’m pretty proud of the Tassie stamp and I think it’s slowly being seen as the completely beautiful, rare thing it is. I’ll still be playing heaps of shows on the ‘mainland’, me and The Janes will be doing a full band tour soon!
What are the pros and cons of being a musician in a smaller city?
I’m gonna call it ‘small community syndrome’, and I know a lot about this growing up in an even smaller community on Bruny Island (which is an island of the island of the island). Basically, word travels fast and people grow opinions quickly of what you do, that can sometimes be hard to change, especially if people have seen your growth as an artist from the early years of gigging and such. In that, can also mean it is a little easier to get yourself out there, as I was saying before.
If you manage to do it well, you can feel like you have solid following before the rest of the country know anything about you, and in that can also come danger.I think that you can easily think it is that little bit harder to get to the rest of the country, but I don’t see it like that. I’m based in Hobart, living fairly cheaply and can leave the state whenever I want for gigs, just like anywhere else.
Is the ‘Drown It Out’ artwork a little interpretation of Tassie/Bruny Island, or something else?
My lovely friend Laura McMahon drew this up for me, I told her what it was about, gave her the song, (she knows what I’m about as well) and told her, to quote Courtney Barnett, ‘take what you want from me’. She came up with the little house on the island, and it somewhat does represent Tassie and Bruny Island, but also represents feeling isolated, being stuck in your head, and lots of things! She did an amazing job, it really says a lot to me.
What is it that needs to be drowned out?
Life. Haha no, its about being stuck with your thoughts, over thinking things, the things that keeps you awake at night. ‘Drown it out,’ I guess represents the ways which we deal with it, just forget about it, move on, run away, dance, and crank this song! Haha, just whatever makes you feel better.
What are the messages you hope to get across with your music?
‘Message’ is an interesting word, I think I want people to take whatever they make of my songs. I want it to be real, relatable, ironic, curious, and engaging, but there’s a line between getting a message across and an individual’s opinion on words put together.
I guess I want to portray a real, genuine, ‘I’m just figuring all this out with you’ kind of thing. I like to be a little ironic, and sarcastic too, it’s such an Australian thing not to say something in order to say it.
Working with Abbe May must have been interesting. What did that involve, and what did you take away from it?
Abbe May is the most badass, real woman with a super lovely, caring heart. Myself and four other Tasmanian singer-songwriters spent three days on Bruny Island thanks to Music Tas and Festival Of Voices. We drank, wrote music, collaborated, shared, talked, and she shared things that people normally don’t in this industry.
She talked from a human perspective in the industry, and I know we all walked away from that experience with so much, and a new love for what we do. Thank you, Abbe May.
There’s been an active push recently for better female representation on festival lineups, Hottest 100 etc. and also in other roles throughout the industry. What are your thoughts on the current gender balance in the music industry?
I would almost say that the music industry is one industry that is closer than most to equality! There is an evident rise in gals on the radio; lets be positive here! There’s definitely visible change, but still a way to go, and maybe a bit more to go in the live scene? It’s just different to be a female muso, it will always be somewhat different to being a male, at least in my experience, but I’ve never seen myself as having less of a chance than a male, so go music!
I’d say it’s ahead of most industries, but sometimes I would get treated differently in live situations. Some men had assumed I don’t know as much as them, or I don’t know how to use equipment or basic stuff, but hey, sometimes I actually don’t know what I’m doing!
Have you actively sought out or found yourself gravitating towards any female role models in music and, if so, who?
Well I’ve already mentioned Courtney Barnett a couple of times, I don’t think I’ve ever related to someone’s music so much. She has encapsulated a lot of things I was trying to get across in my music, my own thoughts, and just made something make a lot more sense for me when I first heard her.
Katy Steele (Little Birdy), Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac), and Izzy Manfredi (The Preatures) are also favourite gal muso’s! I met Izzy at Party In The Paddock and she just left such an impression on me, she’s a super powerful chick, badass, and super lovely!
You’ll be supporting Tash Sultana soon, which is great. She’s obviously had a meteoric rise recently, what do you think has lead to that?
I can’t wait to support Tash Sultana, I don’t think I’ve heard of two sold out shows in Hobart for a long time! The second one sold out in five hours! She is absolutely killing it and is a huge inspiration because she’s worked and continues to work so hard; she’s just so deserving of it all.
What can we expect from the show at Republic Bar?
Party! I’m super excited for this show, we’ll be playing heaps of new upbeat music. It’ll just be that step up from what we’ve done before and we’ll just have a heap of fun. The song is out, so it’s now time to have fun playing it! Plus, with Sumner and Leo Creighton supporting it should be a great display of Tassie’s growing scene.
