Unveiling their full lineup and releasing a new glimpse into the world of Agnes Manners, the collective releases ‘Evergreen’ while also reminding us about the importance of staying energised during the bluster of change that’s surrounding us.
Former Hellions member Matthew Gravolin has debuted his new project Agnes Manners last month, and has returned today to announce the full line-up alongside releasing a stunning new single ‘Evergreen’, as well as the fact that their debut album, Fantasia Famish is slated for release in September.
Under this new moniker, Agnes Manners plans to embrace the androgynous nature of the music and dismantle “the archaic blueprint of masculinity” while championing vulnerability and empathy in men.
“It wasn’t until my father passed suddenly in 2018 that I felt the need to focus on the new sound I felt building within me. A sound that dad would have liked,” Gravolin reveals while discussing the new, musical name.
“Although it means ‘pure’ or ‘holy’, I’ve always found there to be something phonetically creepy about the name ‘Agnes’ – a hooded old woman springs to mind. I saw a duality of wisdom and innocence in the name,” he explained.
“When it came time to choose a name for this project, Agnes Manners was stuck in my head.”
Check out ‘Evergreen’ by Agnes Manners:
Even though “live performance remains out of the question for the foreseeable future,” Gravolin has announced the esteemed musicians who will join him on stage.
“Whenever I get to the stage I’ll be joined by Lachlan Monty and Alexander Trail of Bad/Love (formerly of Make Them Suffer and Storm The Sky, respectively) and CJ James of Cottonmouth. These people are incredible musicians and some of the most beautiful people I’ve encountered here in Melbourne. This is Agnes Manners.”
As the world continues to boil down hope mixed among chaos, Agnes Manners latest tune offers an escape for the listener to get lost in Gravolin’s honeyed vocals, while a piano and rock driven mixture drives the track.
Titled ‘Evergreen’, Gravolin notes that the tune “went through many structural, lyrical and melodic changes before reaching the place of tropical romance I had envisioned.”
“The song is about surrendering to love and letting it change you – Shane [Edwards, producer] and I started to find musical and lyrical congruence by taking a Gospel route and ended up in flowerchild Americana territory – definitely a first for me.”
Check out ‘Sydney (feat. John Floreani of Trophy Eyes’ by Agnes Manners:
Amidst a world that’s been boggled down with blow after blow, to Agnes Manners a ray of hope shines forward as a beacon to incite change, and to pave the path towards a better future.
As Matt Gravolin reveals, Agnes Manners’ recent track ‘Sydney’ saw him choosing to donate all profits via Bandcamp to the David Dungay Junior campaign, a money raising effort to bring awareness to Indigenous deaths in custody, and that change must happen.
“I felt it was the best way that I could use my career to benefit the movement at that time,” Gravolin details.
Alongside close friends, Gravolin noted that he “joined the Black Lives Matter rally a few days before the premiere of ‘Sydney’ and there I learned about what had happened to David Dungay Junior. David’s story stayed with me and I wanted to do as much as I could with the slight pedestal that Agnes Manners affords me.”
Not wanting to lose momentum, Agnes Manners member CJ James notes that the most important thing for us to do right now is to “stay energised,” and not lose focus of the change we’re bringing to the world.
“There are a lot of important voices that need to be heard – we need to continue to hold space, to listen and to learn,” he details.
“It’s an important time to seek out BIPOC & LGBTQ+ art and media, film, music, articles, tv, etc. as this will directly benefit these communities and contribute to undoing some of the cultural damage that has been cause by systematic misrepresentation and underrepresentation in the mass media.
“There is a societal shift happening and many, if not all of us are experiencing it together. It’s a call to action, to pay attention to the world around us and apply what we learn to ourselves and our own lives. To have the tough conversations and help make existence safe and fair for everyone.
“We need to put love first, we need to put love into action, we need to let love fuel the revolution.”
The latest song from Agnes Manners, ‘Evergreen’ is out today, with a debut album slated for release in September.
