Melbourne-based musician, Chris Pickering will be hitting the road as the support act for Jackie Marshall's 'Lilith Shrugs' album launch tour (he also plays in Jackie's band).
“Since [Jackie's] first solo record I've been a big fan of her songwriting,” Chris says. “She really wants to try and capture as many emotions and genuine stuff.”
Having first met in Brisbane as music students in the 1990s, Chris and Jackie began to collaborate and influence each other’s music. After breaking away and working on separate projects, the duo joined forces to collaborate on Jackie's solo work. “This is actually more than ten years ago now. That ended up being her first solo record, 'Fight n'Flight'.
“We also collaborated a couple years later on her next record, 'Ladies' Luck'. We've been in touch ever since. We like the improvising nature and the 'go with the flow' thing. A Jackie Marshall or a Chris Pickering show is never the same because we like to take the music on tangents.”
Read our recent article with Jackie Marshall.
With regards to Jackie's upcoming tour, Chris explains that he's looking forward to playing some new venues, being surrounded by good people and enjoying Jackie's unique performance.
“The gigs are always different and I think that's why Jackie and I have always been attracted to each other musically. She's just so good. In the last ten years or so she's become a really great songwriter.”
Following Jackie's tour, Chris will return to Brisbane in October for his only headlining show of the year in the city. “[It's] kind of ironic because we are all from Brisbane,” Chris says.
“It's fun to play in Brisbane. It's fun to play in front of friends, acquaintances, [or] enemies I haven't seen in a long time. It's a really good vibe. I still have family and musical friends in Brisbane.
“It's good to see familiar faces, but it's also good to see new [ones]. It's a fun town to play in. Brisbane people are pretty good. It helps that I know quite a few of them.”
As he enjoys experimenting with his songs, Chris hints the audience can expect some new twists on some old material. “Because we only come up every so often, [we] bring a new approach. We play a lot down here in Melbourne and change our approaches to playing. There's lots to come and see.
“There's a lot of jamming. [There's] highly instinctive variations of what we do. We play a lot of old material but also new material. We try and always take it somewhere new every time we play.
“We make the song a little bit different or extend it as musically as we can, but still have that same song recognisable to a certain extent.”
Jackie Marshall Tour 2018
Fri 21 Sep - The Spotted Mallard (Melbourne)Sat 22 - The Piping Hot Chicken & Burger Grill (Ocean Grove)
Thu 4 Oct - Leadbelly (Sydney)
Fri 5 Oct - The Junkyard (Maitland)
Sat 6 Oct - Smith's Alternative (Canberra)
Sat 20 Oct - Sonic Sherpa (Brisbane)
Sun 21 Oct - Brisbane Powerhouse - LiveSpark series
Chris Pickering Tour 2018
Fri 12 Oct - Coburg RSL (Melbourne)Sat 20 Oct - Junk Bar (Brisbane)
Sun 21 Oct - Brisbane Powerhouse - LiveSpark series
Sun 18 Nov - The Standard Hotel (Melbourne)
