Tasmania’s Christopher Coleman is a little unorthodox in his rehearsals. Using a different band in each city can be a little on the hectic side.
“I'll be fly in the day before and have a play the night before the show,” the young folk artist says. “I usually send an album or some demos through for them to listen prior to the rehearsal. It's a generally seamless way to go.”
It seems that finding these musicians has never been much of a problem for Coleman. “They are generally friends in the area who I've met along the way. It’s been a very organic process. I've never had to put ads up, it's always been someone I've known. I have people that I always play with in each town. In the UK, it was a duo, and a lot of shows are just solo shows.”
Christopher admits recording his latest album wasn’t all laughter and good times. “I didn't expect to have conflicting emotions. When we started I thought it would be easy and spontaneous and free flowing, and I never expected to have any feelings of loathing towards the project as we went along.”
In true Coleman fashion, recording the album was a collaborative process — and he didn't have any trouble finding collaborators. “I feel it was very much a collaboration. The people I wouldn't trust with the songs wouldn't be asked to jam in the first place. Everyone has had a hand in polishing the songs.
“When we first started the album, I had no idea it would go where it would end up. It started when a couple roommates and myself decided to record and it built up from there. We nutted through some of my note books and chose some of our favourite songs to play. Our producer then sent us to a house in Sweden to finish the mixing and work on our second album.”
This album goes to show how far Christopher has come since the three-piece rock bands of his 'youth'. “We jump around genres and the focus is on the lyrics and melody, rather than the energy and how loud we can play.”
Written by Darcy Love
Christopher Coleman Collective's Tour Dates
Fri Mar 28 — Royal Exchange (Newcastle)Sat Mar 29 — The Newsagency (Marrickville)
Thu Apr 03 — Grand Junction (Maitland)
Fri Apr 04 — The Pier (Port Macquarie)
Sat Apr 05 — No 5 Church Street (Bellingen)
Thu Apr 10 — Dowse Bar (Paddington)
Fri Apr 11 — The Singing Gallery (McLaren Vale)
Sat Apr 12 — A Music Warehouse Project (Adelaide)
Sat Apr 19 — The Pav (Launceston)
