Formed just two years ago, Australia country act Darlinghurst have quickly made a name for themselves.
Alongside a Golden Guitar nomination for New Talent Of The Year, they've released six singles that have all landed in the Top 5 of The Music Network's CountryTown Hot 50 airplay chart hits.Add to that festival appearances at Groundwater Country Music Festival, Deni Ute Muster, Gympie Music Muster, and Live & Loud Stage Tamworth, not to mention support slots with Jimmy Barnes, James Blundell, The Wolfe Brothers and The Black Sorrows, and it's easy to see why Darlinghurst are currently one of the nation's hottest country music exports.
Today marks a special milestone in the Melbourne-based group's short career, with the release of their debut, self-titled studio album, recorded with Pete Dacy, who the four-piece (Matt Darvidis, Cassie Leopold, Pagan Newman and Jason Resch) lovingly refer to as their unofficial fifth band member.
Jason sat down for an in-depth chat about the band's career so far, the release of their debut album, collaborating with Shannon Noll and finding time for a sneaky celebratory whiskey over a Zoom chat with the rest of his band mates.
The story of Darlinghurst; how did the group come together?
Our producer Pete Dacy was our common thread. I'd been working with Pete ever since I came back from Nashville. Cassie, who had been singing with Pagan as a duo for years, knew Pete from a previous project, and Matt did work experience at Pete's studio when he was 16.
To make a long story short, and how I felt it all happened, Pete being an ultimate opportunist, when he got the impression that we all had a desire to do an original project, I think he pretty much got us somehow all in a room together, just to see what would happen.
I wouldn't call it an arranged marriage. . . because we all could've said: "I don't!" – ha! But we all got on like a house on fire; and you don't put it out when that happens.
The Darlinghurst debut studio album is out today; how much of a journey has it been for the band to reach this point?
It's been a very beautiful one to us. Of course, there's pitstops when you're on a long journey, and obviously the pandemic situation has put a massive roadblock in front of any musician/ artist – just everyone, really.
But for the most part, the journey has been a very beautiful one – in a sense that amongst all the hard work, dedication, sacrifices etc. that we've put into what we're wanting to achieve, we've done it in a way that works for us.
Given it's the group's debut album, how does this collection of songs showcase the current incarnation of Darlinghurst?
I think it will stamp an indication of where we're at collectively as a band releasing their first LP.
I think there's something on the album for everyone to enjoy and relate to, and that's given I guess to our different musical backgrounds and how we are as individuals together. There will be a lot of different shade and colour among the 12 songs.
We all share lead vocals, lots of harmonies, songs to go wild to, some to breakdown to. But, we invite anyone to listen to our record and make their own mind up.
Lyrical direction of this batch of songs; what types of themes and issues does the band usually gravitate towards with your songwriting?
We kind of write pretty heart on the sleeve – depending how we're feeling at the time or what we may be going through.
The songs like 'Gotta Go Rodeo', 'Where Do We Go' – they're such free-spirited, positive messages. 'Genevieve', 'Picture Frame', or 'Sorry Won't Get You Back' – I think the things we all go through at some point in life.
And then there's 'Hangman', which is a mystery to all of us of what that song's about sometimes, ha! But again, we invite you to listen and come to your own interpretations.
The album was recorded and produced by Pete Dacy (as well as yourself, Jason) and mixed by Grammy Award winner Jack Joseph Puig; what did these two gentleman bring to the project that enhanced the final recording even further?
So many invaluable things. They have so much perspective, which comes from their experience – and the love and patience that went into making this album is something else.
Working alongside Pete is an absolute honour and joy, and like I mentioned earlier he really has a great pulse on everything and what matters. And then JJP – he just has a sixth sense about him. . . the vision he has – like, he can see something with his ears better than what we could with our eyes.
Both of them are wonderful, and we at Darlinghurst are very grateful for the collective team that we're all a part of.
The record also features a collaboration with Shannon Noll; how did that all come about and what was it like to work with Nollsy?
Mark Pope from our label Helium Records, he's known Shannon for quite some time.
We got a call from Mark as he was listening to a desk mix of 'You Stopped Making Sense', while taking a bus ride. He calls and says 'I've just had an epiphany! I don't know where the idea came from; but Shannon. . . I can hear his voice on this song! It'd be beautiful!'
And I think the bus was completely full of people as he was joyfully explaining this, but that's Mark for you; brilliant guy and mind, and he set it up.
And we are just so blessed for Shannon to be a part of it. He brought so much conviction, emotion, perspective – everything that the record needed. And the way Pagan and Shannon trade back and forth on the record, it's really beautiful.
All four members share vocal duties; was that an important factor to have every member capable of singing?
We started out just trying to play to our strengths, and first and foremost try and write the best songs we can, but I guess when we realised that all of us were quite familiar with taking lead vocals, along with the four-part harmonies, it sort of became a part of what makes Darlinghurst now, and I guess that's what people enjoy hearing when they come see us live.
Darlinghurst in the studio or at band practice; how do you bring new songs into the fold; and do you each take on songwriting responsibilities for the band?
It's a very collective process for us, and all very different in the approaches.
Some songs came from an individual idea or concept, other songs they just happened very quickly and in the moment with all of us together. And there's also a handful of songs on the album that we've co-written with Jack and Ruby from the band Dacy – and they're great writers in their own right.
It really just depends whatever feels right for us and whatever we can do together to get an honest record to cross the line. Hmmm. . . maybe we could try and ride the bus too, we may come up with an epiphany for the next idea.
The brand of country music Darlinghurst create is quite modern; what influences does each member bring to the melting pot of ideas the band brew together?
I guess it's everything that we've naturally grown up on, and all our individual experiences and perspectives.
Music wise, Cassie and Pagan have been singing many different styles for years: country, rock, soul; they've covered a lot of ground together. Matt comes from a musical family and has a lot of his influences imbedded in folk/ acoustic music. Myself – it was pop, but I grew up also listening to the older country music that my parents had playing all the time.
I guess it's something we don't really think about too much, we just be ourselves and bring that to the table, and when we do it somehow just. . . fits.
The band has only been around for two years (mostly during a pandemic), yet you've already received a lot of industry recognition, supported a number of legendary names in Australian music and played some major country music festivals; do you guys feel the momentum building, that this band could be something a little special?
We do sense from the reaction that we've been receiving so far that people are digging what we do and what we're about, which means the world to us.
But to be completely honest with you, we just tend to focus on the task we've set and what we're wanting to create, keep writing our songs, and just keep doing our thing.
Although the band are currently in Melbourne's lockdown, Darlinghurst have a couple of festival dates on the horizon including Groundwater Country Music Festival; you must be itching to return to a stage and play for a live audience?
ABSOLUTELY. We can't wait to be amongst it again with our fellow artists, musicians and everyone who just loves live music.
It's been incredibly tough for the music industry these last couple years, so I'm sure everyone is just ready to get out there again and do what we all love to do – and that we haven't been able to do for quite some time.
With the album released, what's the next step for the band?
First will be a sneaky whiskey over Zoom! And then, we'll just be getting straight back to it – working towards live shows again, promoting our music, and writing our songs. And looking forward to the day where we can all be in the same room once again.
Thanks for your time; anything else you'd like to add?
And thank you for yours! We hope to see you all at a gig or festival very soon. If you want to know more about us, you can check us out at darlinghurst-band.com, and all social media platforms and streaming devices. Stay well and safe, and we hope you enjoy listening to our debut album.
Darlinghurst 2021-2022 Tour Dates
Fri 12 Nov - Groundwater Country Music Festival (Gold Coast)Thu 25 Nov - The Tourist Hotel (Queanbeyan)
Sat 27 Nov - Country Rocks Festival (Canberra)
Wed 19 Jan - Moonshiners (Tamworth)
Fri 21 Jan - West Leagues Club (Tamworth)
Thu 17 Mar - Lizotte's Newcastle
Fri 25 Mar - Centro CBD (Wollongong)
