An emerging Melbourne musician who has released a number of quality singles since making her debut with the 2022 track 'The End', Queenie is nearing the release of her debut album.
The alter-ego of Eloise Thetford, Queenie has already built a resume that has seen her support Tex Perkins, play Party In The Paddock and Tamworth Country Music Festival, and was invited to perform at the 2023 APRA Music Awards.With her first record 'New Moult' due 30 August, Queenie has teased that the album with another gem of a song, 'Everything Sucks'. There's a delicate, fragile, heart-achingly rawness to 'Everything Sucks', a song that crackles with a simmering intensity.
It's sultry, moody folk-pop that bursts with an alt-country rock as Queenie sings about the overwhelming emotions of fresh heartache as the song unpacks all the feelings while capturing the essence of romantic distress tangled within the monotony of everyday life.
"'Everything Sucks' was written after ending a ten-year relationship back in 2020. We were heading straight into lockdown and I didn't have the usual avenues of socialising and partying to drown my sorrows, so I had to sit and actually work through my feelings," Eloise says.
"I was struggling to get through the days, especially being stuck inside and wondering what was happening in the world, everything really did suck at that point! I hadn't written a song in a while so I dusted off my little acoustic, sat down on my bed and it just spilled out. 'Everything Sucks' really was just an outpouring of grief and loss."
After releasing 'Everything Sucks' in early July, today scenestr is thrilled to premiere the song's music video. Enjoy.
"It was a bit of a slow burner and my producer and I initially fleshed it out as a dark, folky piece but it didn't quite feel right," shares Queenie about the song's birth.
"At the time, I'd had War On Drugs on repeat and when I was driving back from the studio one day, blasting 'I Don't Live Here Anymore' (probs also crying), I knew ['Everything Sucks'] needed to be a nostalgic '80s banger.
"We ended up re-recording the whole song in a few hours. There are some wonderful little instrumental quirks in the song, in particular the piano sound at the start. . . it's a very distinct, verby, almost string-like sound and we achieved it by putting Blu Tack on the strings of the piano. There are no other effects on it! Just trusty ol Blu Tack."
The clip is super-cool as well as, entirely done DIY with Eloise directing with Marcus Coblyn as well as handling the video's concepts, which sees Queenie finish her 'day job' before driving aimlessly, ditching a petrol shop attendant without paying, collecting a guitar-wielding hitchhiker before arriving at a hall to perform onstage.
"The clip is probably the most complex we've done so far. My wonderful band features as all the characters I encounter on my journey.
"We were super lucky with the locations; there's a beautiful little supermarket in Clifton Hill that features in the opening scene and I was DESPERATE to shoot there, but we didn't want to interrupt business at a busy hour (6pm on a weeknight when everyone's getting their post-dinner snacks).
"So we shot the scenes where I'm scanning the items at our good pal Raffa's IGA in Abbotsford and the rest at Flower of Sorrento. Little Sam's Garage in Collingwood were also kind enough to let us shoot the gas station scene there late at night, as well as the Mollongghip Community Hall for the final scenes.
"It was all very DIY, I did all the styling and location scouting and drew up the most horrendous storyboard you've ever seen in your life (drawing is not my strong suit) and we shot it all over two days with just the band, my managers, my boyfriend and Marcus (who has shot all our artwork, press shots and clips).
"I'm so stoked we managed to pull it off, we're always doing things on the fly so it's very fulfilling when it all works out."
Queenie 2024 Tour Dates
Wed 31 Jul - AIR Indie-Con (Adelaide)Sat 14 Sep - Humdinger (Frankston)
Fri 20 Sep - Petersham Bowls Club (Sydney)
Sat 21 Sep - Stag & Hunter (Newcastle)
Thu 26 Sep - Northcote Social Club (Melbourne)
Sat 16 Nov - Town Folk Festival (Castlemaine)
Sat 23 Nov - Queenscliff Music Festival
