Meet Timberwolf: the modern folk project and performing alias of Chris Panousakis, a 22-year-old blues singer and qualified physiotherapist from Adelaide.
“It was probably two years ago and I decided that physiotherapy maybe wasn’t where I wanted to be,” Chris says about when he finished university. “It’s a pretty full-on commitment taking on a degree, so after it I felt like I was owed some time. I just put it on the back burner.”
Choosing to pursue a career in folk music, Chris took an alias, recorded an EP by himself in a matter of days and busked through cities to help keep him afloat. “Busking was a really good way for funding tours and recording and learning how to hold a crowd,” he says. “I really learnt how to perform.”
With strong roots in ‘60s blues and roots and comparisons to Boy & Bear and Mumford & Sons, combined with a natural ability for cryptic and metaphoric songwriting, Timberwolf shows a lot of maturity for such a young man. “I’m a pretty reflexive person so I like to talk my feelings through and discuss situations with people close to me. I’m always an active, reflective thinker, so in that sense songs are intentionally reflecting on myself but in a non-direct way.
“If I am reflecting on how I feel or think and I can convey that lyrically in a way that other people can relate to, it instantly becomes more accessible because it’s not all about you.”
What Timberwolf does so well is tell a story, and while it’s completely his own he acknowledges those that went before him as influences in developing his own style. “I take a lot of inspiration from older stuff like Fleetwood Mac and Elvis,” he says.
“I think in terms of the simplicity of what they’ve done is great and in a sound that isn’t as modern as we hear now.”
Timberwolf joins the likes of Ash Grunwald, Melbourne Ska Orchestra and others at the Australasian World Music Expo in Melbourne on 13th-16th November.
