It's been over a year since Melbourne heartbreakers Tinpan Orange released their last album and now they return with a new single, 'Wanderers'.
In the year since releasing their 2016 album 'Love Is A Dog', Tinpan Orange have been busy conquering Europe as one, big, happy family. “We did a big national tour for 'Love Is A Dog', which was fantastic,” vocalist and frontwoman Emily Lubitz says.
“Then we went over to Europe and did a five-week tour around Germany, The Netherlands, France and Spain. We were supporting The Cat Empire over there, which is my husband's [Harry James Angus] band, so we were the whole family affair.
“We took all our kids; my brother [Jesse, Tinpan Orange guitarist] brought his kids and has just had another one, so now he's got three. We took our kids and it was pretty wild, fully on-the-road with the whole family.
"It was wild but it was amazing; The Cat Empire have a massive following so we were playing to 2,000 people and more every night. It was pretty cranking actually.”
The burgeoning success of Tinpan Orange in the European market has resulted in the band making three trips to the continent in the past year alone. “Particularly in Germany we've got a bit of a thing happening and the people are great, they really love their gigs and really get into them,” Emily says.
“The whole culture around touring music is really cool. You rock up to a venue and they're so pleased to see you; they offer you coffee and cake then cook you dinner, and often they'll put you up and give you accommodation.”
The new single 'Wanderers' continues the torrid love affair Emily has with melancholy, telling scenestr last year that “if it's not sad, what's the point?”.
This motto still rings true on 'Wanderers', which Emily says comes from a place of personal tragedy for her and Harry. “It's really trying to describe a mood, a mood of lack of motivation and slight melancholy,” she explains.
“We had a miscarriage a few months ago, so we had a bit of sadness in our family. We're doing good now but I think that might have influenced the feeling of the song a little bit. We've got two kids who are healthy and wonderful, and we're just so grateful for them.
“It's more of an impressionistic song rather than anything concrete and it isn't really narrative-based, which is how Harry likes to write sometimes. He usually wouldn't tell anyone what his songs are about, so I'm letting all his secrets out,” she laughs.
If there's just one thing Tinpan Orange do well, it's reaching into your soul and squeezing every drop of sadness from it with a heartfelt lyric and emotive melody; a talent for which Emily makes no apologies. “I stand by it, I do,” she laughs.
“I think I'm naturally that way inclined. It might be because I'm Jewish; me and Leonard Cohen are the same really, we're such sad-sacks.
“There's no point in having sad songs that are just sad. I think sad songs need to have some kind of redemption or some kind of humour, like Leonard Cohen; he's a dark motherf@#%er but he's really funny.”
Tinpan Orange Shows
Fri 20 Oct - The Workers Club (Geelong)Sat 21 Oct - The Toff In Town (Melbourne)
Fri 3 Nov - Darwin Railway Club
Sat 4 Nov - Mojo's Bar (Fremantle)
Fri 10 Nov - Hudson Ballroom (Sydney)
Fri 17 Nov - The Foundry (Brisbane)
Sat 18 Nov - Mullum Music Festival (Mullumbimby)
Sat 25 Nov - Republic Bar (Hobart)
27 Dec - 1 Jan - Woodford Folk Festival (Sunshine Coast)
