ALICE SKYE + ELIZABETH AUSTRALIAN EAST COAST CO-HEADLINE TOUR

Today the dreamiest of dream teams Elizabeth and Alice Skye join forces to announce an Australian East-Coast Co-Headline Tour throughout June and July. After a year of solitude and isolation Elizabeth and Alice, along with their bands, are ready to traverse the country, embrace the stage and stir up the biggest, best and most cathartic feelings amongst the crowd. 

While their 2020 plans to tour were put on hold, including an album launch tour for Elizabeth, and a slot at SXSW for Alice, the pair did not sit idly by. Last year was a big one for both Elizabeth and Alice, the former releasing a deluxe edition of her debut album The Wonderful World of Nature, and the latter three searing singles from her own soon to be released sophomore album I Feel Better But I Don't Feel Good. 

The return of live music saw Alice play a headline show at The Corner, support Avalanches at Myer Music Bowl and go on tour with Midnight Oil as a part of the Makarrata Project. Elizabeth has played Brunswick Music Festival and has spent the last month playing at Meadow Festival, Inward Goods Festival and Small Town, Big Sound. Now well and truly warmed up all the pair have left to do is a couple of group bonding activities before they’re ready to head out on the road.

The first national headline tour for both of them, the duo will be sharing the stage across several dates including shows in Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane, Maroochydore, Melbourne, Castlemaine and Ballarat. Full tour dates and ticket information can be found below.

Penney & Logan, Our Golden Friend, Collective Artists & Select Music present:

Alice Skye & Elizabeth  - Australian East Coast Co-Headline Tour

SAT 19 JUN - GRACE EMILY, ADELAIDE TICKETS

THU 24 JUN - THE VANGUARD, SYDNEY TICKETS

FRI 25 JUN - BLACK BEAR LODGE, BRISBANE TICKETS

SAT 26 JUN - SOLBAR, MAROOCHYDORE TICKETS

FRI 02 JUL – THE CURTIN, MELBOURNE TICKETS

SAT 03 JUL - THE BRIDGE HOTEL, CASTLEMAINE TICKETS

SUN 04 JUL - VOLTA, BALLARAT TICKETS

Stepping into her sound like a silk robe, Elizabeth is the patron saint of sad girls. With her latest release The Wonderful World of Nature Deluxe Edition, she stakes her claim as a glamorous tragic, a queer pop anti-heroine holding a curtain of glittering melodies over ugly truths. Casting herself as the antagonist wielding pop songs as weapons, she wipes away her running mascara and escapes a destruction of her own making.

Alice Skye is a Wergaia/Wemba Wemba person living and writing music in Naarm (Melbourne, Australia). Since her first album, the  critically acclaimed 'Friends with Feelings' she has signed with Bad Apples, the Indigenous-driven label that celebrates and prioritises' blak excellence. Alice's upcoming sophomore album 'I Feel Better but I Don't Feel Good' was produced by local artist Jen Cloher. A new single from the album, Party Tricks, is released this Friday 7th May. Her work continues to look inwards and explores finding staunchness in softness.

GOOD MORNING RETURN WITH TWO-TRACK ‘MOLLYDUKER / KEEP IT’ + ANNOUNCE VICTORIAN TOUR THIS JUNE + SIGN TO POLYVINYL RECORDS

Australian duo Good Morning return today with their first new music in two years the double release ‘Mollyduker / Keep It’ and announce their Victorian tour dates this June. 

~ Listen to 'Mollyduker / Keep It' HERE ~

The pastoral, rangy ‘Mollyduker’, sung by Stefan, is a quintessential driving song, its steady, wiry groove hardly letting up over the course of its runtime. The song’s ease belies its tense imagery: drunken spews, held tongues, and anxiety tokens abound. Stefan says: "‘Mollyduker’ was something my Pa called me whenever we’d be hanging out and working on his farm. It’s a reference to me being left-handed, however, I used to take it as somewhat of a dig. The lyrics are a reflection on my relationship with him, as well as the farm itself, which has served as a home to a lot of my family over the years.”

‘Keep It’, sung by Liam, is no less inviting and no less heavy with psychic weight. A meditation on failure, drinking, and aging, 'Keep It' is laden with piano and warm, warping guitar — soft-edged counterweights to the severed heads and flooding waters of the song’s lyrics. “Keep It is an ode to stasis,” Liam says. “Repressed feelings, substance misadventure and arrested development in your late 20s.”

Good Morning’s past run of two-track singles — 2019’s Take It Easy For Me, Stranger/Boy, I’m Just A Loser For Your Love; 2016’s Step Aside/Oppsie, and 2015’sOn The Street/You and A Vessel/Radiovoice — are among the band’s most beloved songs, and ‘Mollyduker / Keep It’ are sure to join their ranks. Rich and warmly-hued, these songs reflect the Good Morning of 2021: a little more thoughtful, a little more virtuosic, and in no way any less anxious. These songs, written collaboratively, speak to the conditions under which they were made - first written in the two-week quarantine period after the band came home from their COVID-cancelled American tour, and finished as the first products of the new studio.

The news comes with the announcement of the pairs signing to Polyvinyl Records (USA/ROW) joining their eclectic roster including the likes of Alvvays, Kero Kero Bonito, STRFKR, Julia Jacklin, and more. The two-track will also be coming out on the band’s own imprint, Good Morning Music Company Worldwide via Virgin Music Australia. Of the signing, Polyvinyl Label Director, Seth Hubbard shares, "I’ve been a fan of the band for years, but when I heard their newest collection of songs I was blown away. We are so excited for Polyvinyl to help share this music with the world." The band reflect, "We’re excited to start working with Polyvinyl, a label we’ve admired for a while now. Here’s to a long and beautiful journey together!"

They say it’s hard to keep a creative partnership going after a while. Not so in the case of Good Morning - in their seventh year of making music together, the Melbourne duo made up of Stefan Blair and Liam Parsons have only just now stepped into that most fruitful of creative endeavours: commercial real estate. They’re not landlords just yet: in fact, the early months of 2021 have seen Stefan and Liam sign the lease on a modest, appropriately scrappy recording studio in Melbourne’s inner north. The natural next step for two musicians who have always preferred to do things entirely themselves - the band first formed after Stefan and Liam split the cost of a Foxtex 4-track tape machine - Good Morning’s new recording space is already yielding dividends: today, they release 'Mollyduker/Keep It', a new double-A-side single and their first new music since 2019’s Basketball Breakups. A full-length for Polyvinyl will be released later in 2021, with details to come.
 

'Mollyduker/Keep It' is out now via Polyvinyl Records/Virgin Music Australia, buy/stream it here.

SOME SHOWS IN VICTORIA TOUR DATES

Fri 11 Jun – The Curtin Bandroom - Melbourne (6:15pm & 9:15pm + Full Band) TIX HERE
Sat 12 Jun - Bridge - Castlemaine (Full Band) TIX HERE
Sat 19 June - Major Tom’s - Kyneton (Duo) TIX HERE
Fri 25 June - The Eastern - Ballarat (Full Band) TIX HERE
Sat 26 June - Tanswells - Beechworth (Full Band) TIX HERE

Tix via goodmorning.band

Good Morning are an Australian duo that formed in 2014, and have since then released five records: Shawcross (2014), Glory (2016), Prize // Reward (Bedroom Suck Records, 2018), The Option, and Basketball Breakups (both 2019). In that time, the band has played sold-out shows in Europe and the UK, Japan, and the USA.

CHITRA DEBUT VINYL EP IN STORES NOW + ANNOUNCES FREE IN-STORE @ ROCKSTEADY RECORDS

Today Melbourne songwriting dreamboat CHITRA releases her debut self-titled EP on Limited Edition Translucent Red Vinyl. The EP was originally released digitally right at the dawn of the pandemic, which means we've all had plenty of time to get acquainted with the EP and realise that nothing could beat hearing it played straight from the turntable. 

The record features previously released singles 'Leaving', 'Keep Up', 'Better Than Before' and 'A Kind', the latter inspiring Pilerats to describe Chitra as "a buzzing master of emotive storytelling and the empowerment that comes with it; her subtle combination of sounds rooted in thick emotion and a sense of uplifting." 

~Buy the Vinyl here~

Following her two sold out launch shows at The Retreat Hotel last night Chitra is excited to announce a free, all-ages show at Rocksteady Records on Friday May 7. To celebrate the vinyl being available to purchase in-stores Chitra and her band will be playing in one of our favourite record stores from 6pm. Capacity is limited so show up early to secure your spot.

Chitra’s songs capture the candid and lived in space of in-betweenness of an old soul growing up and navigating the present with an observant and cuttingly self aware lens. Each song offers a vulnerable new insight, individually and collectively weaving a complex narrative. Her love of 50s & 60s girl groups like The Supremes and The Shirelles shines through on the production and vocal performance as well as influences from modern day heroes such as Molly Burch, Angel Olsen and Adrianne Lenker of Big Thief.

Growing up surrounded by the diverse musical influences on the Bellarine Peninsula, Chitra’s sound is unrefined by formal training and blossoms with the self assuredness and freedom of a coastal kid. 
 

Chitra recorded this debut Self-Titled EP with new collaborators Dylan Young (Way Dynamic, Emma Russack, Snowy Band) on guitar & piano, Lehman B Smith (Totally Mild, Grand Salvo) on bass and Maria Moles (Jaala, Mild Life, Doroth) on drums. With the band and production team emerging from different backgrounds, each bringing their own musical language to the table. Chitra braved the highly vulnerable process to capture each specific feeling in its entirety through collaboration, trial & error and embarking on unexpected avenues of discovery for a formerly solo artist.

Chitra’s effortlessly cool energy and endearing magnetism emerges from her definiteness to remain wholly herself in her writing and music, making work that is deeply grounded in the honesty of her day to day. She represents a strong and free thinking creative emerging within Australian culture that strives for creative authenticity rather than conventional milestones of the past.

MERK Announces Melbourne Show Dates for 'Infinite Youth'

With thanks to the newly appointed travel bubble, the talented Merk has just announced additional show dates in Australia ahead of his headline New Zealand Tour! Merk’s long-awaited return to the stage comes perfectly timed with the recent release of his second album Infinite Youth, which was released last week via Humblebrag Records. You can catch Merk in Australia from 8pm upstairs at The Gasometer Hotel on April 22nd. The show is sure to be one not to miss as it includes live band members of Darvid Thor, Lewis Coleman and Holly Thomas.

Merk’s Infinite Youth Tour kicks off on April 22nd with all support act to be announced soon. Be sure not to miss out, get your tickets HERE.


Merk is the solo project of New Zealand songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Mark Perkins, which began when Perkins recorded 2016’s Swordfish (winner of Best Debut at the Taite Music Prize). He an understated, commanding presence, a playful intensity, as well as an ability to simply let go. Lyrically, this album treads a line between earnest, vulnerable, and knowingly tongue in cheek: songs that began in irony mutated into sincerity, and vice versa.

On his new album Infinite Youth Merk examines the blurry line between adolescence and adulthood, and all the clarity and mess that accompanies that blurring. This is a record that thrives on a certain simplicity of rhythm, melody, and lyric, and is compelled by contrast: pop songs influenced by art music, an album about adulthood that reflects heavily on what it is to be young, and a sonic world that is both expansive and deeply intimate. “In the past it felt like I was hiding, but now I’m trying to wear my heart on my sleeve a little more”.

Merk credits producer and key collaborator Johan Carøe with opening up Infinite Youth’s space: “He was so good at seeing where I was hiding”. The album’s approach to balance and contour was inspired as much by the American minimalists and those who followed them (Steve Reich,Philip Glass, Arthur Russell), as it was by pop songs that transcend the basic, disregard the complex, and zero in on the simple: Infinite Youth seeks to find where ABBA, The Beach Boys, The Carpenters, the Japanese City Pop of the late 70s and 80s, and those American minimalists might meet.

~ Listen/stream/buy 'Infinite Youth' HERE ~

With the addition of the newly added show in Melbourne, Merk is also set to embark on a headline tour of New Zealand for the release of his album 'Infinite Youth'. Merk’s Infinite Youth Tour kicks off on April 22nd. To celebrate the release of Infinite Youth Merk will be playing across six cities in April/May. Tickets are on sale now HERE.

April 22nd - The Gasometer (upstairs)

May 1st - Jam Factory, Tauranga

May 15th - Cassette No. 9, Auckland

May 20th - Meow, Wellington

May 22nd - Loons Theatre, Christchurch 

May 23rd - Dive, Dunedin 

Infinite Youth is out now worldwide via Humblebrag Records. Buy the album HERE.

MERK Releases New Album 'Infinite Youth'

Today Merk shares his much anticipated second album Infinite Youth out now via Humblebrag Records.

Merk is the solo project of New Zealand songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Mark Perkins, which began when Perkins recorded 2016’s Swordfish (winner of Best Debut at the Taite Music Prize). 

On his new album Infinite Youth Merk examines the blurry line between adolescence and adulthood, and all the clarity and mess that accompanies that blurring. This is a record that thrives on a certain simplicity of rhythm, melody, and lyric, and is compelled by contrast: pop songs influenced by art music, an album about adulthood that reflects heavily on what it is to be young, and a sonic world that is both expansive and deeply intimate. “In the past it felt like I was hiding, but now I’m trying to wear my heart on my sleeve a little more”.
 

~ Listen/stream/buy 'Infinite Youth' HERE ~


Merk has an understated, commanding presence, a playful intensity, as well as an ability to simply let go. Lyrically, this album treads a line between earnest, vulnerable, and knowingly tongue in cheek: songs that began in irony mutated into sincerity, and vice versa.

This feeling, of a simplicity that opens up into a great depth, is refracted through every aspect of Infinite Youth: sonically, it was essential that this album leave behind the guitars that Perkinshad strummed incessantly while touring the world as a member of Tom Lark and Fazerdaze, in favour of a palette that captures time and space in its intimacy and immensity.

Merk credits producer and key collaborator Johan Carøe with opening up Infinite Youth’s space: “He was so good at seeing where I was hiding”. The album’s approach to balance and contour was inspired as much by the American minimalists and those who followed them (Steve Reich,Philip Glass, Arthur Russell), as it was by pop songs that transcend the basic, disregard the complex, and zero in on the simple: Infinite Youth seeks to find where ABBA, The Beach Boys, The Carpenters, the Japanese City Pop of the late 70s and 80s, and those American minimalists might meet.
 

An album that will capture you on first listen and then reward your every repetition, Infinite Youthreintroduces Merk and invites you, warmly, into his orbit.

In the lead up to the album's release Merk shared 'But She Loves You' on Tuesday. Along with a self made visualiser the song was premiered over on Under The Radar who described it as "the kind of track that fits perfectly as a despondent mood setter or as an irresistible dancefloor filler. Sometimes it could even be both."

Of the video Merk says: 

“'But She Loves You’ is a cathartic dance song. This is the “pocket symphony” of the album. Its origins lay very much in the 60s pop ballad universe and after much experimenting it became the orchestral sad disco song it is now. The song is probably me at my most passionate and dramatic. To me it has an apocalyptic, mountain falling into the ocean level of heartbreak feelings. I hope this song provides people with an opportunity to dance away their sorrows.”

~ Watch the Video for But She Loves You Here ~

Merk is also set to embark on a headline tour of New Zealand. To celebrate the release of Infinite Youth Merk will be playing across five cities in May. Tickets are on sale now HERE.

May 1st - Jam Factory, Tauranga

May 15th - Cassette No. 9, Auckland

May 20th - Meow, Wellington

May 22nd - Loons Theatre, Christchurch 

May 23rd - Dive, Dunedin 

Infinite Youth is out now worldwide via Humblebrag Records. Buy the album HERE.

POPPONGENE ANNOUNCES 'FUTURES UNSURE' LAUNCH SHOW

Excited to share that Poppongene, the alias of Melbourne multidisciplinary artist Sophie Treloar has announced the long awaited 'Futures Unsure' EP launch show at Some Velvet Morning on April 9.
 

STREAM/DOWNLOAD/PURCHASE FUTURES UNSURE HERE

Futures Unsure was released mid last year to critical acclaim and extensive community radio play, a cool salve to the dark times of the past year. Not one to rest on her laurels the release was soon followed by the Futures Unsure Remix EP which saw Poppongene invite friends and collaborators to put their own spin and rejig on the EP, resulting in a swirling collection of eclectic versions of the tracks from the EP.

To celebrate the two EPs release Poppongene and band are taking the stage at Some Velvet Morning on April 9. With support from Blisstake and with Poppongene DJs playing into the wee hours it's sure to be an unmissable night. You can buy tickets HERE.

Poppongene's EP, Futures Unsure, marks a distinct step forward in the artistic development of Poppongene, the alias of Melbourne multidisciplinary artist Sophie Treloar. The eight track EP was created in collaboration with producer and multi-instrumentalist Tim Harvey (Jade Imagine, Gena Rose Bruce, Lisa Mitchell, Emma Louise).  With Futures Unsure, Poppongene closes a difficult but rewarding chapter in her personal life whilst discovering a newer, queerer self.  As a heartfelt document from this time, the listener is beckoned to walk alongside her on her blooming musical journey. Futures Unsure is out now on all streaming services, and can be purchased on limited edition cassette. 

Stream/ puchase/ download Futures Unsure here
 

Originally from Byron Bay, Treloar is now based in Melbourne, and plays as Poppongene both solo and with a five-piece band, with Lee Hannah, Gemma Helms, Justin Kuchel, and  Deanna Ramsey.

Poppongene has played significant shows, supporting Lucy Dacus (US), Weyes Blood (US), and Slow Dancer, and also showcased at industry music conference BigSound in 2019. Poppongene’s music is drenched in the sun’s rays but still isn’t afraid to embrace all seasons. With this project, Treloar masters a glistening sound all her own - poppy and phosphorescent, furnished with catharsis. Poppongene makes music for moods, ebbing and flowing down the river of figuring it all out.

MERK Shares new single & video 'Deep Dive' & Announces New Zealand Album Tour

Today Merk announces the latest single ‘Deep Dive' from forthcoming album Infinite Youth out April 9th. 

Merk is the solo project of New Zealand songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Mark Perkins, which began when Perkins recorded 2016’s Swordfish (winner of Best Debut at the Taite Music Prize). Releasing both ‘GOD’ and ‘Laps Around the Sun’ earlier this year ‘Deep Dive’ is another look into the playful yet sincere world of Merk.

“Focusing on his own pop-edged indie brew, recent singles ‘H.N.Y.B’ and ‘GOD’ alerted fans to his solitary prowess, with those off piste lyrical observations setting him out from the pack.” - Clash (Track of the Day)

‘Deep Dive’ sees Merk setting the scene with a disco tinged beat, driving the song along as the delicate play of Juno Synth and guitar lay the groundwork for his own kind of syrupy sweet pop. A master at creating tracks that feel minimal and sparse imbibed with hidden gems, giving head spinning depth that you’ll catch on repeat listens. Merk weaves in everything from the play of strings to voice memos of the St Paul’s Cathedral organist. 
 

Speaking on the new single, Merk had this to say:

“A portion of this song came to me in a dream one night, I woke up and went to the piano and recorded the demo. For that reason it feels very surreal and seperate to me. It’s one of the more pop moments on the album, a song that carries you the whole way through without changing too much. It reminds me a lot of our 80s Japanese city pop references as well as a New York New-Wave sound.

We started this in Copenhagen by chopping up a breakbeat sample to give this heavy groove and messed around with  the guitar and Juno synth until they had this nice minimalist interplay with each other, almost becoming one instrument. When we recorded drums with Alex, we played him the song and told him to do whatever he felt. He laid  down this really nice disco groove over the breakbeat that gave the song a lot of energy. To add a sense of depth I buried in the mix a voice memo recording I made while on tour in London when visiting St  Paul’s Cathedral of an organist playing while tourists walked around. My favourite part of this song is the beautiful cello of Danish musician Nicole Hogstrand. In particular her pizzicato doubling the guitar lead in the instrumental.”

Accompanying Deep Dive’s release is a Sports Team written and directed video featuring Merkas head pancake chef at Auckland’s sweetest rooftop party.

Of the video Merk says: 

“Sometimes I DJ at weddings under the name DJ Ragù and wear a chefs hat to help bring a good vibe. I think I made an offhand reference to this weird character I perform under to Sports Team when we were hanging out once, which they must’ve remembered because when I asked them to make a video with me for Deep Dive this is the concept they came back with: A rooftop pancake party where I’m performing like a DJ but instead of flipping records I’m flipping cakes, baby. So we invited a bunch of people over to my house in Auckland, went up to the rooftop and chaos ensued!”

~ Watch the Video for Deep Dive Here ~

Today also sees Merk announce his headline New Zealand tour. Celebrating the release of second album Infinite Youth Merk will be playing across five cities in May. Tickets go on sale March 22 at 9AM NZDT. You can find tour dates and tickets HERE.

May 1st - Jam Factory, Tauranga

May 15th - Cassette No. 9, Auckland

May 20th - Meow, Wellington

May 22nd - Loons Theatre, Christchurch 

May 23rd - Dive, Dunedin 

‘Deep Dive' is Merk’s fourth single from album Infinite Youth out worldwide via Humblebrag Records April 9th 2021. Pre order the album HERE.

CHITRA ANNOUNCES VINYL RELEASE OF DEBUT EP + ANNOUNCES MELBOURNE LAUNCH SHOWS @ THE RETREAT + SHARES VIDEO FOR 'KEEP UP'

Today Melbourne songwriting dreamboat CHITRA is super excited to announce that her debut self-titled EP will now be released on Limited Edition Translucent Red Vinyl on Friday 23rd April 2021. The EP was originally released digitally right at the dawn of the pandemic, on the 28th of February 2020 and due to the huge changes we all experienced last year, all of Chitra's touring and release plans were put on hold. The record features previously released singles 'Leaving', 'Keep Up', 'Better Than Before' and 'A Kind', the latter inspiring Pilerats to describe Chitra as "a buzzing master of emotive storytelling and the empowerment that comes with it; her subtle combination of sounds rooted in thick emotion and a sense of uplifting." 

~Pre-order the Vinyl here~

To celebrate the release of the vinyl edition of her EP Chitra is incredibly excited to announce her first full band headline shows in well over a year at The Retreat Hotel on Thursday 22nd April with special guests Bad Bangs. Chitra will play two shows that evening a Early show at 6pm and a late session at 9pm. tickets are on sale now and can be purchased HERE.

Poster by Sebi White

In even more exciting news, Chitra premieres the video for 'Keep Up' today which was created by local artist & collage maestro Carolyn Hawkins over lockdown. A gorgeous accompaniment from a standout EP track, the video features hand cut paper native flora in perfect harmony alongside Chitra's soaring voice.

MERK Shares new single & video 'Laps Around The Sun' & Announces new album 'Infinite Youth' out 9th April 2021

Today we are excited to announce the second single 'Laps Around The Sun' from  Merk's forthcoming album 'Infinite Youth' which will be released on April 9th. The track and video were premiered on Clash Magazine overnight HERE
 

"Laps Around The Sun' is a deft, sincere piece of songwriting, with Merk's heart-on-sleeve approach resulting in an incredibly endearing track."

After releasing the first single 'GOD' earlier this year, Merk continues to satiate Australian audiences with the release the new single and self produced video for 'Laps Around The Sun'.

Merk is the solo project of New Zealand songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Mark Perkins, which began when Perkins recorded 2016’s Swordfish (winner of Best Debut at the Taite Music Prize). 

Listen to 'Laps Around The Sun' HERE
 

Speaking on the new single, Merk had this to say:

"This song is about finding poetry in the mundane, repetitiveness of life. It was written on my birthday, which is also Valentine's Day. I was struggling with the existential dread that can come on your birthday, you know, that lovely internal dialogue that goes “everything is meaningless and so am I” sorta thing. This is a reflection on the idea that, sure, maybe everything is equally meaningless but doesn’t that also mean everything is just as meaningful as the next thing? Which is kinda cool. A jellybean or Jupiter matter just the same. Whether you are waiting for the weekend or celebrating another lap around the sun, or falling in and out of love or doing the dishes there’s beauty to be found in the never-ending repetitions and rhythms of life."

The video for 'Laps Around The Sun' was self-directed & edited by Merk and collaborators Abbey Egdenand Martin Sagadin.

Of the video Merk says:

"By sheer coincidence we ended up filming the video on my birthday too, so it was natural for it to become about that. We made it very guerilla style with a small crew of friends, it felt super wholesome and very meta."

On his new album Infinite Youth, Merk examines the blurry line between adolescence and adulthood, and all the clarity and mess that accompanies that blurring. This is a record that thrives on a certain simplicity of rhythm, melody, and lyric, and is compelled by contrast: pop songs influenced by art music, an album about adulthood that reflects heavily on what it is to be young, and a sonic world that is both expansive and deeply intimate.

While first album Swordfish introduced many of the qualities that Merk continues to cultivate, it’s on Infinite Youth that he comes fully into his own. “In the past it felt like I was hiding, but now I’m trying to wear my heart on my sleeve a little more,” Perkins muses.

He has an understated, commanding presence, a playful intensity, as well as an ability to simply let go. Lyrically, this album treads a line between earnest, vulnerable, and knowingly tongue in cheek: songs that began in irony mutated into sincerity, and vice versa.

You can catch Merk playing straight to your screens for SXSW Online Music Festival this March. 

'Laps Around The Sun' is Merk’s second single from album 'Infinite Youth' out worldwide via Humblebrag Records April 9th 2021. Pre order the album HERE.

MERK SHARES NEW SINGLE & VIDEO 'GOD' & DEBUTS 'DAY IN THE LIFE' FEATURE ON SPIN

In exciting news, we are thrilled to once again be working with Humblebrag Records to promote the new single 'God' from the imitable New Zealand artist and producer Merk.

Merk is the musical moniker of Auckland, New Zealand artist, multi-instrumentalist and producer Mark Perkins who began his career as a touring member of Tom Lark and Fazerdaze before releasing his debut album Swordfish in 2017.

He earned acclaim with his 2020 single “H.N.Y.B” and today he unveils the utopic new “GOD” single/video that was premiered last night on Triple R's 'Out On The Patio' with Holly Periera. 'GOD' is strapped with a disco-indebted synth line, skittering percussion, bouncing bass and repetitive mantra-esque lyrics that promise much more to come from this creative mastermind. 
 

~ Listen to 'GOD' here ~ 

Speaking on the creation of the single, Merk had this to say:

“Songwriting has a sneaky way of revealing to me my feelings long before I am aware of them,” shares Merk. “‘GOD’ is an example of a song that did just that. When writing ‘GOD’ I thought I was in full irony mode, I was trying to make a cool song out of potentially the least cool thing one could sing about. It’s kinda weird, but in my head I had this image of an anthropological A.I. or something looking at the whole history of mankind and wondering what “God” was. It wasn’t until well into the songwriting process I realised that as tongue in cheek as I was being, I was also being entirely earnest. At the time I was doing a big deconstruction of my childhood growing up around religion and trying to figure out what it was I myself believe. It also coincided with a particularly low point in my life, and the sweet resignation that comes with the feeling that things couldn’t get any worse; a peaceful feeling that at least nothing can hurt you when you’re at the bottom!”

To celebrate the release of this absolute woozy banger, Merk also shares a 'Day In The Life' feature on SPIN Magazine HERE. Check in on Merk's day to day in this unreal insight into Merk's creative world.

Watch the video for ‘GOD’ HERE

The video for 'GOD' was self-directed & edited alongside Martin Sagadin who has previously directed videos for Aldous Harding & Marlon Williams.  

On the conception of the video, Merk explains:

“During one of the lockdowns I became a bit obsessed with video glitch art. There is a super cool online community of people who take old 80s video equipment and circuit bend them into these weird video FX units. After talking with a few of them and getting their advice I found an old CRT TV and some video synths and decided to recreate the GOD video by destroying our super high quality footage and filming the TV as it ran through this old outdated gear.”

Merk learned the craft of recording and producing under the stewardship of Crowded House’s (and now Fleetwood Mac’s!) Neil Finn while working at Roundhead Studios. His debut album Swordfish went on to win Best Debut Album at the Taite Music Prize (New Zealand’s equivalent of the Mercury or Polaris Prize), and led to tours with Cub Sport, Marlon Williams and Julia Jacklin in Australia and New Zealand. 
 

'GOD' is Merk’s second global release via Humblebrag Records.

Stay tuned for news on a new album in 2021.