Victorian Andrew Swift has released four ARIA chart-topping albums and won three Golden Guitars, in amongst touring regularly – although later it’s been a lighter tour schedule than usual, as he’s now the proud dad of Valentine.
Swift has built his fan base with both releases and touring, and the temptation for any artist in that position must be to continue in the same vein with the songs he writes and records. Yet for his latest single, ‘Brick by Brick’, Swift has changed musical direction – although still within country music – to bluegrass. Not just this song, either: his forthcoming album has been produced entirely without electric instruments by his longtime band member (and highly regarded producer) Damian Cafarella.
In this new interview Swift tells me that ‘Brick by Brick’ was written nearly two years ago in a co-write at his dining table with his fiancée, Simone Sordello, alongside Gretta Ziller, Melanie Dyer and Jackson James. The lyrics grew out of a shared frustration among the co-writers with someone who'd repeatedly tested their goodwill.
‘This song is by no means a diss track,’ Swift says. ‘It’s just how we were feeling in that moment.’
The song was put on the back burner as Swift finished his most recent album, Lucky Stars. Yet ‘I’ve been wanting to do a bluegrass project,’ as he says, tracing the idea back to revisiting his 2015 debut, Call for the Cavalry, on a flight and hearing its Americana roots calling him back.
Currently seven songs into the new record, Swift is balancing studio time around fatherhood, working sessions in around Valentine's daycare days. His live shows will lean towards a solo or duo storyteller format in the near term, with plans to rework older favourites like ‘Runaway Train’ and ‘Head Full of Honey’ into the new sound for select performances, including a bluegrass hoedown in Tamworth.
You’ll find Swift performing at Groundwater Country Music Festival on Broadbeach on the Gold Coast, held on 17 and 18 October. See below for the full list of tour dates.
Listen to ‘Brick by Brick’ on Apple Music
Listen to ‘Brick by Brick’ on Spotify
Listen to ‘Brick by Brick’ on YouTube
SEE ANDREW SWIFT LIVE
Saturday 5th September - Noojee Hotel, Noojee VIC
Friday 11th September - Odessa’s, Creswick VIC
Saturday 12th September - Bells Beach Brewing Company, Torquay VIC
Friday 18th September - Golden Vine Hotel, Bendigo VIC
Saturday 19th September - Young Street Tavern, Frankston VIC
Friday 2nd October - Sooki Lounge, Belgrave VIC
Saturday October 3rd - The Bend Classic, Tailem Bend SA
Saturday October 10th - The Oaks, Albion Park Rail NSW
Sunday October 11th - Camden Hotel, Camden NSW
Saturday 17th October - Groundwater Country Music Festival, Broadbeach QLD
Sunday 18th October - Groundwater Country Music Festival, Broadbeach QLD
Tuesday 19th January - Bluegrass Hoedown, Tamworth Country Music Festival NSW
Wednesday 20th January - The Longyard Hotel, Tamworth NSW
Thursday 25th March - Friday 9th April - Singapore to Sydney Country Music Cruise
**Tickets on sale now and available via www.andrewswift.com.au**