First published on Purple Sneakers
Five years ago, Sydney band The Preatures moved into a dingy rehearsal space in Sydney’s Surry Hills and set about transforming it into a recording studio they named The Doldrums. It was here where they developed their sound, recorded 2013’s Is This How You Feel? EP, and for the past 18 months, recorded and produced their second album, Girlhood. Sounding something like the sing-along radio hits of 1970s pop and Fleetwood Mac combined, the band’s music has received critical acclaim across the globe. Their first album Blue Planet Eyes, released in 2014, debuted at #4 on the ARIA Album Chart and the band were nominated for 3 ARIA Awards in 2015 for Best Live Act, Best Group and Best Rock Album and won GQ’s Band of The Year Award.
Their initial plan to write and record their second album in just a couple of months off the back of the success of the first turned into a year and a half of creativity and refinement. Led by guitarist and producer Jack Moffitt and driven by Thomas Champion on bass and Luke Davison on drums, the band surrendered to the longer process.
Jack recorded and produced the sessions, getting some initial help from Burke Reid (Courtney Barnett, Olympia, DMA’s) and ARIA Award-winning engineer Eric J. Dubowsky (Flume, Nick Murphy). Girlhood was given a final polish in Los Angeles by mixing engineer Bob Clearmountain, an industry legend, known for his work with David Bowie and Bruce Springsteen as well as Aussie icons INXS, Divinyls and The Church.
The album delves deep into singer Isabella Manfredi‘s personal experiences and memories of growing up as a girl in Sydney, as well as her own life and times as a woman in the male-dominated music world. The album is an intimate and honest account of her experiences, and one which will no doubt resonate with listeners.
We sat down with Jack Moffitt ahead of their Brisbane show this week to hear about what it was like delving into Izzi‘s world for this record, as well as what it meant for him taking on a greater role in the production and recording of this album.
Interview continued on the Purple Sneakers website.
Camilla Patini 