The last record was very much insular to the band in the way that the songs were written. I went over to Los Angeles and wrote with some great songwriters, so that in itself was something completely different. There’s just so much that changed this time. I think the sound on this one is a lot more experimental. I’m so into getting out and seeing the world.Ĭonsidering you worked with the same producers again, how does the sound differ between your two albums? I don’t like the idea of geoblocking myself to one place! I want WAAX to be something that is relatable across the world, you know? I love being an Australian band but I don’t want that to define me. (pauses) I don’t think that’s something I want personally. Is that something WAAX is trying to emulate? Do you want to be known as a Great Brisbane Band? And they’re still doing that now, they run venues, they have studios here, they’re still very active in the scene. Back in those days, a lot of bands would move overseas or to Melbourne or Sydney, but they were the first that got to that size that were proud to say they were from Brisbane. They were the first band to really own the idea that they were from Brisbane. Yeah! Obviously the city was smaller and different. Has he ever told you about what the city was like back in Powderfinger’s heyday? Obviously there’s the Brisbane connection as well. He loves what I do and I’m really grateful for having him as a mentor. This time it just felt like family hanging out, I wasn’t so scared to show him anything new. The first time I was super nervous, I was still trying to find my feet as a songwriter, so I was worried about being in a room with a seasoned songwriter like Bernard. How was it recording with Bernard and Nick again? I’m sure it was daunting the first time but did you feel more comfortable this time? It can only get better, you know? It’s a last-ditch feeling I suppose, you can’t go further down than rock bottom (laughs). When I first started making the record, I felt like I’d lost so much, I had to walk away from a really painful situation, and I thought that if my whole career and life go to shit, at least I’m free from the situation. Yeah, it’s a personal sentiment, but it’s also a lyric that I wrote for the song ‘Jeff On The Streets’.
We’re always on the same page and we respect and love each other so much. It brings new energy into the room, and it’s just been really easy. Having a fresh perspective in the band is a leg up. So what’s the dynamic been like between you and James? The first of the three years we were on the road too. It just took a while! I think we always have taken a couple of years between records. Some of the record was worked on overseas before the pandemic as well. I started to write really well with our new member, James, and we started to get comfortable writing together. Why did you take so long between these two albums? Was that just due to the pandemic? That’s the beauty of it, and that’s why I love being in a band. I had a clear idea of what I wanted the record to be, but the magic of being in a band is that it transforms and evolves in the process. Words start flowing more, and you realise you’re starting to make something. When you stop thinking too much about it, you start becoming more creative. It’s so funny because as soon as I let go, that’s when the songs started coming. Did you have anxiety coming into this one?ĭefinitely. Returning producers Bernard Fanning and Nick DiDia both offer a steady guiding hand, Antalok’s replacement James Gatling has fitted in seamlessly (more on him later), and DeVita sounds utterly re-energised, a resounding force both as a performer and as a lyricist.Ĭasting aside any notion of this being a difficult second album for WAAX, At Least I’m Free features a strong balance of classic WAAX, like the grungy ‘Help Me Hell’, and innovative material, like the striking piano ballad ‘Dangerous’, co-written by none other than 4 Non Blondes legend Linda Perry.Īs WAAX head into their second life, things are sounding good. “I am a girl, I am a queen, I get fucked up, at least I’m free,” DeVita fiercely sings on album track ‘Jeff On The Streets’ after listening to her new album, that assertion becomes crystallised.Įveryone always talks about ‘Second Album Syndrome’. Listening to At Least I’m Free, the album title’s sentiment reveals itself in the music. I was so depleted by the end of Big Grief that I wasn’t even sure if I wanted to make another record.” “Obviously we had a change in the band, so we had to rebuild again,” she reflects. Almost three years to the day since the release of Big Grief, DeVita sounds much happier with WAAX’s present, and more excited for their future, when Tone Deaf catches up with her to discuss the band’s second album, At Least I’m Free.
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