There is a delicious expansiveness about Damien Binder‘s work – he is an uniquely antipodean troubadour whose songs sparkle like the bright stars over the great southern land. Originally from New Zealand, Binder now lives in Perth and he has somehow combined elements of the spark of creativity from both places into an impressive body of work over the years. Binder began his musical life in nineties NZ band Second Child before moving west to Australia and releasing, to date, four solo albums, including the last in 2016, ‘A New World’.
We premiered his last single ‘Here It Is’ back in February and proving that lighting can strike twice in the same place, we are very proud to premiere his new single ‘Everything But’. This track is a glorious example of Binder’s craft: a shimmering restless piece that travels with a spark and a verve, laced with melancholia and a meditative air.
Binder’s voice is so immersive and mesmerising there should be a warning not to operate machinery while listening to this song. The vocals glide and purr over the crystalline guitars and drone of synths. You cannot help but think of endless horizons, brilliant blue cloudless skies against the red dust of the outback. Indeed, the themes cover a personal journey. Binder says:
‘Everything But’ started to take shape in the studio it was the instrumentation that shaped the sound and feel of the final recording. When we started out building the track Matt got this drum and keyboard feel going which reminded me a little of some parts of Tunnel of Love (Springsteen) – Not a bad thing I thought!
We decided to follow that vibe keeping it spare but atmospheric and driving forward. Originally while writing this I was looking back a bit at the path that brought me to this point in the last 5 years, about the idea of growth & independence and one’s intuition, of learning to listen to and trust it. I wanted to try and capture the mood of that journey while still looking forward.
It is an absolutely evocative track that thunders down the road, rolling inexorably onwards like the wheels of a semi-trailer: you can understand the Springsteen references but the track has its own resonance. The lyrics are filled with a breath-catching poignancy:
I’ve got a taste
tip of my tongue
swallowed everything but
been in the race
tore it up
burned up everything but
I’ll go it alone, go it alone
where I don’t know
heart in my throat
go it alone, see where I go
‘Everything But’ is out on 28 May 2021 and you can have an exclusive listen through the link below:
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