Loren Kate One Of These Days Interview

Spellbinding indie folk artist Loren Kate has returned with a brand new single One Of These Days, a raw and rousing track straddling intimate thematics and warm sonic simplicity. Recorded a year ago, this captivating new song is released alongside an accompanying music video, poetically reflecting the stark and moving subject matter woven by Loren's own personal journey. Working alongside filmmaker Brad Halstead and producer Shane Nicholson, One Of These Days also marks an emotive taste of things to come ahead of the release of Loren's upcoming new album Nobody Knows, due out on May 20.

One Of These Days continues Loren's knack for weaving personal stories and challenging life experiences into glowing concoctions, specifically detailing the heartache of watching her brother struggle with drug addiction while also instilling a sense of hope against all the odds. Softly flowing with elegant and dominantly acoustic instrumentation, driving percussion and Loren's silky rasp, One Of These Days is equally heart-rending and bewitching, offering a moving slice of fresh indie folk that reaches delicately into your soul. Speaking about the extremely personal nature of the track, Loren says, "I stood in my brother's shoes to write 'One Of These Days'. He has struggled for almost as long as I can remember with a drug addiction. We were really close growing up and I spent so much of my earlier years thinking I was responsible for making his life better. That I had to somehow fix things. I have had to distance myself from that idea now, but still spend plenty of time trying to understand him, putting myself in his shoes and trying to work out where it all started. So I wrote this song. It's a song about finding yourself at rock bottom, starting with nothing, and finding the tools to build a way out of heartbreak and shattered circumstances."

The video for One Of These Days embraces these stirring overtones, with Loren and filmmaker Brad Halstead tapping in to an untouched, neglected property to bring to life the trauma and visceral pain laying within the song's lyrical content. Opening on a static-filled TV, the clip powerfully brings anguish and permeating hope to life in a decaying home, interspersed with shots of happier days, as Loren explains, "My friends recently bought a property and with the property came an old house that no one had set foot in since 1995. The place was trashed, filthy and animals had literally taken over, eaten everything they could and all the life that remains there now are some desperate rats living in the Tupperware cupboard. As soon as I saw it I thought 'someone has to film something in here'. The house is almost a representation of my brother's head. That push and pull of wanting things to be different, but finding it so bloody hard to take that first step. To step outside."

This talented South Australian singer-songwriter, already increasingly revered for her sharp storytelling, country and folk flavours and endearing Australian charm, has continually traversed the odds personally and professionally to conjure her honest and exquisite creations – including multiple delays and setbacks that meant One Of These Days sat lying in wait for twelve months before its final release. The equivalent of a warm hug in the midst of a battering storm, this latest track saw Loren team up with ARIA and Golden Guitar-winning songwriter and producer Shane Nicholson, with Shane also recording her impending new album Nobody Knows, releasing on May 20. A stunning and sensitive scene-setter for the undeniable beauty that will continue to emerge in 2022, Loren is entirely armed to unleash her latest creation into the world, as she explains, "There have been so many delays and set backs that it actually feels like such a relief to finally let this song sail into the world. I haven't released anything for a few years so feel very excited to bring something new into the world."

Interview with Loren Kate

Question: How would you describe your music?

Loren Kate: Honest, Australiana, emotive storytelling.


Question: Can you tell us about One Of These Days?

Loren Kate: I wrote this song from the perspective of my brother who has struggled with a drug addiction for a long time. He used to make beautiful things out of wood and I'm hopeful he'll return to that, and to himself someday. It's a song about finding yourself at rock bottom, starting with nothing, and finding the tools to build a way out of heartbreak and shattered circumstances.


Question: What inspired your upcoming album Nobody Knows?

Loren Kate: The songs were written over the past few years, and like many other songwriters writing during this time, the issues we are facing as a race with mental health, climate inaction, caring for Country, wildfires, (and now floods) became the foundation for these songs, and the place from which the stories grew. Ultimately, the album is inspired by the fact that Nobody Knows anything really,, that we are all just navigating our way through these times as best we know how and with what tools we've acquired along the way..


Question: Is there a particular message you hope listeners take from your music?

Loren Kate: 'Nobody Knows' is an anthem to the times we are living through. An invitation to use our hearts as our compass as we navigate life in this age of uncertainty. A reminder that we are not our material possessions or our monetary wealth, that we are simply the love we give and the love we receive. And the rest... Nobody Knows. There is always light in darkness, growth in grief and hope in hurt… it's just perspective.


Question: Do you prefer performing live or recording?

Loren Kate: Performing live, I love connecting with audiences and telling stories.. It's my most favourite thing to do in the world.


Question: Can we expect any upcoming shows?

Loren Kate: Yes! I'm booking a slow tour of halls, homes and listening rooms for the album release which will be ongoing throughout the year.


Question: What motivates you most when writing music?
Loren Kate: The story, and telling an honest story, which sometimes might explore dark issues, but always has a glimpse of hope. Songs have always been used to tell a story or to pass on information and by sharing our own stories, it kind of gives others the courage to tell theirs… then we heal, and then we grow.


Question: Which music/artists are you currently listening to?

Loren Kate: I'm kind of listening to whatever my daughter has pumping through the car stereo at the moment which is Charm of Finches, Passenger, Missy Higgins, Little Green.


Question: What or who was your inspiration to go into the music industry?

Loren Kate: I watched my dad play old folk songs growing up, but in all honesty, he wasn't around that much so I'm not sure if my love of songs came from him or if it developed out of a necessity to write about all my feelings. I was lost as a teenager and upon finishing high school, with 4 chords under my belt, I headed to Byron Bay and started busking for my bread. Slowly the busking turned to open mic nights and then playing my own shows…. It kind of just happened.


Question: Can you tell us about working with Shane Nicholson?

Loren Kate: I recorded my last couple of albums with the late Glen Hannah and would have chosen to work with him on all my future projects as he was a big believer in my songwriting and in me as an artist. Shane and Glen were super close friends, so it seemed fitting to ask Shane to produce the album, and I'm stoked that he was keen.. I knew he would create something beautiful and simple. Shane has an amazing ear.. It was a super chilled experience, we laid down all my guitar and vocals at the same time and then Shane worked his magic with the most beautiful accompaniment.


Question: If you could collaborate with another artist, who would it be?

Loren Kate: How do I choose!! I just love the storytelling side to songs so much that I would have to say someone like Paul Kelly!

Question: What has been your favourite part of becoming a music artist?

Loren Kate: Definitely the connection at shows, the exchange between yourself and the audience, its pure magic.
The people you get to meet and connect with. The stories you get to hear.


Question: What's a typical day like?

Loren Kate: Wake up, make a hot cacao, sit and drink it whilst pondering the day.
Let the chickens out. Wander around the garden, check on my plant babies.
Make breakfast for kids, do whatever homeschool things we have on.
Hopefully take the little guy for a surf.
Hopefully a moment to myself for a little sing in the afternoon with another cuppa.
Tend the garden. Lock up chickens. Eat dinner. Put kids to bed, hopefully don't fall asleep, get up and begin computer work.


Question: What's next, for you?

Loren Kate: Nobody Knows! Life has so many twists and turns… I'll just keep on plodding and try to live my best life and try my best not to take my privileges for granted.


Question: Can you share your socials? (links please)

Loren Kate: Facebook 
Instagram 
YouTube 


Interview by Gwen van Montfort