Washington

Thu 17th Dec, 2009 in Features

Indie-pop chanteuse Megan Washington will have a lot to celebrate at Falls Festival this New Years. The emerging star was never far from the live circuit in 2009, with support slots for the likes of Sia and The Grates and a stellar turn at the Paul Kelly tribute in Melbourne.

That work ethic also fed into the How To Tame Lions EP, suggesting the forthcoming album will be something to savour. FL took a moment with Washington to hear the latest.

Last week, you revealed that you’ll be heading out on a headline tour next March. Has 2009 been an exciting lead-up to that point?
Totally. I mean, considering that Washington only really started a year ago, I guess you could say that this has been an incredibly exciting year. We only released our first EP in December – œ08, and our second in June – œ09, so it’s all a very new thing. We spent a great portion of this year touring quite solidly, and I’m glad of that, because we’re such a new band our live show kind of sucked for a while. We needed to play, and this year’s certainly given us that opportunity and now I don’t think we suck that much.

Also, you’ve put a call out for bands to support you on that tour. Is that offering that kind of leg-up something you value highly?
I do – There are so many other musicians and bands who have offered supports to us and helped us along the way. I think that given that this is our first headline tour, you know, now that we actually have something to share with other bands (particularly unsigned or independent ones) it’s important. We’ve had a lot of emails and messages from some really great bands, so I’m looking forward to announcing who it’s going to be.

Which artists are you looking forward to seeing at Falls?
Grizzly Bear, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Yves Klein Blue, because they’re babes.

What’s your own favourite festival memory as a punter?
Splendour – œ09, The Flaming Lips – dancing in the crowd squashed like a sardine in my bra with my friends pouring bottles of water on me because it was so crowded I thought I was going to die. Then suddenly Wayne Coyne sailed over my head in that giant bubble ball thing like some kind of lunar eclipse. So awesome.

The Paul Kelly tribute concert seemed to be one of those rare nights, and you put in a very impressive performance. Was that exciting to be a part of?
It was so terrific. That whole show was such a joy to be part of – like, the entire spirit of it was so Australian, it was like this great big, “Good onya, mate”. There was no other reason aside from the fact that everybody loves Paul Kelly. That was it. All the artists backstage had this incredible vibe of positivity and love and it was one of the most memorable musical events I’ve had the pleasure to be a part of.

Performing in some impressive support slots recently (including on Sia’s sold-out tour), how are you tailoring your shows to an audience unfamiliar with your music?
Well, we aren’t really. I mean, we’ve been lucky enough to have been offered supports with artists who share some similar musical and aesthetic qualities, so it hasn’t really been an issue to this point. However, when we support Pantera we might have to do some serious thinking about our set.

With your recent EP How To Tame Lions breaking hearts, are you working on a full-length album?
We are. We’ve already started and I’m going to be working on it solidly with my producer John Castle throughout January and February.

What are you looking forward to in the new year?
I’m really excited about making our first album. You know, you only get one first one, so that will be an incredible feeling to have achieved something so… milestone-y. Also we’re going to be playing South By Southwest next year which I’ve been to before, so that’s going to be a lot of fun. Also I’d like to start a herb garden.

The How To Tame A Lion EP is out now on Universal Music. Washington plays Falls Festival Lorne and Southbound this summer.

Tues 29 Dec – Falls Festival, Lorne
Sat 9 Jan – Southbound, Perth