Aussie songstress Lanie Lane has hit the big time with her blues-meets-rockabilly debut album To the Horses. Ahead of her Darwin show, OTL meets lanie to talk inspiration, collaboration and flowers.
We produced the album ourselves. it’s a good way to explore your own ideas. I wrote the line ‘To The Horses’ and was inspired to write the song afterwards, which is pretty unusual for me. it’s about enjoying the company of horses – i’ve got a horse tattoo on my arm and i really love the spiritual element of a horse, they’re such lovely creatures. it’s also about being with like-minded people, about being on the road continuously and staying true to who you are and enjoying the ride.
I really love having great people around me. I think inspiration is really available to everybody – it comes from the same source. it’s just a matter of tapping in to that. once you’ve got an external influence or inspiration, you can use something deep and universal to create something fresh and new.
My band are great musicians and can cope with anything I throw at them. Some bands spend a lot of time rehearsing and practicing and getting each part right, but we put a lot of trust in each other and that works for us.
I really enjoy writing songs with other people. I’ve been very lucky in the last year to work with clare Bowditch, Paul Kelly, Tim Rogers and Jack White – that was an amazing day. We recorded two songs in seven hours. He’d never heard the songs before and he just really trusted me, and i trusted him.
I worked as a florist among other things. it’s a lot more physically demanding than people realise, but also really rewarding. It was a cool job, but not for everyone.
Right before I go on stage I think I probably need to go to the toilet! But I’m also thinking to myself ‘okay we’re going to have fun. Listen to the crowd - they’re pumped’. I just try to take it all in.
When: Thu 16 & Fri 17 Aug | 9.45pm
Where: The lighthouse, Festival Park
Cost: $35 | $30 conc
Info: www.darwinfestival.org.au
