Cornell & Carr What Kind of World

Cornell & Carr are making their mark on the year that was and giving 2020 the middle finger as they unleashed their new single into the world at the stroke of midnight on January 1, 2021.

What Kind of World is somewhat of a protest song from the Golden Guitar finalists Matt Cornell and Mike Carr, as they question what sort of world we have created and are leaving for future generations.

This single is the first release from the duo since July 2019, and they've come out of the blocks with a thought-provoking, 'FU' to the year that's been.

"It's not particularly about 2020, but is reflecting on everything that's been going on," Mike said.

"It's a song of reflection and a song of hope; it's a look at how people adapt."

Matt said if 2020 had done anything, it had brought out the very best and worst in people.

"There have been so many heartfelt good deeds … and people trying to brighten other people's days, but then, on the other side, some of the behaviour made you lose a bit of faith in humanity," he said.

This year has also been a time of reflection, which the duo see as a positive step as most people were forced to stop and notice what was going on around them.

"It's unified everyone and we've forgotten the crap and focused on the good things in life," Mike said.

"People have surrendered this year and it's been good."

The thought-provoking single naturally encourages listeners to question what we are doing in the world and with our lives, and makes a definite statement.

"The film clip is definitely a clip that people are going to want to watch a couple of times to grab all the information," Matt said.

"This is our way of saying FU2020."

What Kind of World looks forward to 2021 with excitement and anticipation.

"There is an element of excitement about the change," Mike said.

"There's been some pretty bad shit prior to 2020 that we've taken in our stride, and it's been a real reflection of that."

Due to border closures with Matt in Queensland and Mike in NSW, the duo had to think outside the box to write and record the single.

They recorded What Kind of World with producer Stuart Stuart in Brisbane.

"It was a natural progression because we were always going to try different studios and different musicians, so ultimately you come out with a different sound," he said.

"Cornell & Carr's sound comes from two voices, and they're still there, but everything changed this year and we naturally changed along with it."

Matt said artists naturally evolved and this song was a reflection of that.

"Even though Cornell & Carr hasn't been around that long (releasing their first recording at the end of 2018), we wanted to try something a little different," he said.

"Who knows what the next lot of songs is going to be like sonically because we don't want to be bound by anything.

"We want to have our own thing and we want to have the freedom to write the songs that we write. Cornell & Carr is different to anything else that we would do, which makes it more exciting."

The release of What Kind of World in the first moments of the New Year is deliberate as the duo encourages listeners to look ahead to the future and what it is going to bring, and to enjoy their new single in the right headspace.

"Everyone's been in this reset mode and there was a bombardment of stuff this year," Mike said.

"You want people to enjoy your music, be in the right frame of mind, you want people to be settled and, with the lockdowns ending, people are starting to feel a sense of freedom again and that things are going to be okay.
"This single is a good way to see in the New Year."

Matt said What Kind of World would welcome the New Year with optimism, supported by the accompanying clip starring Central Coast entertainer, Kabba, who takes viewers through a regular person's major life changes, the ups and downs, and historical events that have shaped our existence.

"When people see the imagery of the video, it's going to make them think about what we've done, what we're doing and where we're going," he said.

"Why can't we release on New Year's Day? There are no rules."