One of Australia's favourite storytellers, Josh Pyke has given us another taste of his new album Rome out on August 28 in a brilliant new single 'You're My Colour', along with a beautifully shot clip (see below)

"This is a love song. It's a simple as that. It's about loving someone so much that the feeling steers you away from a looming existential crisis, which is, frankly a place I'm often heading!" Josh says about the single, "For me it's about my kids, but it could be about a partner, a parent, an unrequited desire. It's about how at our core we're all made of the exact same stuff. We're atoms and star dust and that's worth remembering." Rome is Pyke's long-awaited follow-up to Pyke's 2015 LP But For All These Shrinking Hearts – which debuted at Number 2 in Australia - and marks his return to his solo career following a two-year break from the stage.

Never one to sit idle, Pyke offers insight into his busy schedule between his last two LP drops, explaining,"I wrote a lot, released a psychedelic rock album under the pseudonym Sword Owls. I produced songs for film and TV including a bunch of stuff with Justine Clarke and the Beached Az crew. I wrote 6 kids books, two of which have come out in 2019 and the rest are due for release in 2020/21. I continued my work running the JP Partnership grant, and my other advocacy work with the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. It was an immensely busy and rewarding creative period and it recharged my batteries and allowed me some mental perspective that has me keen and ready to fire the album and touring lifestyle back up again."

Rome was written, recorded and produced by Pyke in his own home studio, Timshel Industries, with Pyke playing most instruments himself with some added help from friends Josh Schuberth, Elana Stone, Stephanie Zarka, Glenn Hopper and Matt Fell, who would each pop around to lay some parts down when required. "I can't imagine making a record any other way in the future," explains Pyke who then jumped on a plane to Portland Oregan to mix the album with Grammy-nominated producer/engineer Tucker Martine (The Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, My Morning Jacket).

"The title Rome refers to the expression that 'all roads lead to Rome.' We can't escape ourselves. We can't avoid what stares us in the face as our personal realities, and if we don't address these things we risk becoming ruins of ourselves."

Collaborating with Crowbar, the new album will coincide with the release of a limited run of Rome Shiraz by Josh Pyke, put together by Tim Sproal of Minim & Boomtown wines in Castlemaine, Victoria. "I'm a firm believer in creativity as a way to enhance people's experiences. This album feels like a red wine album. It's a listening album, sit back with a glass of wine and fully engage."

From his first appearance in the Hottest 100 with Middle of the Hill coming in at number 19 in 2005, to the 2017 release of his greatest hits album The Best of Josh Pyke + B Sides and Rarities and now to Rome in 2020, Josh Pyke has been a part of the Australian music landscape for over 15 years. Well-loved for his intricate storytelling, thoughtful folk pop arrangements and finely honed stage chops, Pyke has released six studio albums, all of which have gained prestigious accolades and critical acclaim.

Interview with Josh Pyke

Question: How would you describe your music?

Josh Pyke: It's hard for me to be objective about it. I am very focused on lyrics.. I guess you can call it acoustic based story telling.


Question: What inspired your new song You're My Colour?

Josh Pyke: The song is inspired by my kids, it's a love song for my kids. But what I like about writing songs is that for me it's for my kids, but for someone else it could be about their partner, parents or someone they lost. The beautiful thing about art is that it can be interpreted by the listener or viewer.


Question: Your new album "Rome" is coming out soon, what can you tell us about it?

Josh Pyke: It's my 6th album, the first one in 5 years.. It's recorded and produced in my home studio in Sydney. I took it across to Portland in the US in December to be mixed by Tucker Marine (Grammy-nominated producer/engineer). I was there to mix with him for a couple of weeks. I am super proud of it and love this record.


Question: You had a break from music, do you feel you came back stronger?

Josh Pyke: I feel like I came back refreshed and with a different perspective. Prior to the break I kind of locked myself into a cycle of releasing an album, then touring for 12 months. Releasing an album and touring again. I started having anxiety issues around all that so a break was necessary for mental health reasons. But I worked through that and I feel like I'm ready again.


Question: What should we expect from your upcoming tour?

Josh Pyke: It is booked and the whole tour is sold out, it's just waiting to see whether we can go ahead with it because of COVID-19. I am actually blown away and thankful for the response of fans, we had to postpone it from March and no one has asked for their money back so I love everyone's understanding.

Question: Which is your favourite song to perform live and why?

Josh Pyke: I love playing songs people can single along with, I love to engage with the audience. Songs like "Summer" or "Middle of the Hill". It's such a beautiful experience to hear the audience singing with you.


Question: How did you come up with Josh Pyke Partnership?

Josh Pyke: I was in a position to do something that seemed like a good thing to do, something other people could benefit from. I felt like it was the right thing to do. It's been great, we've been doing this for 6 years now and there have been so many amazing winners come out of it. People that continued to do great things and contributed back to the industry. It's been fantastic.


Question: What can you tell us about latest winner Bec Sykes?

Josh Pyke: She's amazing, she probably has less infra structure around her than previous winners. She doesn't have management, label or anything like that. She's just a great song writer, her voice is really compelling. She's very switched on, a lovely person and very hard working. I think she'll go great. It's just a matter of working with her, which is the mentorship element, and trying to find the right team around her.


Question: What motivates you most when writing music?

Josh Pyke: It's a compulsion really, it's not something I just like doing, it's something I'm completely compelled to do. People talk about feeling like they're channelling something else when writing songs. I don't believe in God or anything but it's an out of world feeling. The motivation comes from a compulsion deep inside, I feel like I need to write.. Then I pick up the guitar and something happens, it's difficult for me to really explain it.


Question: You've achieved so much, can you provide your tips for creating a successful schedule?

Josh Pyke: Good question! Honestly, you have to be really disciplined but also flexible enough to follow your joy. If you have the intention to do one particular project.. your heart and soul might tell you to do another one, and that's ok. You have to follow where your creative inspiration is leading you. You also need to have some structure. Lack of structure can be mentally draining. So trying to find the balance between structure and following your creative inspiration is the key.


Question: What is the biggest challenge you have faced along the way to your success?

Josh Pyke: I didn't get fully started as a musician until I was around 27. The first 10 years of being a musician I wasn't really getting anywhere. I was working other jobs. Then I started working in a record store and finally got a record deal and that's when things kicked off. I think the biggest struggle is staying motivated and mentally healthy. I have always had support from my parents which has been great.


Question: What's a typical day like?

Josh Pyke: It definitely varies, which is a nice thing. Generally because I have kids and I work from home I get up and take kids to school. After that I try to do an exercise, which I believe is really important to do. Then I go into the studio and either think of a song or write a book, just try to do something nice and creative. Of course during an album cycle it's more promo, rehearsals and getting ready for touring.
I think being able to dabble into a lot of different things like production, writing a book or engaging in photography or film clips, all these things are so creatively inspiring and I feel really fortunate.


Question: What's next, for you?

Josh Pyke: My album comes out on the 28th. If I'm in luck I'll be able to tour. I actually have a kids book coming in November as well. Hopefully the rest of the year will be filled with touring, performances and promoting the album and just pushing on with creative projects.


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

Josh Pyke: Instagram  
Facebook  
Youtube  


Interview by Gwen van Montfort