Elly McK & The Unbelievers are an alt-country band from Melbourne who released the single 'Bones' earlier this year and, before that, the single 'Down on Your Luck'. They are embarking on a tour of New South Wales and Victoria in support of their new single 'The Wind Up'.
McK explains that ‘The Wind Up’ is about the decision to make a change, whether it's in a relationship, a job, or any other significant part of one's life. She shared that the song reflects her own experiences of wrestling with difficult choices and the resolve required to see them through.
‘This is a song that I can apply to on various situations across my life,’ she says. ‘The song is written in the context of a relationship winding up, but it could also be a job winding up or a friendship or something that means a lot to you. That decision is a difficult one, and it takes time, but once it's made, there's no going back.’
The song's structure and Ellie's emotive delivery suggest a certain reluctance to fully commit to the ‘windup’, which McK acknowledges.
‘I think there is an element of convincing yourself,’ she says. ‘Convincing myself that this is the decision that's being made. And then what comes is another story, another song.’
‘The Wind Up’ marks the first co-write for McK, who collaborated with the band's drummer, Sam Price. In our interview McK shares that she doesn't typically go into a co-writing session with the intention of finishing a song, but rather sees it as a creative process where the end result is unknown.
‘I really enjoy that creation process and then the collaboration process as just a process of whatever happens,’ McK says. ‘I haven't done a whole lot of co-writes, a lot of my other singles I'd written by myself, and they come as almost fairly complete songs. But this was the first one that I've done with Sam, and there's going to be lots more.’
McK’s work as a singer-songwriter was not always on the card.
‘I was terrified of singing,’ she says. ‘Right up until my mid-thirties, I was a bass player. I played in hard rock bands as a younger person, and always wanted to sing and was so scared, and I just made a decision, I'm not going to be scared of it anymore, and started doing it. Singing is now my life. Everything I do is singing. I couldn't imagine that life I had before singing.’
With her band The Unbelievers – which also includes Jordy Hickey on double bass and Monty Price on guitar – McK is embarking on an extensive tour of New South Wales and Victoria, which she describes as a huge undertaking for the band, taking in shows in Sydney, regional Victoria, and Melbourne, booked through to the end of the year.
McK is excited to take ‘The Wind Up’ and the band's other singles on the road, knowing that the songs will continue to evolve through the live performance process.
‘I love the evolution of the song,’ she says. ‘Some of my songs I've written sitting on my couch playing ukulele and an idea comes up, and then they become this bigger thing. And then the process doesn't stop once the song starts being played live. It's always changing.’
Elly McK & The Unbelievers tour dates
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