Lior & Domini

An Intimate Evening Of Song And Story

By Sammy Moynihan

Beloved singer-songwriter Lior is joining forces with acclaimed emerging artist Domini Forster for an eclectic concert at The Street Theatre in May. The pairing is perfect, with both artists known for their haunting, evocative sounds. Their upcoming album highlights their journey of creativity and resilience, navigating the challenges of lockdown and long-distance recordings.

While the two began collaborating in 2019, their album Animal in Hiding was written during Melbourne’s COVID lockdown. Not one for hiding, Lior was eager to hit the touring circuit soon after the lock’ was lifted.

“The last year was amazing,” he gushes. “I had my busiest tour year ever and it felt so great to get out and do so many shows.

“And this project with Domini, also. We very much focused on not just going to cities. We've taken this show all around Australia and hit up regional spots. It's just been a great way to get back into the touring zone.” Indeed, this will be his third time visiting Canberra in the last few months, having performed only recently at the National Folk Festival. But this time, it’s different.

“I love Canberra. I've always had a really lovely audience there,” Lior says. “My first gig out of COVID, I played with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra at Commonwealth Park to a few thousand people. That was exciting, and a nice way to hit the stage again after such a long hiatus.”

The upcoming gig at The Street will be a more intimate affair, and he and Domini are looking forward to a relaxed evening of storytelling and audience interaction.

“I think the beautiful thing about these smaller shows is that we get a chance to just tell stories, and detail the background for each song,” he says. “We can go off script, inviting people into our lounge room for the night, interacting with the audience.

“I think the larger scale shows with the heavier production,” Lior continues, “they become more rigid. You are attached, whether it be to a script, or an order, or lighting cues; so many potential things. It's nice to tour in a very relaxed frame where it is slightly different each night. And it really is more about an intimate gathering.”

The duo first met when Domini was Lior’s support act. They subsequently wrote and released a song together entitled Where Will We Be

“As soon as we started singing together, we found this synergy in the way we harmonised; this beautiful tonal blend.”

This was the beginning of a fierce partnership that would lead to the COVID-bound creation of an album.

“We had a great connection in both writing and singing, so we embarked on a collaborative songwriting project”, he reflects. “About halfway through writing it, COVID hit, and we had to find a way to finish this project during lockdown.

“In the short openings that we had, we quickly got together and finished writing it, recorded it, and then had to do a lot of the detailed recordings with different people, long distance, sending stuff over digitally.”

While he describes the process as “a bit of a mission”, both he and Domini felt a real sense of accomplishment to share their beautiful gift with the world.

“It was nice in the sense that when COVID was finished, we had a lockdown project to show for the time we were isolated. And it's been amazing over the last 12 months, taking these songs to theatres around the country.”

Lior speaks highly of the collaboration with Domini, and looks forward to sharing their artistic chemistry with Canberra audiences.

“It's a symbiotic relationship. Working with an emerging artist takes you back to when you were at that phase of your career; how excited and enthusiastic I was when things were new. It reignites that excitement that can fade over time with things becoming a bit normalised. Not to mention the natural pressures of getting older.

“We're so locked in when we sing together. It often feels like I’m not singing, but listening to her. I think that's one reason why we sing so well together. We've become really attuned to each other's expressions. And even breath.

“I can tell where she's going via her breath, and when she's going to elongate a phrase.”

This sense of deep chemistry and collaboration lends itself to a mesmerising evening that Canberrans are sure to be enchanted by. Their passion for music, storytelling, and connection promises an unforgettable evening that will leave audiences captivated and inspired.

Lior & Domini’s Animals in Hiding EP launch happens at The Street Theatre on Friday, 26 May at 7:30pm. Tickets are $42 - $49 + $4bf via the venue.