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NGAIIRE GETS BACK THE GUSTO Column: Features | Date Published: Wednesday, 8 June 16 | Author: Catherine Woods | 1 week, 6 days ago Like Be the first of your friends to like this.
NGAIIRE (a.k.a. Ngaire Joseph, pronounced “NyRee”) is bringing her future-soul sounds to Canberra. If you haven’t heard her, or heard of her, where have you been hiding? Fear not. Get to know her now and then snap up Blastoma in preparation for her whirlwind tour blowing through any day now. Ngaiire calls Sydney home, but she was born in Papua New Guinea and spent much of her childhood in New Zealand. At age three she was diagnosed with cancer and has previously alluded to how this changed her outlook on life and the purpose of living. It awakened her need to value every moment and to live bravely. Her second album Blastoma references these ideas and will connect with anyone who has recognised that life is a beautiful chaos, both fearsome and fantastic (and isn’t that all of us?). “Blastoma is derived from the full name of the cancer I had when I was a kid,” she explains. “I chose to use it as a memorial or a reminder of the need to revisit your past in order to reestablish gusto.” With production assistance from long-time collaborator Paul Mac, Ngaiire has managed to combine eclectic influences in a coherent, all-killer-no-filler release. Known for his driving dance beats and notable vocal collaborators (remember his work with Daniel Johns?), Paul Mac delivers on synths, beats and polished production. The deft hand of producer Jack Grace assists in introducing reggae, roots, jazz and soul while maintaining integrity and foremost emphasising Ngaiire’s fabulous voice. As well as Paul Mac, Ngaiire was a back-up singer for Blue King Brown for four years (on the back of their major local and international success with Water in 2004). With them, she observed the dynamic and memorable performance style of the band. Their ability to weave world music with blues, roots, jazz and dance also echoes in Ngaiire’s solo work. She continued to perform with them occasionally, leading up to her first album release in 2013, Lamentations. “Paul had a lot more to do with the way I perform” she says. “But Blue King Brown, particularly Carlo Santone (bass player and band manager) helped mentor me through the ups and downs of being an independent artist,” she reflects. “Carlo and Paul still mentor me to this day.” Online, critics and listeners have likened Ngaiire to Mary J Blige and Erykah Badu. She takes this with humbleness, but also pride. “Erykah is always doing her. That’s what I love. She’s a sassy kook. She doesn’t apologise,” she says. “Mary has my heart constantly. I love that she sings with her whole body and how she rips out her heart and stabs it continuously in front of you. It’s so exhilarating watching her.” As for her choice of inspirational artist? They’re much closer to home. “My backing vocalist Billie McCarthy excites me. [She’s] relatively unknown, but she has been my favourite vocalist for years now. I recently checked out some of the new stuff she’s been writing and it’s a wild mix between St Vincent and Jill Scott.” Speaking of St Vincent – she of the feline face, wild curls and supermodel girlfriend – Ngaiire raves about the live St Vincent performance experience. “Watching people like St Vincent perform is jaw dropping,” she admits. “I love the theatrics, the lighting, the choreography, the cheeky monologues between songs and obviously the way she wields that bloody axe.”
Can you pick thre e tracks from Blastoma and te ll me what the y me an to you and what you hope liste ne rs ge t from the m? “‘Fall Into My Arms’ started off as a breakup song Jack Grace (my other producer) and I wrote. We stopped writing it because it felt forced and no one wanted to talk about their respective breakups being so fresh. We revisited it months later, after Jack got a call that an old schoolmate had come up HIV positive. It became all the things he couldn’t put into words on that day. ‘I Can’t Hear God Anymore’ was written about a relationship with a collaborator I had a deep spiritual connection with and it came at a time I was feeling quite spent and over music. ‘Once’, because it was a song I didn’t believe in as a single. It was a lesson in trusting in other people’s creative opinions. People loved it so much more than I expected. Even I did.”
While her livewire performances may be inspired by the axe-wielding sound-storm that is St Vincent, Ngaiire’s own backstage routine is a personal, meditative practice that she is candid and generous in sharing. It is a time for her to prepare mentally and spiritually for the stage. “I do little quiet chants during sound check. My grandmother used to chant to me and my siblings at the start and finish of bedtime stories. We chanted together one last time before she died. It takes me right back to when we were kids holidaying in her little grass hut, sitting near the fireplace,” she reflects. “Somehow, it reminds me of how lucky I am that I get to do this. I also stare at my set list before each show and manifest how I see the shape of the show going. [This] makes me sound like a real loop, but it usually helps prepare my brain.” On a significantly lighter note, we finish off our interview with a five-word challenge. I ask her to describe
Win one of five double passes to Sacrifice – The Lost Songbirds of the Somme! Win one of three double passes to Belle and Sebastian: The Adventure Continues! Win one of two double passes to ska legend Neville Staple! Win one of two VIP double passes to Disgraced! Win one of five double passes to Night at The M useum: Play School! Win one of ten copies of Steve Jobs (DVD)!
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the tour for Blastoma. “A dancing raspberry chocolate cake.”
BMA Magazine 5,192 likes
Ngaiire performs at Transit Bar on Saturday July 9. Doors at 8pm. Support from LANKS and Jack Grace. Tickets are $20 + bf through Moshtix.
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