Sherri Parry is a Bendigo singer-songwriter who takes a traditional approach to the creative process.
“Everything I write gets hand-written into a small book. It makes the song feel more authentic.”
Parry’s next big step in an already impressive career is the launch of debut EP, Equal, at the Golden Vine next Thursday, October, 27.
Equal features “six carefully chosen songs of mine,” Parry says.
The EP includes songs Parry has been playing live for some time including Iris, Sublime and Lamplight, but it’s the heartfelt title track that the young singer-songwriter is keen to discuss.
“The most important song to me is Equal. I want to shine a light on the fact that we’re all the same – we have the same beginning, the same end, our hearts are no different. We need to learn to understand that and treasure it instead of focusing on our differences. No matter how differently we may look, or decide to live our lives, we are equal.”
A few months ago Sherri Parry was struggling to find a producer to work with. The relationship with Natalie Edith has come at the right time.
“I worked with producers from Melbourne, even from overseas. They all had their ideas on what they wanted from my songs, always wanting to change them. The disagreements in creativity led to nothing. The only person I’d ever worked with who understood my sound and worked with it, rather than against it, was Natalie. So I contacted her in early September and we got straight to work.”
Equal was recorded at On the Road Productions and mixed and mastered by Bohdan Dower.
Doors are at 8pm next Thursday at the Golden Vine. The $10 cover charge includes a copy of Equal.
Kylie Auldist is a little further into her career than Sherri Parry. Described as “the high priestess of Melbourne’s soul scene” by The Music magazine, Auldist is at the centre of Australia’s soul, funk and disco revival and has been compared to Diana Ross and Sharon Jones. Auldist’s stage show bursts with energy.
Auldist, who has released three albums since her 2008 debut, Just Say, will make her Bendigo Blues & Roots Music Festival debut at the Ulumbarra Theatre on the Sunday night of the Festival.
No stranger to Bendigonians, Alister Turrill makes a welcome return to these parts for the Festival. Turrill has been a prolific performer in Bendigo in recent years, building a strong following. After his lengthy sojourn in Europe, it will be good to hear the distinctive Alister Turrill sound again in Bendigo. None other than Lloyd Spiegel described him as “a songwriter of the highest order and a sign that the future of Australian blues is in good hands”.
Turrill will play four sets at this year’s Bendigo Blues & Roots Music Festival, including at the Basement Bar on the Friday night and in Rosalind Park on the Saturday.
