The Brag

Kimbra
Taking Her Vows
By Jonno Seidler

Melbourne-based songstress Kimbra Johnson has been popping up on radars all over the world since she moved from New Zealand and launched herself onto the music scene with considerable aplomb last year. With a swag of songs but only one publicly released single (‘Settle Down’) under her belt at that time, Kimbra became buzz-worthy incredibly quickly, no doubt helped along by personal endorsements from a wide variety of web pundits – including the notoriously finicky Perez Hilton, who featured her clip online.

On the eve of releasing her next slice of everything-but-the-kitchen-sink pop, ‘Cameo Lover,’ the Kiwi crooner is still having a great time just figuring out what the hell’s going on. For her fans, the big question is when she’s going to stop drip-feeding us these incredible singles and drop an album already…“The album is so very close, it’s a tease for me too!” she says. “I’m very excited to share the work that’s been done. Lots of producers have been involved including myself, Francois Tetaz and M-Phazes among others.”

Part of the delay, explains Kimbra, is that she’s a chronic perfectionist; not an efficient attribute when trying to get things finished. With her debut album Vows expected to be released independently sooner than you can blink, there are surprises aplenty in store… “I’ve written all the tracks aside from some collaborations with the producers, and in terms of the lads playing on this record, there’s too many to name!”

Producer Tetaz’s inclusion is particularly exciting; he’s renowned for providing ethereal soundscapes for the diverse portfolio of artists he’s worked with, including Gotye and Bertie Blackman. He’s worked on a variety of film scores too, from Wolf Creek to The Square – and he remains an enigma to many. “It was fascinating working with someone so visually focused,” Kimbra says. “He taught me to envision my songs as movies, with each chapter moving into the next, and thinking of instruments and timbres as new colours or characters – and I found this really opened up my songwriting. He likes to provoke and push artists out of their comfort zone, which I think is great. Incidentally, Kimbra reveals that she’s just finished collaborating on a track with Gotye – add this to her successful collaboration with Miami Horror on ‘I Look To You’ (frontman Josh will return the favour on her record), and her cameos are certainly proving notable.

And now to the Perez thing… Though some artists may baulk at the prospect of being picked up by a man better known for his obsession with celebrity than for unearthing new antipodean talent, Perez’ boost for the ‘Settle Down’ clip only helped Kimbra’s international prospects. “Ah good ol’ Perez,” she laughs. “The plug was great for opening up opportunities and fan bases in the States; we’ve had lots of cool response on the blog circuit and it’s created a really great platform.”

In fact, Kimbra’s most attractive asset may be that she’s not shy of doing anything the world throws at her. She recently played a show for retail giant Myer, for instance. “They asked me to sing from the top of a ballroom staircase and literally walk down, as the spotlight followed me, while singing the Carpenters’ song ‘Close To You’. Luckily I didn’t fall and collapse down the stairs… That wouldn’t have been so classy.”

What: ‘Cameo Lover’ is out now
With: Yeo, Northeast Party House
Where: Oxford Art Factory
When: Wednesday April 13