A Quick Chat with Hannah

What is the focus song about? Did it come from a particular experience?

Cerulean is about the process of beginning to fall in love. It's the exciting thrill and little bit of fear around giving your heart away to someone. The hook line of the chorus 'tell me it's not a daydream' shows the juxtaposition of feeling like you're living in a dream, but also being a bit scared that it's not the real deal.

Musically, what does the song/EP sound like?

Pages is quite an emotionally dynamic collection of songs. The EP ranges from upbeat indie pop-rock to emotional piano ballads and a few in between vibes. Musically, the thing which ties the EP together the most is the powerful, emotive vocals. The EP is generally quite guitar heavy with the exception of one track also, feeding into the Indie pop-rock vibe.

Who did you work with on this EP and what was the process like?

The songs in Pages are a self-produced project, which I enjoyed the process of crafting sounds. However, my band: Sam Bertolone on drums, Josh Pineda on Electric guitar and Angus Holmes + Josh Holt on Bass really helped me bring all the tracks together. It was such a fun process working with them and they are incredibly talented musicians. For the Audio engineering, We recorded the whole EP (with the exception of Amazing Grace) at Alchemix Studios in West End, QLD. Engineered by Andrew Nolan. The mix was by Judah Winnett at Studio 88 and master by Paul Blakey at 12th & Vine Post. I set myself a goal at the beginning of this year to write and produce a full EP. It was a great challenge and I found it both stretching and a great learning curve for my skills as a songwriter and producer. I drew from some of my journey over the last 5 years of my life and really wanted the EP to be full of relatable raw emotions and experiences for listeners. So the EP is called Pages because it reflects upon the song concepts as though they are pages in my journal.

Did you have any musical inspirations for this song/EP?

I did have some broad inspo for this EP, however you probably won't hear the inspirations very directly in the sound, as I've kind of picked and chosen from little elements of a bunch of different inspirations for this sound. I feel Miley Cyrus’s album Endless Summer Vacation played a large part in inspiring me for this EP, I really loved the emotive but fun vibe of this Album. Additionally little bits here and there from artists who have always inspired me as a songwriter, merely because I love listening to them: Sara Bareilles, Taylor Swift, Switchfoot, The 1975, the list can go on endlessly haha.

What is your favourite part/lyric in the song or on the EP?

This is a tough one! There are elements of each song that I feel strongly about as they are all from a deep place in my heart. I love the first half of verse 1 in Cerulean 'I can see it in sparkling cerulean, I feel it beaming back at me, this electric possibility got me wondering if it's all a dream'. It's about looking into the eyes of someone you're falling in love with and feeling that electricity returned. Such a fun lyric to me. Additionally, in Merry-Go-Round, the lyrics are so raw and image based. They describe the struggle of going through the 'Freeze mode' anxiety, Fatigue from a bad health day because of Endometriosis and the feeling of burnout which I've found myself in a few times over my adult life. "Morning fog sets in not wanting to fade Staying under the covers is the safest place When the weight is heavy, Sometimes it's the easier trade Try to push through these iron bars again Wonder if it's all in my head I realise over and over I was still holding my breath"

What do you hope people will take away from the song/EP?

I hope that people feel seen and encouraged by this EP. My endeavor with these songs was to collect them in a way that doesn't just call out emotional circumstances but leaves the listener with hope & assurance that everything will be okay.

Tell us about your musical journey so far?

I released my first two singles in 2022 ‘Unlikely Two’ and ‘Home In Your Arms’. At the time I was in the final year of my bachelor’s degree at Griffith Conservatorium majoring in music composition, which I undertook in my mid-twenties as a means of professional development to improve my music skills for writing music. I had a little break from writing my own music for a year in 2023 because I found myself a bit creatively burned out and going through a pretty tough year emotionally. I did work on just over 80 client projects throughout 2023 as a songwriter and session vocalist, so I was well and truly still working creatively in that time period. I was pretty enthusiastic about the goal of writing an EP/Album this year to help propel myself forward as a songwriter and artist and continue working on finding my own sound musically. I've really enjoyed the journey so far even though it has had its challenges in stretching my capacity.