A Quick Chat With Menajerie
Introducing Menajerie, the mesmerizing neo-soul ensemble hailing from Meanjin/Brisbane, fronted by three captivating female vocalists. Led by the compelling Gracie Mack on keys and vocals, powerhouse vocalist Rosa Mack, and fiery Mel Galletly, the trio weaves silky melodies and poignant lyrics amidst irresistible sultry grooves. Their highly anticipated debut EP 'Selective Deafness', releasing on September 29, unveils a musical odyssey blending laid-back soul, alluring rhythms, and anti-gravity funk. Preceding the EP's launch, the enchanting lead single 'Holding Pattern' is out now, a neo-soul and hip-hop-infused track that delves into the complexities of self-made cycles, offering a tantalizing taste of Menajerie's intoxicating soundscapes. We caught up with Gracie Mack to find out more about this track, the bands influences, their creative process and more.
Can you tell us what this track means to you and what you want people to take away from it?
I wrote 4 songs in about 2 days at the end of my last relationship. They just poured out of me. Holding Pattern was the first of the four. It came about reflecting that the things that I did to break out of my patterns ultimately led me to perpetuating them further. The song came about at a really sore point of the breakup where I felt I wasn't being heard and he was just hearing what he wanted. The line "selective deafness, but now you know" hit strongly and the rest of the song formed around it really quickly with the girls crafting harmonies and the boys digging deeper into the groove. We want people to feel the emotional charge of this song through the confrontational lyrics and then the release of anger at the end as the gritty shuffle kicks in.
Who are some of your influences and why?
We're really lucky in this band to have 6 rich musical worlds coming together. For the vocals, we take allot of inspiration from girl groups like The Supremes, The Pointer Sisters, Destiny's Child & the Spice Girls as well as artists Stevie Wonder, Moonchild and Lianne La Havas. The instrumentation draws from the whole spectrum of Soul music from Motown all the way to current neo-soul and future soul.
What's the creative process for you, from writing through to recording?
In terms of songwriters, it's mainly myself, vocalist Mel and guitarist Andrew coming up with core ideas to share. We then workshop them as a band and make demo recordings to take away and develop. We are all regular gigging musicians so we really like to record the instruments all in one room to get that live band sound and lay a foundation to record all the other layers on top of.
What do you think makes a great song?
Personal taste is such a big factor in liking a piece of art, but I think what I connect to most is a harmonious combination of heartfelt expression and artistry. When something is delivered in a way that sounds and feels true to the artist, it hits really beautifully.
If you could collaborate with any artist, who would it be and why?
That's a hard one! I think it'd be really cool to collaborate with an MC/singer like Adi Oasis or Tank from Tank and the Bangas
When not working on music, what other creative outlet/s do you have?
I mean I love Yoga and cooking, but music is really the main thing for creativity and expression in my life. It can be hard when it's also your income though to keep creative integrity and still find joy in what you do. So I've been learning how to play the bass just for a way to have fun with music and strip it back to it's bare bones.
Who are some local bands we should check out?
A few years ago I watched the Kamasi Washington concert documentary where he talked about coming up with his band members and how they slowly started to become each other's favourite musicians. That's how I feel about a lot of the talent in the Meanjin scene. So just to name a few:
Hannah Macklin
HRBRT
Ghostmutt
Rosa Mack
Elktung
Winter or summer and why?
I mean, Bris winter is getting closer and closer to summer so is there really a choice?
What else do you have planned for 2023?
We're super excited to release our debut EP on September 29th! We have a special listening party booked at vintage bar Can you keep a secret on Thurs sep 21st. click to buy tickets
We'll also be announcing our EP launch gig soon so stay tuned for that!
Follow Menajerie
Website | | Spotify | Apple Music | Youtube | Bandcamp