A Quick Chat with The Tullamarines

Can you tell us about the inspiration behind Running On Empty? What was the moment or experience that sparked the song?

I’d just had what I’ve come to know as an anxiety attack whilst we were touring, and I was struggling hard. On the flight home, I wrote some pretty horrible stuff in my notes app, and then left it for a bit to try and talk to everyone and get some help. When I had a bit more free space to think, I started to write little songs from those notes, which sparked Running On Empty.

Where and how was the song created? Was it written on the road, in the studio, or somewhere unexpected?

I hadn’t written anything in about nine months at this point, so I was at home singing lines from my notes over spliced country drum loops—the chorus was the first thing I recorded. Sometimes songs seem to just appear at the right time, and this was definitely one of them. We took the song to Sydney to finish writing and recording with producer Izaac Wilson.

Lyrically, Running On Empty feels deeply personal. How did you approach translating those emotions into music?

To some degree, we all share anxiety about our place in the world, and we’ve all had moments when shit hits the fan a bit. We’ve been together long enough that we can understand each other in this way, but it’s still a tender moment when we share things like this. When I demo, lyrics are usually a few key lines or phonetics strung together with mumbles. Angus and Cin have a knack for understanding what I need to get out and can stitch all of this together and create a through-line for the song.

Who are some of your biggest musical influences, and did any of them shape the sound or feel of this track?

We all have quite different musical tastes, but as this song was coming to fruition, we’d been listening to a lot of COIN, Grouplove, and Wallows. It really feels like we’re finding our feet and our sound, especially with this song, and has sparked what is yet to come for this year.

You’ve had a huge last year, what’s next for The Tullamarines? Can we expect more new music or live shows soon?

We’re gearing up for the No Internet Tour in a few weeks—headlining Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. We’re super excited and very nervous, but we love touring, and this time we’re bringing our bestie boos, Purée. The shows are looking like they could sell out, which is wild, but we’re very excited to be playing some of the new releases and perhaps some stuff that isn’t out yet.

What’s one thing you hope listeners take away from Running On Empty when they hear it for the first time?

Honestly, if anyone can relate to what we’re saying, we just want them to know they’re not on their own. We’re all feeling this, especially at the moment as things seem to be getting harder around the country and the world. Just sharing the feeling with people can be a weight off our collective shoulders.