Pigeon Opinion Featuring an Interview with The Amanda Emblem Experiment

Interview with The Amanda Emblem Experiment

"Ancient Dingo" is a song that yearns for attention, like the native wild animal of Australia, it howls in the night. Unique new music from the frontline of the S.E. Fraser Coast from a sweet songstress who will entice you into her delightful musical journey with a snappy pop-rock tune.

Amanda and harmonica flutist Kelly King co-wrote the song, and they are working together to release the track, aiming to improve understanding and dispel the bad reputation of the Australian Dingo.

(•)> “Ancient Dingo” is described as a song that yearns for attention, much like the animal itself. How did the dingo become the emotional and symbolic heart of this track?

Amanda: When Kelly came up with the lyric “Ancient Dingo” (which became the title), I instantly knew it was a hook and something we could effortlessly elaborate on. Kelly’s passion and knowledge for the animal were obvious, so it was easy to tease out lyrics about it, plus it has been a journey of knowledge for me, learning about the Dingo.

Kelly: Once the song was written, we knew it was going to instantly connect to a specific audience. There is a massive body of people interested and invested in the welfare of Dingoes in the wild, and we hoped to engage that audience and pay respect and credence to their efforts to improve the general reputation of Dingoes living in the wild alongside our tourist industry. It’s a very contentious issue in our culture. I’m not sure I would agree that the Dingo yearns for attention…perhaps recognition? The attention they receive is often bad press and alarmist views surrounding their dangerous presence in what we view as our spaces. Once we thought of her, we felt a real pull to tell her story.

(•)> The song carries both a snappy pop-rock energy and a moody, rootsy acoustic version. What did you discover about the song by exploring it in two very different forms?

Amanda:

We wrote the song using an acoustic guitar, so it came naturally to return the song to its origin. The addition of indigenous instrumentation was something we had thought about since its inception, and I was keen to make that happen when I took the song back to our producer, Andy. The band version was done a lot earlier than the acoustic, and to be honest, it took some getting used to, because at the time, it was more of an experiment (by my producer Andy) to see what the possibilities were. There were a few different versions before I settled on the final track, but I really got satisfaction working on the electric guitar lead and rhythm parts, taking inspiration from “The Police” to utilise a reggae beat in the instrumentation. The bouncy baseline underpins the electric version, which drives the song. I learnt that the song works either way, which is the sign of a strong composition, and I hope by delivering the two versions that this is demonstrated.

(•)> You co-wrote the track with harmonica flutist Kelly King. How did that collaboration shape the sound and storytelling of “Ancient Dingo”?

Amanda: It takes a spark to coerce a fire. Kelly was that spark. Our songwriting session was a blaze! There were enough strong ideas for three songs from that session. Two of them made it on the album (The Wood), “Ancient Dingo” and another fabulous tune called “Thousands of Songs”, which Kelly sings the main vocal and could easily have been selected also as a single. We worked on Ancient Dingo over a few weeks before presenting it to the band. The chordal structure was solid from inception, but the bridge (the soaring harmonies) really evolved in the group situation. It all came together immediately, and we started performing it before it was recorded. Kelly’s enthusiasm and passion for the subject matter made writing the song flow effortlessly.

Kelly: Amanda is a wonderful songwriter and has hosted many songwriting workshops that have turned out collaborative pieces that are often surprisingly good from groups of people with absolutely no songwriting experience at all. We sat down to employ one of her songwriting methods, which basically starts from nowhere at all except to identify single words of, for example, an animal, place, emotion…and then add an adjective or action to each word. Gradually, concepts form that lead to a possible narrative or focus. No two minds are going to go in the same direction at the same time, so beginning from a place of zero expectation or direction, the collaborative method really enriches the process. Once we had the key phrase Ancient Dingo, I heard the iconic howl of the Dingo and the sounds of digeridoo. I brought that to the introduction with the harmonica. We knew early on that there was going to be an opportunity to incorporate digeridoo in this piece, and the alternative version does just that. Generally, musos are collaborative people by nature, so this song was great fun. It was a really rewarding process.

(•)> There’s a clear intention to challenge the misunderstood reputation of the Australian dingo. Why was it important for you to weave that message into your music?

Kelly: I think every songwriter dreams of writing a song that will make a difference, to leave a mark on the collective conscience of the listeners. Music and lyrics can reach people in a way that education and other ways of accumulating knowledge can’t. Over the years, there have been numerous encounters between humans and Dingoes together in situations where one or the other is in the wrong place at the wrong time. There have been some tragic outcomes. We didn’t know at the time how poignant and timely our message was going to be. On the day of Ancient Dingo’s release, the media was ablaze with the tragic story of Piper James. With deepest reverent respect to that beautiful young girl, we wonder if she had been armed with better knowledge of the nature of the wild native residents of the area, would she have been alone there at that time? Both Piper and the Dingo population have paid heavily for the choices made that day. If one life can be saved, be it that of a beautiful young girl or a wild native Dingo, then the message has done its work.

(•)> Living between rural Kandanga and the coastal Sandy Strait near K’Gari seems deeply influential. How do these landscapes feed into your songwriting and creativity?

Amanda: I’m at a fabulous time in my life. I am happy, and I am at peace. After years of touring, travelling from one place to the next, really only experienced cities from the perspective of their live music venues. Like many covid changed me, and my perspective. Settling in the beautiful surroundings of The Mary Valley Hinterlands and alternating between here and the Coast has been transformative. My music now has a peaceful quality, perhaps a maturity (compared to my first album and recorded works previous to the Amanda Emblem Experiment ), which reflects being in this environment. I’m no longer trying to discover myself or dispel negative experiences through song, which allows me the freedom to create with this environment as a backdrop.

(•)> Your studio is a treehouse surrounded by nature. How does creating music in that environment affect the way your songs come together?

Amanda: I have a studio addiction… so somedays a song is bare bones when I take it to Andy. Ancient Dingo was fully formed when Andy first got his ears on it. Taking a song to Andy is like taking a child home. When Andy connects to a tune, he becomes one with it, too. He takes it apart and puts it back together. He lets his imagination integrate into a song.

Kelly: With the tree house being a decent climb to reach it means we can dispense with any breathing exercises before we record, which is handy. The space is so chill and comfortable that any anxiety or expectations we might have about the future results just seem to go away. The equipment is top-notch, and Andy Tainsh, the proprietor and master of our fabulous tree house studio, is just a joy. He is an outstanding musician with decades of experience across many genres of music. A real asset. Whilst the songs arrive at the studio with Amandas vision of how they will be produced, there is always a little bit of Andys creativity sprinkled across the process. Andy really embraces Amanda's ethos of collaboration. It’s a great fit.

(•)> Nature feels central to your identity as an artist. How do you translate those natural experiences into something that resonates with listeners everywhere?

Amanda: Nature is front foot with this release, and I’ve never been more sure or felt more valid. The fact that the song came organically has come about at a time when it is needed most amazes me. I feel honoured to be in touch with a deeper “knowing” and be part of a natural communication, conveying a message musically that reflects how we see my environment. It’s an honest, valid experience writing and presenting such a song. Perhaps that will appeal to new and old listeners.

Kelly: We would love to think that our music resonates with listeners everywhere! We are lucky to have a lifestyle that dishes up moments of awe on a daily basis. If a listener is already engaged in a relationship with the world around them, then they are going to resonate with our music. There is so much inspiration in the natural world. Taking those feelings of gratitude and wonder at the beauty of the natural world around us is an internal process that comes out in the language we are familiar with, music. Like the harmonica mirroring the Dingo call or the dij in the intro of Ancient Dingo, or the jaunty flute in the intro of Lucky, or the pump of the harp in Middle of the Night, we utilise sound to imitate emotion, and I think that’s what resonates with listeners. Where medium meets meaning, people can’t help but be moved.

(•)> You’ve worked with a close circle of local musicians and special guests. What does that sense of community bring to your music that a more traditional setup might not?

Amanda: The flexible “set up” of The Amanda Emblem Experiment has come about after years of valuable lessons learned working in bands. The experiences taught me that I needed to own it, to be in control of my own destiny. That said, I love and cherish my musical companions in The Experiment. We are a community.

Kelly: The 4 core members of AEE are all local, Amanda, Myself, Billy Adams on Drums and Scott Astill on bass, so getting together for rehearsals is pretty convenient. Andy's studio is nearby, so recording sessions aren’t a huge scheduling drama. This lends itself to a general feeling of ease. We gather, we eat, we make music. It’s all very organic. The Valley has such a beautiful community, and we often play at local parties and gatherings. Amanda is a big contributor to the local organic produce market. She’s a mad market gardener, and the Dagun Train Station Market is another space we will perform at times. It’s just a really great feeling to have fun with friends, food, and music. The locals really seem to love having locals perform for them. It’s like they can really own a connection to the music because we’re living the same lifestyle as them. It’s connective, and I think that comes out in a lot of the songs.

(•)> The idea that “you may not hear anything else like it again” suggests a fearless approach. How do you balance uniqueness with accessibility in your songwriting?

Amanda: To be fearless is to be ignorant of the dangers, confident that all will work out in the end. That sums me up. Ambitious. I’m not conscious of trying to be unique, but rather trying to evolve with each release. Accessibility isn’t something I consider until the recording process is completed. I just want to please my own ear, assuming it will please others' ears too. I have a handful of music industry peers I reach out to for opinion, i.e., what is the most accessible song for a single, album order, etc.

Kelly: Firstly, I think you have to remove expectations or intention to appeal to others. Some songs write themselves, arriving on the scene virtually fully made, with no one having any idea what audience they are intended. Sometimes a song can be written, rewritten, shelved for a while, brought back out and rehashed, recorded, and ready for release before we even consider if people are going to like it. That might be unique. Accessibility? This is Amanda's forte. She gets the songs out there and accessible on the myriads of platforms through which people access music. Once that’s done, it’s quite fascinating watching where they go, who they reach, and how they are received. You couldn’t guess at the feedback you might receive on any song at any time.

(•)> There’s also a music video releasing alongside the single. How does the visual side expand or deepen the story of “Ancient Dingo”?

Kelly: We felt Ancient Dingo deserved a video to deepen the story. We can easily imagine an image of something we are familiar with, like a dingo, but to actually see it creates a more intimate experience, a connection with the viewer to what they are seeing. We wanted people to be moved by the majesty of this beautiful creature in her habitat, in her country, and by her challenges to remain free there. We reviewed some of the indigenous artwork of the K’gari people, and it has influenced the background of the animation sequences. The colours, the landscape. We included images of the iconic indigenous elder watching over the story to pay homage to that story of marginalisation and loss, which isn’t identified in the lyrics but was certainly in our minds throughout the writing process. The comparisons between the scenes of the Dingo and her pups bounding playfully along the beach and then cowering in the busy streets are made so much clearer by visual imagery. It’s a beautiful video, and we’re very happy with it. We hope people are moved by the narrative and identify with the storytelling nature of the piece.

(•)> You’ve been a musician all your life and a songwriter for most of it. How do you feel your voice and vision have evolved leading up to this release?

Amanda: I have tried my hand at being elusive, been swayed by what others have encouraged me to be, I tried being a pop rocker, a punk rocker, a hard rocker, a blues woman, and as a teenager I started as cover singer bass player, all of which has shaped me as a musician and singer, and pushed me into areas that I wasn’t always comfortable with, but competent nonetheless. Whilst I was good at all these styles and embraced the different personas of these musical versions of myself, I feel like now I don’t have to put on an act. I have accepted a sound of my own and honed my skills. I’m comfortable being myself, singing my folky songs with my sweetly toned voice. It’s a good feeling to be happy with who I am today as a musician, simply mastering what comes naturally. That said, sometimes I miss rocking out and yearn to have a good session with a rock drummer on my bass guitar.

(•)> Finally, when listeners hear “Ancient Dingo,” what do you hope they take away about the animal, the landscape, and your own musical journey?

Kelly: The message must be one of respectful caution. We hope that people will see the Dingo as having the right to peaceful existence in the wild. We hope that they will be seen as a valuable and necessary member of the increasingly threatened and delicate balance of natural ecosystems in Australian landscapes. And we hope that humans will see sense in taking autonomous control of their own safety and choose places that we have already possessed and dominate in which to exercise their recreational activities. We have plenty of places to play. We can’t rely on anyone else to keep us safe in a place where the Dingo is trying to eke out an existence in a space they have always been, when they are fast running out of options. Since the 1960’s, around 27 species of Australian mammals, birds, and reptiles have gone extinct. This is shameful, isn’t it? How embarrassed would we be if our arrogant ignorance allowed the Dingo to join them? We hope that using our own musical journey to give voice to this issue has an impact somewhere.

Amanda: I hope they are inspired by the passion and melody of our song and what our sound adds to their own environment. If it also brings an understanding of the Australian Dingo and a sense of the wild world in which it was written, that would be amazing.

(•)> That's all, Folks! Check out The Amanda Emblem Experiment on the Pigeon Opinion Playlist