Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By Storm & Stone, Independent 2022.
Blue Mountains trio Storm & Stone return with a new single, the first to be penned by sisters August and Auriel co-writing together.
The trio is completed by their brother, Hallelujah.
Combined they cook up an energetic murder ballad that’s full of energy and tension.
The track literally bounds along.
August explains that the process of writing Run started when Auriel showed her murder ballads by people like Dolly Parton.
They decided to have a go at writing the song from the perspective of the person who is “on the other side” of a love gone wrong.
In that desperate, dark, place with the underlying tension and fear triggering the fight or flight mechanism.
The up-tempo musical backing adds to the tension. August further explains: “When we were writing the song I really wanted us to have the energy of a train leaving a station.
“A build-up of excitement and movement forward as the song came to its climax to bring the story even more to life.”
They certainly achieve the feeling of frantic flight.
The track was recorded at A# Recording Studios and Kiln Studios in Sydney and produced by Matt ‘Xiro’ Fioravanti.
The talented siblings were joined by Luke Herbert on drums, Dominic Cabusi on bass, and Nikos Harpoulos-Smallman on keys.
Additional backing vocals were provided by Rosie Jackson, Lucia Neville, James Audet and Liam Whelan.
There is a good video clip that was shot at the Heartly Vale Cemetery (an appropriate location) by Thomas Crnkovic of Cranky Dog Productions on YouTube.
Storm & Stone are blurring the boundaries between country and pop; they combine country music storytelling, melodies, and harmonies, with the musical hooks of a good pop song.
It’s a combination that works well in their hands.
