Thelma Plum
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Thelma Plum

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“I was very young when I wrote my first EP,” says Plum. “I’m still very young now, but of course I was a lot younger when I was making Rosie. I guess I’ve always wanted to make music that’s a little bit bigger – more than just an acoustic guitar. I’ve never really known how to do that, so I guess after playing music and being around more people that do know how, it felt like a natural thing.” So there’s no embarrassment or distancing from what was achieved on Rosie? “Oh my God, no,” she giggles. “I’m really proud of it. It’s my first real work as an artist. I’m not embarrassed by it at all. Maybe it’ll happen eventually – give it a bit more time.”

Even though the release of Monsters is still fresh in the collective conscience, Plum’s been working towards her next release – the all-important debut album, which will hopefully be released sometime in the second quarter of 2015 if all goes to plan. “I’m making sure that I’m writing every day,” says Plum. “How I find it depends on the day, really. I think it’s quite an easy thing to sit down and make myself write, but it’s not an easy thing to constantly be coming up with something good every time that you do.”

Plum is incredibly open on the subject of her lyrics. Whether she’s singing about her beloved family dog or some bastard heartbreaker, there’s no denying the conviction and the open-book honesty that comes with her songs. It’s something not lost on Plum, and something she tries to work with to the best of her ability when she’s creating.

“I suppose songwriting is a very personal, a very selfish thing, but being honest is my best way of writing. I’m a total over-sharer, anyway.” That would explain the loud, joyful “fuck you” emanating from what’s become Plum’s signature song, Around Here. “When I wrote that song, it was a massive ‘fuck you’ to an ex-boyfriend, and it just hit me that there was no better way of getting that across than by literally saying, ‘Fuck you.’ ”

Now Monsters has had enough time to settle in, Plum and her band are set to head out on an extensive national tour. It takes in nearly every state and territory across just over a dozen dates that are spread from late October into late November. This marks the biggest undertaking of shows Plum has done to date, and it’s something that’s gotten her excited. “It’s going to be a really fun tour. I love my band, and the support acts [Sydney duo Left. and Melbourne-based singer Dalli] are really good friends of mine, as well. I haven’t really toured these songs from Monsters as much just yet, and my band have put in a lot of work to really replicate the sound of it live.” While we’re on the topic, it’s asked if there is anywhere across the cities and towns on the tour that Plum is particularly looking forward to visiting. “Thirroul,” pipes up Plum. Why Thirroul? “I just love the name Thirroul – it’s so cool. I hadn’t heard of it before to be honest, so when I saw the dates I was just drawn to the name. It sounds lovely – we’ll make a day of it.”

 

BY DAVID JAMES YOUNG