It is the art of songwriting we have to thank for the sweet existence that is Meg Mac. The Australian singer-songwriter emerged in 2014 with her self-titled EP and has recently released her debut album, Low Blows.
Megan McInerney, more commonly known by her stage name Meg Mac, explains that her discovery of songwriting prompted her musical career. “I always liked music, and I liked singing, but I’d never really thought about songwriting or made up my own music,” she says.
“When I was about 18 – when I just left school – I started playing piano and singing. I’d make up whatever I wanted just for fun and then I just got addicted to it. It was really exciting when I discovered you could make up your own music… It was definitely songwriting that made me realise that music meant a lot to me.”
Low Blows features a collection of tracks which were written by Meg over the year leading up to the album. Recorded at Niles City Sound, based in Fort Worth Texas, there was a particular focus placed on the authenticity surrounding it.
“With the album, I tried to make it feel as real as possible. I wanted to get that same feeling I get when I’m at home playing piano by myself, and the same feeling I get when I’m on stage playing live for people,” explains Meg, “I really wanted to achieve that realness and that live kind of energy on the album, which is why I made it with Niles City Sound.”
With many of Meg’s songs being heavily based on her own personal experiences, this focus on authenticity and the stripped-back raw content featured throughout the album is highly evident, especially on the likes of tracks such as ‘Morning’.
“The last song on the album, Morning, is just made up of clapping and the piano and vocals are done in one take at the same time. And then there’s just one take over the top of that with some harmonies,” says Meg, “Things were really put together more simply, like that.”
Just coming off the back of playing Splendour in the Grass for the second time ever, Meg is set to hit the road in support of Low Blows, where we’re told to expect some of the well-known tunes from the EP, but with lots of room to play around with what is a whole brand spankin’ new album. There’s said to be new sounds, lots of singing, a bit of piano and more involved, as well as the addition of a new member to the band.
Low Blows has received critical acclaim since its release, having spent a significant amount of time topping the iTunes charts, as well as having come in at number two on the Aria charts.
“I definitely wasn’t expecting it to be up there on iTunes for so long and seeing it come in on the Aria charts at number two was a big surprise. So, that’s really nice to see that people are actually taking the time to go out and buy it, which means a lot to me,” says Meg, “It’s nice, because you never know until you put something out there, whether people are going to like it or not.”
When & Where: The Wool Exchange, Geelong – September 7 & The Capital, Bendigo – September 10
Written by Helena Metzke
