Mary Webb; Captivating and unique
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Mary Webb; Captivating and unique

Incredibly complex and enchanting Adelaide artist, Mary Webb is one worth taking note of. She recently released her new album Love Like Planets, a spectacular body of work that explores the complexities of modern relationships and personal rediscovery and is currently taking the new album on the road. We chat to Mary ahead of her album launch.
Hey thanks for speaking with Forté. You recently released the single ‘Gecko Fingers’, how have you found the reception so far?
Really positive. I think people are feeling connected to the song in their own ways and I think it is relevant to those family relationships and friends as well so I think there is that kind of topic connection. Also just the sounds and the catchiness of it is going down well and the clip that goes with it I think really captures something beautiful about it so I’ve had a really nice response to that as well.
It comes off your new album Love Like Planets. How was this album as an experience for you?
The last full-length record that I made, my debut album, was like five years ago or more and it was very stripped-back and acoustic and really basic. I feel like the song writing has really evolved since then and for me it was a real learning experience just working with a band because I normally play solo. For me that represents exploring a new direction, as well as recording it in the U.S where I got to play with some amazing musicians from Portland, Oregon. They are from a different musical culture over there, so just learning the ways that they work and the way that they think and what their industry was like was really interesting.
You recorded the album in Montana in the United States. How was it to record your album in such an iconic place in music?
Yeah awesome! We were up in the mountains up in Whitefish in the middle of winter so it was freezing but also pretty magical. It was just covered in snow, and I had never seen snow before so it was completely different to anything I had ever seen and the studio is right on the top of a mountain with a beautiful wooden interior and its always warm inside with IPA on tap and you could see deer running around. I think taking yourself out of your normal environment and not having any distractions let you just go in and work until we couldn’t work any more. It was a really organic process and we all kind of bonded through that week of recording.
Your last two releases, “Love Like Planets” as well as “Forest Floor”, both seem to have an ethereal yet folky connotation to them. Is that your intended sound and feel?
I do think of myself as a folk artist primarily and I do like that kind of atmospheric space to think about things and kind of get lost in it. I like a lot of different styles of music but when I come to create my own music it’s usually not frantic.
You said this was your first time working with a band. Did recording this album make you think you would like to continue that?
When working with other artists, you want to make sure you click, but I feel like it offers a different feel to the performance for other people and for me as well. Just bouncing off other people and their energy is kind of more fun in some ways. I think it alleviates some pressure from being the one person who has had to create every single moment whereas with a band someone can decide when an instrument needs time to shine or where a guitar solo should go. It means that the audiences attention is drawn from one place to another and its not always on you to kind of be front and centre.
When & Where: Album Launch @ Wesley Anne Hotel, Thornbury – March 17. Tickets available on the door $20
Written by Daniel Jubb