From busker to touring Europe, the US and Canada, the going has been good for Hein Cooper. And well may it continue. We’ll take you back a few years to 2013, and Cooper was discovered in 2013 by Half Moon Run manager Franz Schuller.
The singer-songwriter was quick to take up an invitation to record in Canada, recording his debut EP and album with Marcus Paquin, whose credits include Arcade Fire, The National and Local Natives. While his debut album is set for release in February, singles ‘The Art of Escape’ and ‘Rusty’ are out and about now.
Cooper: “I often struggle with the state of the world and how society functions in such a cold and divided way. But what hurts me most is the way so many people seem to bury these feelings and glue a false sense of happiness to themselves rather than confront the way they actually feel. I’d rather be authentic in my sadness than false in my happiness. I based Rusty on this idea. I found that creating a positive happy sound underneath melancholic lyrics captured this feeling because it represented the fight between me and the world’s obsession to be happy all the time.”
The Karova, Ballarat – February 6 & Workers Club, Geelong – February 25. (He will be supported at his Ballarat show by Elliot Maginot, who we have written a blurb for as well because we wanted to.)
