Naarm/Melbourne outfit Good Morning have well and truly lived up to their name, turning early Thursday into a great morning by way of their latest single, “Country”.
A slow-burning piece of indie-rock, “Country” feels like the culmination of everything that Good Morning have spent their almost-decade together working towards, fusing blissful hazy instrumentation with pensive lyrics that focus on themes of nostalgic wants and needs, and how they panned out into adulthood.
“I’m still not sure if I’m singing to old friends, an old lover or my old self,” muses Liam Parsons. “I think probably all three.
“At the time, I was having a rough one reconciling my life with what I had expected adult life to be. I knew that my younger self – a more virtuous, kind-hearted and patient person – would be perplexed by how I had turned out, and I felt a kind of second-hand embarrassment for myself looking over the last few years of false starts and dead ends.
“This song is an attempt from me to reconnect with my younger self as well as some key ghosts from my past and to move forward by looking back – pretty futile stuff really.”
The track also comes accompanied by an Aidan McDonald-directed and produced video, filmed at the 1st Eltham Scouts Hall and joined by all manner of friends and peers – ranging from members of local outfits Cool Sounds and Skydeck, to arts and culture writers Shaad D’Souza and Greer Clemens.
“I was always too embarrassed to admit that I was a scout to my school friends, the same way I was too embarrassed to admit that I got piano lessons,” Parsons explains. “Both of those things are ridiculous. Scouts is cool and so are piano lessons.”
Serving as their first new single since the release of “Mollyduker”/”Keep It” back in April, “Country” is the first taste of the group’s new album, Barnyard, which arrives on October 22nd. To further add to the good news this morning, the announcement of the new album coincides with the group’s signing to Sub Pop Publishing.
“We’re so happy to be working with Sub Pop publishing going forward,” Parsons explains. “Over the course of several Zooms and even a few rounds of beers in Seattle, Gareth and the crew have proven themselves to be kind, enthusiastic music lovers and we’re thrilled to know that our lil’ songs are in safe hands.”
“We love Good Morning and we couldn’t be more stoked to be working with them!” echoes Sub Pop Publishing’s Vice President/General Manager Gareth Smith.
Good Morning’s “Country” is out now, while new album Barnyard will be released via Polyvinyl on October 22nd, with pre-orders available now.
