Charlie Collins was born to sing. She fondly recalls going to jam nights at pubs in her hometown of Tamworth, watching everyone and anyone earnestly sing the most beautiful songs. She quickly got involved, with Kasey Chambers’ dad, Bill, giving her one of her first gigs at the tender age of 10. “It was a cool way to grow up… It was a great childhood,” she once said.
Collins was born to sing, and she was also born to write. A courageously honest songwriter, her third album is her most personal release yet.
Where previous album Undone (2022) reckoned with the dissolution of her long-term relationship to renowned producer Chris Collins (the pair previously performed together in the indie-pop band Tigertown), Nightwriter is more inwardly reflective, Collins recalling her painful year of recovery.
The opening title track sets a scene that will be starkly known to anyone who’s ever been in recovery. “Should go to sleep but instead / I’m filling up all the pages,” she timidly sings over sparse acoustic strumming.
And then, just as it seems like she’s faltering, the track explodes into rhythmic life, Collins belting out, “If I don’t do this, I need a therapist… The only thing that keeps me sane, I guess.” Music as Therapy is nothing new, but rarely has it been expressed so knowingly.
The Sydney singer-songwriter’s typically husky vocals are as captivating as always, from carrying the more uptempo “Rock Bottom” to sinking into the tender ballad “I’m Alright”. After going solo in 2018, Collins has earned ARIA nominations for both of her first two albums (Undone and her 2019 debut Snowpine), and she’ll be hoping to make it a hat-trick this year.
Stream: Charlie Collins, Nightwriter
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