As Adelaide’s Jess Johns gears up to release her self-titled EP, the stunning artist has given fans another taste of what’s to come by way of new single, “Flicker (Burn)”.
Having been a staple of the South Australian music scene for years thanks to her involvement in bands such as Dead Roo, Ricky Albeck and The Belair Line Band, Purr, and The High Beamers, diehard fans of local music will already be across Johns’ work, with her solo career officially kicking off back in 2019.
Over the last year though, we’ve received a handful of slick tracks from the acclaimed performer, with the likes of “Mercy”, “Stranger”, and now “Flicker (Burn)” all set to appear on her upcoming EP.
Backed by an all-star group of local names – including David Blumberg (Maraby Band, The High Beamers), Ricky Albeck (Belair Line Band), and Harry Freeman (Druid Fluids, The High Beamers, Purr) – Johns and her band curate a dreamy, indie-Australiana vibe, with comparisons drawn to the musical aesthetic of Angel Olsen and Julia Jacklin, and the lyrical intensity of classic acts such as Dolly Parton or Simon & Garfunkel.
On new track, “Flicker (Burn)”, the atmospheric intensity is turned up way past 11, with the slow-burning track seeing simplistic instrumentation paired with Johns’ intoxicating voice, grabbing hold and not letting go until its six-minute runtime is up.
“The entire song was recorded live to tape up in the Adelaide hills at Milestone recording studios,” Johns recalls of the track. “We did two takes of the song but I think we ended up using the first one because it had that, ya know, first take charm.
“I wrote the song a little while ago now. The song came easily but for a long time it was pretty depressing to keep playing again and again. A lot of my more up beat songs came purely from needing a break from the glum of this track. I’m not really selling it here but a lot of my favourite songs carry this tone.”
With “Flicker (Burn)” having been out in the world for a few days now, it’s the latest taste of Johns’ upcoming self-titled EP, which is set to arrive on October 10th.
Jess Johns’ “Flicker (Burn)” is out now via Swirl Records, while her self-titled EP will be released on October 10th.
