The "New Zealand male singer-songwriter pantheon" shone brightly for musician James Milne, aka Lawrence Arabia, as a youngster.
"I was always thinking that I could come in somewhere between Chris Knox and Neil Finn… they were kind of the devil and the angel of my local inspiration."
Lawrence Arabia performs in our Auckland studio and chats to Jesse Mulligan.
Lawrence Arabia Photo: Amelia Handscomb
Milne says his upcoming single 'The Developed World' is the only song he's written since the 2018 album Singles Club.
"A lot of people talk about lockdown being this very creative period … Taylor Swift made multiple records. I wrote one song - and this is it.
"Some people do the sort of 'going into the office and sitting down and trying to will the muse to come' [thing]. But for me, I just have to wait. It's just casting a line into the breeze."
Lawrence Arabia isn't the only line that Milne has in the breeze currently.
After the Lawrence Arabia tour this December, he's playing a run of summer shows with his new band Half Hexagon.
"In terms of family life, [touring] seems like an indulgence and its hard to make money sometimes touring but when it happens its always such a great pleasure, especially when you get to play with a band that's got this kind of empathy and telepathic humour that we share, it's really great fun."
Songs played in this session:
'Meaningless Words'
'The Kinds Of Feelings That Happen On Summer Beaches'
'The Developed World'
'Bicycle Riding'
