Nothing To Lose is out now!
Image: Catherine Bernier
Australian duo, Hollow Coves have unveiled their sophomore album, Nothing To Lose. To celebrate the release, the due are taking us through the collection of songs track-by-track.
LETTING GO
This song was written in less than an hour. Matt recorded a demo of it on the same day it was conceived without really thinking much of it… or ever imagining that it would end up on the album. Yet there was something special about what came out in those first moments and a lot of the recordings from that demo ended up finding their way into the final version. Sometimes there lives a magic in those early moments of creation that cannot be replicated. We’ve definitely been learning to do that these days.. To capture a song in its conception, before the moment passes.
MILK AND HONEY
The initial guitar and melodies were actually written with Matt’s brother while I (Ryan) was up on the Sunshine Coast in Australia. It was one of those natural flows where nothing was forced. Just noodling on a guitar while melodies were improvised and so much of this song just came out in that very instance.It wasn’t until later that Matt and I sat down with the melodies and started to write lyrics to them. The melodies inspired us to write about how easy it can be to get caught in the hustle. We wanted to remind people that it’s important to remember the things that matter most. To look for the silver linings. To make the most out of what we’ve got. To see that there is beauty all around us.
HARDER TO FAKE IT
We wrote and recorded this song with Matt Corby and one of his longtime collaborators Alex Henrikkson at Corby’s Rainbow Valley Studio. The second of five songs we wrote together.. I had a guitar part and rough melody that I had been wanting to work on for a while. Straight away Corby expressed that he liked what he was hearing and ran with it. We recorded the main guitar and Matt Corby jumped right on the drum kit and laying down the drum parts - the rest allcame together quite quickly from there.
We were talking about how often people seem to get caught up in a certain clique or scene and end up just following what everyone else is doing. In a world where people are so often formed by the actions and opinions of others, we wanted to write a song to encourage people to carve out their own path. We have seen so many people let themselves be formed by other people. I get it. The desire to fit in is prevalent and pervasive. However, it is premised on fear really, a guilt associated with being different. Again and again I have found myself meeting people with incredible dreams for what they want to do with their lives, and yet they never act on them because they are too afraid of failure or judgment. We wanted to encourage people to step out in faith with this song.
PHOTOGRAPHS
This was the first song we wrote during our writing sessions with Matt Corby and Alex Henrikkson. We insisted on starting from scratch, bouncing between different instruments looking for a spark. Just as the energy felt like it was leaving the room with no seed to work off, Corby re-entered with this big smile on his face. He had found some piano chords that he reallly liked and played them for us and we were all into it. The rest of the ideas just started flowing out from there.
I remember us chatting about how, with the abundance of digital images living in our phones, the art of the photograph is becoming lost. The experience of seeing and flipping through images feels diluted as you scroll a screen. It used to be physical. Matt spoke of his mother and how she kept an album for each of her children since they were born. That was the initial inkling that became Photographs.
FACT OR FICTION
For anyone who knows personality types, I (Ryan) am an Enneagram 5 (The Investigator) so I typically research any topic of interest and/or widespread debate to ensure I have an informed opinion, and the information to support it. I want to make sure that I know what is wrong and what is right. However, the conclusion that I have found myself making more and more often is that it’s becoming increasingly harder to know what to believe. There is so much misinformation on the internet these days. You can read two different news sources and get a completely different story.
Matt on the other hand is an Enneagram 9 (The Peacemaker). So whenever we would start talking about different topics of debate, his view was often much more simple than mine. He didn’t seem to care to know the answers to who was wrong or right. He just wished people could just get along. And I thought that was beautiful.
In that sense, this song is very much a combination of our personalities. Me, The Investigator, surrendering my need to have all the answers to a greater desire more inline with that of Matt, The Peacemaker. In the last few years, with so many events causing massive division all around the world, finding and sharing love for people, amongst people, must take precedence over the blurring sense of right or wrong, fact or fiction.
ON THE WAY
When we first started out with music we had no idea what we were doing. Matt had just completed a Carpentry Apprenticeship and I had just finished a Civil Engineering degree. We both loved music and had written a few songs together. Matt knew a guy who had been doing a bit of recording in his parents garage. So we decided to go and record the songs with him. When the songs were finished, we put them on the internet and one of the songs (The Woods) went viral. At that moment, we made the decision to try to give music a chance. It was a step into the unknown for us. We still don’t really know what we’re doing. And we’re still finding our feet on the way. But I’m so glad that we took the step, and every step since. This song was written somewhat retrospectively about our experiences while also looking forward, reminding ourselves to never stop taking risks.
LET’S GO
Let’s Go was written on the spot and initially deemed a throwaway track. Yet, after some time and space we returned to it with fresh ears and felt that there was actually something really special to this song. I feel like so many people have dreams of traveling the world but somehow life just gets busy and it never happens. This song is our call to action, our plea to the listener to live life to the full
BE ALRIGHT
The sun rises everyday, the moon rotates around the earth which pulls the ocean tides, the sun is set at a perfect distance from the earth. The list goes on. It’s so crazy how this world functions with so many amazing things happening all around us breathing life. Our troubles are so small in comparison to what is happening in the universe and on this earth. Some days are good. Some days are bad. If you just accept that and roll with the punches it makes it so much easier to feel like everything will be alright.
SEE YOU SOON
This song was actually the first song that Matt and his wife Molly conceived of together. The premise behind the song is something that I’m sure a lot of people have experienced. There’s a friend, or someone in your life, that you’ve shared many great memories with. However, as time goes on, life takes you on different paths and you end up going your separate ways. Life gets busy and your communication grows distant. Eventually you forget to call but there are forever moments in your life that remind you of them or the memories you shared . See You Soon is written from this cognisance — a reminder to reconnect with the people we deem special in our lives. Just send them a message or give them a call and see where they’re at.
NOTHING TO LOSE
Sometimes we can let the smallest things affect us… Someone driving slow in front of you, The internet bugging out, etc. To brush that off is an art, a testament to the mind and our mental fortitude. This song is about just that; rising above the squabbles of everyday life.
This song’s origin feels serendipitous. A classic instance of time running out in the studio, a skeleton of a song going nowhere fast.. a happenstance demo title that was never meant to last, until it became the name of the album.. It dawned on us as the song was coming together that ‘nothing to lose’ is THE common thread.
Nothing To Lose is out now!