“Great Aunt take an eclectic and joyous approach to making music.
The songs are deeply-felt, revealing, relatable - at once a personal and shared revival.”
There’s stomping feet and clapping hands, bombastic bass drum and resonator, mandolin and double bass, and soaring harmonies aplenty - the combinations are instantly recognisable as the music of Great Aunt.
Winners of the 2024 Folk Alliance Australia Artist of the Year (Duo) award, Great Aunt is a collaboration between songwriters Megan Bird (mandolin, resonator, acoustic guitar, vocals) and Chelsea Allen (double bass, vocals, percussion). Their music draws inspiration from the traditions of folk, bluegrass, and country music, with a gleeful nod to the pair’s diverse, individual careers in punk, jazz, soul, and rock.
The duo has delighted audiences at some of Australia’s finest music and arts festivals, including Woodford Folk Festival, Blue Mountains Music Festival, Yackandandah Folk Festival, and Deni Ute Muster, and toured extensively within the United States of America. They have shared stages with notable acts including Adeem the Artist (US), Joe Crookston (US), Vika & Linda Bull (AUS), The Weeping Willows (AUS), Sue Ray (AUS), Smith and Jones (AUS), Mary Flower (USA), Paisley Fields (USA), Wiley Gaby (USA), The Belle Miners (CAN), Kerryn Fields (NZ), and more.
Great Aunt have recently returned from their third tour of the US, and are currently busy in their studio, producing and recording their debut full-length album, ‘It's All Downhill From Here’ – due for release in 2025. In 2024, the duo released two singles, ‘Freeburgh’ and ‘What’s A Girl To Do Now?’ (which featured at the top of the AMRAP Regional Radio chart over multiple weeks) - both are available on all streaming services, Bandcamp, and YouTube.
”Americana usually calls to mind the bayous of Louisiana, the pocket communities of the Appalachian mountains, or the great plains of the American heartland, but Melbourne, Australia’s Great Aunt prove that, despite its name, not all great Americana comes from the United States.” - Not a Sound (USA)
