HALLIE
SHE IS a trailblazing Brisbanite whose voice booms with the force of a Spartan army, and whose fretting hands conjure up hooks so sharp they could slice through tungsten like butter. Hallie is also occasionally a three-piece band, of which Hallie is the frontwoman – makes sense, right?
SHE SOUNDS LIKE the perfect balance of sweetness and maturity, like dark chocolate in MP3 form.
YOU’LL DIG HER IF YOU LIKE Missy Higgins, Middle Kids and Julia Jacklin, but you’ve always wished their respective discographies were just a tad spicier.
YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT her latest jam “Sympathy”, which, in a resoundingly tight three-and-a-half minutes, puts Hallie’s full spate of dazzling and dynamic musicality on display. We start off slow and folky, the singer musing calmly over the buzzy, understated strums of a guitar sans effect. And then it kicks in, and we’re treated to a pummelling onslaught of biting electric guitars and thumping drums. One absolutely ripping guitar solo later, Hallie is belting out a vocal melody so strong we’re convinced she’s got lungs of steel. If the cut is any indication of what her debut album will sound like, our end-of-year list topper is pretty much sorted. There’s even a goddamn key change!