Brooke Fraser, queen of the romantics
Brooke Fraser is touring New Zealand this month. The singer talks to HANNAH MCKEE.
What’s an average day in the life of Brooke Fraser? I haven’t had such a thing as an average day in many years! A bus tour is different from a fly tour, which is different from a promo tour. A common thing across all these three, however, would be daily travel, meeting new people, and forever asking where the bathroom is because every day you’re somewhere you’ve never been before. It’s pretty lovely, actually. How do you feel about coming back to play for long-time fans? It’s really important to me. Really important. Without my fans in New Zealand and the strong support I’ve been so fortunate to have at home for all these years, none of the rest of it would even be possible. Favourite story from your hometown, Wellington? Gosh, so many good memories growing up in Welly. My freezing
Evening Post paper run in Lower Hutt as a 13 and 14-year-old. Saving up to go buy CDs at the Sounds store in Queensgate. Pies at the Naenae bakery after swim training in the mornings before school. One of my childhood highlights was being stuck in a portaloo at Sesqui 1990 when I was 6. The door malfunctioned and they ended up having to get engineers in and cut me out of it. I think it was quite a long ordeal and I remember hearing mymum quite worried outside, but I was happy as Larry and, once they freed me, someone gave me a bag of ‘‘lil orbit’’ donuts for free, so I was stoked! How is your latest album,
Brutal Romantic, different to the sound some people might know you for? The songs have completely the same core, just different sonic accessories. in the past where I may have used a wurlitzer and big echoey tom drums, I’m using a vintage synthesiser and a drum machine. So the expressions are different, sure, but not as different as you might think. A journalist in Germany described it as handwriting. . . she said even though all my albums are slightly different in sound, she could hear that my songwriting, ‘‘handwriting’’, has remained the same. I thought that was a cool way of describing it. Was the March tour cancelled due to the news of your little one on the way? No. We unfortunately had to cancel those dates in March due to a scheduling conflict and commitments in Europe, which is why I amhere in Berlin now. It’s tricky juggling all the international releases, and things can change out of your control very quickly. How are you feeling about performing while pregnant? When I walk on stage I amall about the show and the audience. It’s like a switch flicks and I become laser focused on what I’m there to do. Hence I’ve been able to do the Brutal Romantic world tour so far through horrific food poisoning, a broken foot (which actually happened in an accident on stage during one of my New York shows) and yes, pregnancy. As long as my voice is working, the show must go on, no matter how the rest of me is feeling. I’m hoping that the obvious change in the physical appearance of my midsection in June doesn’t distract too much from the show I’m there to play for people. I have worked really hard on Brutal Romantic and I’m determined to keep people’s focus on the music as much as possible, to really take them on a journey through the new material and also the revamped versions of the other songs they’ve loved for years, and to give them a great time.