New To The Scene - Mardi Lumsden & The Rising Seas



Mardi Lumsden!


Brisbane's growing and vibrant music scene is full of bands you can describe as 'little secrets.' Underground acts that are slowly building a reputation, but don't have anywhere near enough people talking about them. Mardi Lumsden and the Rising Seas might just be Brisbane's best kept little secret. They are an addictive, folksy five-piece made up of talented multi-instrumentalists and led by the cute, quirky and endearing singer-songwriter, Mardi Lumsden.

Lumsden has one of those incredible genre-bending voices that sees her jump between folk, pop, alt-rock and country with ease. You only need to hear her for a moment before instantly warming to her vocal style; it's easy to fall into it and you'd be hard pressed to stop it from bringing a smile to your face. Listen to 'Pieces of the Story' and try not to smile. Matching the vocals in quality (and 'smile-to-face' ratio) is Mardi Lumsden's songwriting. Clever and relatable, these are songs that perfectly target the lives of young (and young at heart) adults. 'Wherever You Go, There You Are' and 'Classified (WVTM)' speak on a multitude of levels about love, life, loss and how we think about the future. The charm is in the positivity present on each track. You're never worried that Lumsden's about to go all, "NEVER MIND I'LL FIND SOMEONE LIKE YOU," and the absence of any melodrama is a nice change of pace from a lot of music going around.

With two stellar EP's to their name, Going Is Finding and Where You Go, There You Are, buzz is building for a potential debut album. The band's official website lists that they are currently "busy writing" so 2012 could be a big year for them. What else should you know about Mardi Lumsden? How about this... she's got her own radio segment on 612 ABC Brisbane's Saturday Breakfast show! Each fortnight, she talks about Brisbane's independent music scene which is really exciting to see. A local performer supporting and promoting other local acts is very cool. Now, what do you have to do? Go out and get some Mardi Lumsden and the Rising Seas EP's and if you're in Brisbane, hit up Souths League's Club at West End on April 21 to see them live, supporting Phil Monsour's CD launch.

It's time for Mardi Lumsden and the Rising Seas to go from being one of Brisbane's best kept little secrets to a band thats name is on everybody's lips. Spread the word!