Almost Folk
Melbourne, Australia

“We try to be tight and loose at the same time,” says singer and guitarist Husky Gawenda of the Australian indie-rock band that shares his name. “We try to find a little magic and share it with the people who come to our shows. Often, they bring the magic and we just ride it for a while.” Regarding his creative process, Gawenda says, “Anything can inspire, but nothing quite like love or losing it.” Drawing on influences like Simon & Garfunkel, Leonard Cohen, Jonathan Wilson, The National and Nick Drake, the group’s sound is “folk, but not really,” Gawenda says. “I wrote more than I’ve ever written whilst writing Ruckers Hill. I’m dreaming about new songs, which tends to be a good sign for me.” Gawenda and cousin Gideon Preiss (keyboards, vocals) formed the band in 2008. “Triple J were the first to play our music. They played a big role in our progression from an unknown band starting out to a touring band with an audience in Australia and elsewhere,” he says. Now signed to Sub Pop, Husky has toured the world—Gawenda cites playing “songs all night around the fire, the stars our only audience” at the Dead Sea as a particularly surreal experience—and recently spent six months in Europe, but Melbourne is still home. “The album [Ruckers Hill] is named after a place in Melbourne,” he says, mentioning that the band has recently spent time writing and recording. “Our songs are often about local people and places.”