Speaking by phone from her two-acre property on the edge of a rain forest an hour northwest of Brisbane, her contentment in her surroundings is apparent. “Spring has absolutely arrived,” she gushes. “It’s an incredible day today, lots of bird-life, beautiful noises and blue skies!”
Noonan comes across as an amazingly open and intuitive person, whose voice seems to radiate serenity. I first ask her about the long distance between the debut record of Elixir and the new one. What brought about the urge to head into the studio? “Elixir has always essentially been this lovely side-project of mine that I’ve dipped in and out of,” she explains. “About a year ago, I really felt that call to go back and make this more a priority. The idea of Elixir has always been to create a gentle, intimate haven of sound, so I always felt the desire to go back.”
Comprising Noonan, her husband and saxophonist Zac Hurren, and Melbourne guitarist Stephen Magnusson, Elixir has always been poetry set to music. Their self-titled debut, according to Noonan, was inspired by and featured the work of Brisbane poet Martin Challis. First Seed Ripening is no exception to Elixir’s literary leanings. “I was commissioned by the Queensland Poetry Festival six years ago to set the writing of any Queensland-born writer to music,” recalls Noonan. She’d chosen the work of highly regarded and heavily awarded poet Thomas Shapcott. “This record is obviously inspired by Thomas’s work; I was intensely attracted to it – it’s all about beautiful and intimate moments between lovers, and between parent and child. All these kinds of things really reflected the sonic nature of Elixir; it was a really nice match.”
Right around the time Noonan was discovering Shapcott’s writing, Melbourne guitarist Stephen Magnusson joined the band – and, in doing so, inspired Noonan and Hurren to write new music and penetrate the inner meanings of the lilting and delicate poetry. “We really worked on our vocabulary as a trio when we were together,” explains Noonan. “The actual writing process of [First Seed Ripening] was fairly accelerated, because I really made the decision to focus on Elixir not much longer than a year ago. We had one writing session at Bundenon – Author Boyd’s property near Nowra in the Southern Highlands. When he died, he left his property as an artists’ retreat, and I’ve been there a number of times – I wrote my record with The Captains there.
They then travelled down to Melbourne for their second writing session, alternating between the actual writing process and trying their new stuff live at intimate venues throughout the city. “We played Uptown in Fitzroy and Bennetts Lane [in the CBD], in these little warehouse spaces and played all these brand new songs!” Noonan exclaims. “I remember at Uptown we played and I was still reading the lyrics from the book! The process was quite exhilarating. We played one final gig in Sydney, and then we went into the studio and recorded the record live. We then had a string quartet from the Australian Chamber Orchestra join us, and Jonathon Zwartz on double bass and Simon Barker on drums – who are beautiful friends of ours in Sydney.”
Coming from a long line of musicians, music has always been a deeply personal part of Noonan’s life. She and her older brother Tyrone were brought up in a household in which music was part of the fabric. I note that she’s worked with family members and is also married to her saxophonist, Zac Hurren – is it inspiring for her to work with people close to her? “No matter who I’m performing with, I have to have an emotional connection,” she states emphatically. “To make music, it needs to come from a special place. With my band, I love and trust those guys, so I need to feel that in order to feel safe and make music and share music and intimate lyrics with people. So for me, [performing] with family makes perfect sense because I love and know them so deeply. That intimacy makes for great music-making.”
Fresh off a recent national tour opening for the American jazz legend Ron Carter, Elixir is champing at the bit to launch their exquisitely beautiful and serene new record. “The idea with this album and with these concerts is to create a gentle, warm, and welcoming type of intimate haven,” Noonan reveals. “It’s like being held by a lover, or being cuddled by your mum. It’s to create a special moment that’s peaceful, and quiet, and gentle. So yeah, gentle is the main word!”
When I ask her about The Veltheim Quartet, who is accompanying Elixir at the Melbourne show, she sounds excited. “Oh, it’s going to be a special gig in Melbourne,” she states. “[They’re] going to be in the opening spot, and I’m not sure what they’re going to do, but it’s going to be amazing. Then they’ll join us on our set for about seven pieces, so it’s going to be a pretty lush affair. I haven’t played the Thornbury Theatre, but we’ve checked it out online and it looks like a lovely art-deco theatre. We love the whole Thornbury and Northcote area. So, it’ll be fun!
BY THOMAS BAILEY
