“It’s funny, I’m completely not classically trained, as far as my musical understanding and vocally,” she says with somewhat of a chuckle. “My mum studied contemporary choreography at the VCA and she used to bring home a lot of flamenco and West African stuff. Predominantly I was raised on soul music, which is where I get my voice from, singing along with my idols.”
In their relatively short time together, Hiatus Kaiyote has been on quite a journey, which has seen their soundscapes travel from Melbourne to the ears of discerning music fans around the world. Their musical excursions, which sound like neo-soul meets jazz by way of Pluto, recently led the enigmatic singer to the UK, where she accepted the award for Breakthrough Artist Of The Year at the Worldwide Awards in London, on behalf of the band. “It was amazing, I’ve never been before and to go and be welcomed into the community was really awesome,” Palm says gratefully. Only just getting started for the year, Hiatus will next be heading to Austin, Texas and the South by Southwest festival for their first overseas performance as a full band, an opportunity Palm and co. are clearly energised by.
While much of the band’s plaudits have centred around their naturally gifted singer, Palm is always quick to extol the virtues of her equally talented bandmates. “I’m very lucky with the guys I get to work with.” The 23-year-old singer and guitarist, who began her career as a solo performer, is now joined by one of the finest ensembles in the country, which features Paul Bender (bass, laptop), Simon Mavin (keys) and Perrin Moss (percussion). The undeniable chemistry between the band members has been forged over the past two years and is on display for all to hear on their highly acclaimed debut Tawk Tomahawk.
After hearing her perform future Hiatus Kaiyote compositions such as Nakamarra and Mobius Streak, her future bandmates were impressed enough to invite the up and comer to join forces with them. Much of the material was written by Palm prior to meeting the rest of the band, however the fully fleshed compositions we hear now would not be possible without the sonic gifts of her bandmates. “Working with such incredible musicians and being active with that, day in day out, definitely broadens your skill levels.” Palm reveals that her overall songwriting approach has been affected by her fellow band members. “Working with other people also makes you more comfortable to explore and write in a way that’s beyond you, writing from the point of arrangement rather than just accommodating your voice with guitar.” This exploration has made the band one functioning unit, allowing the writing process to be as organic as possible. “Now we’ve got this chemistry where we can write from scratch, which is really exciting.”
As good music is supposed to do, Hiatus has drawn an emotional response out of seemingly everyone who has been lucky enough to hear their album or witness them live. Palm admits to having a similar emotional experience when in the writing phase, as it very much reflects her state of mind at the time and where she’s coming from. “Music is very therapeutic and medicinal. That’s why people feel it and why people have had such an emotional response to it. The intention there is for therapy,” says Dr. Palm. “Not everybody has the skill to express what’s going on with their lives. I think the beautiful thing about music is you can listen to it and you can get something from it.” Doing her part to spread the positive vibes to music listeners, she says she is proud to be part of what she describes as the “sonic medicine of the world.”
Music fans are not the only ones who have been caught under the spell of this transcendent band, as the likes of Erykah Badu and ?uestlove of The Roots have been singing their praises for some time. The door to collaboration she says is “open” with each member given the freedom to collaborate and reach out to other artists.
Despite the labels you could place on the Hiatus Kaiyote sound, many would simply describe it as timeless. Palm herself sees much longevity in what they’re doing and sees herself setting out on a lifelong path. “It definitely feels like there’s longevity with what we’re doing because it’s coming from a pure place and the guys are like my family.”
BY ANDREW HAZARD HICKEY
