When Megan McInerney, AKA Meg Mac, released her first single Known Better in 2013, loyalists of spectacular, sky-reaching vocals were tumbling head over heels for the modest Sydney-born singer/songwriter. Her debut EP came a year later and then she turned for the debut album beast – a mountainous peak she would not rush but let come to her.
“Making the EP, I wasn’t planning on making it,” McInerney says. “When I started I had one song and then I made a few more songs and it was a song at a time kind of thing. Then, for the first time, I went into the album and recorded all the songs in the one sequence so it was very different preparing for that mentally, because it was such a big piece of work rather than just one song at a time.”
Title track, Low Blows, was written at her home in Melbourne while others were a product of exploration. Shiny Bright became of her time at Electric Lady in New York City and Brooklyn Apartment spurred from an interesting residential experience in Manhattan.
“Often when I was in New York, I’d be there for a few weeks or a month before I’d go on tour and I would stay in Airbnbs,” McInerney says. “It was really weird because they’re so tiny and so many people are upstairs, downstairs, next door and you can hear everyone and everything.
“Then you would come out into the hallway and they don’t say hi to you, which I found really strange – hearing all these intimate moments from families and people and then you’d walk out and pretend you don’t know each other. I found it really different to home in Melbourne – I don’t live like that.
“Brooklyn Apartment was the first time I’ve written a song where I was telling someone else’s story and not pouring my heart out. Instead, I was listening and observing. I like that song because that’s a new thing for me and is something which I’m doing more now when I write.”
The two-and-a-half years since her EP has been an adventure without fear. A journey traversing the Pacific Ocean back and forth has seen McInerney become more multidimensional and inspired, more daring and knowledgeable.
Niles City Sound Studio was her first international shelter – a grandiose residence in Fort Worth, Texas cultured by opulence and determination. The pedestal for Leon Bridges’ debut album Coming Home, Niles City Sound facilitate for the live stage, something which instantly resonated with McInerney.
“I went to Fort Worth for one day to try out a song and see if I liked it and it was from that day that I knew that I wanted to make my album there,” McInerney says. “I wanted to get that feeling of being live and natural so we left in mistakes because my favourite thing to do is sing live and do shows, so it was about trying to make an album made for that. When you perform live, it’s never perfect but it’s always better.”
Splendour In The Grass will be the first opportunity to hear Meg Mac’s debut album live, a stage bearing great sentiment for McInerney.
“I played Splendour two years ago after I’d just been on tour with D’Angelo and I got home and that was the first thing I did – a really special show and I think it’s the biggest stage I’ve ever been on. I’m playing in the same tent this time so it’ll be cool to be back on the same stage.”
Patience has endowed McInerney the opportunity to create a truly honest debut album. Low Blows is an invention of her surroundings, experiences and thoughts on the road and at home, set to unearth another side to the softly spoken chanteuse.
