Taste Test: Kimbra

26 April 2012 | 3:56 pm | Jimmy Byzantine

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The first album I bought with my own money:
I think it was Diorama by Silverchair. I listened to the radio quite a bit as a kid. I loved a lot of jazz records, but I got them from my jazz choir, or from school, or from my parents. But I remember hearing The Greatest View off of Diorama on the radio and thinking 'This is cool'. I saw them live – I think it was my first ever show – when I was about 13. When I heard Diorama it was just this incredible concoction of symphonies and arrangements, and it just blew me away. And I think that opened the door to listening to some more experimental stuff for me as a kid.

The album I'm loving right now:
That's tough, there's a few. I love the new Battles album [Gloss Drop], which came out a little while ago. I also love St Vincent's record Strange Mercy. They're two records I'm listening to a lot. I'm getting into a lot of Billie Holiday at the moment as well. I'm actually listening to a lot of soundtracks to films. There's a really incredible soundtrack for the movie A Single Man. And also the soundtrack to Inglourious Basterds, I've been listening to that a lot as well. So I guess I'm in a bit of a classical string phase.

My favourite party album:
Probably Lovesexy by Prince. I only started getting into Prince when I was maybe 16. Musicology was the first Prince record that I bought, and then I had to work my way back into the '80s era because I was born in the '90s, so I was retracing Prince's steps. But yeah, I love him so much.

My favourite comedown album:
It's called Solo Piano by Gonzales. It's just a piano record of beautiful solo pieces by a guy called Gonzales, who actually worked with Feist. But he did a solo piano record, and that's what it's called. It's very relaxing music.

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The first gig I ever attended:
I think it was that Silverchair concert. That was probably the first rock gig I went to. I just remember being so pumped for it. You know, I was at my first concert and I was already really into music myself, so I was super inspired. And I think that was the first moment where I thought to myself, 'Yeah, I really want to be up there one day doing that'.

The weirdest gig experience I've ever had:
We played the ChillOut Festival, which is a gay and lesbian festival held out in Daylesford. It was quite an interesting gig because there were drag queens on before and after us, and people sort of knew who we were but not really. But it was pouring with rain so everyone had to stand metres back and watch us, so if you were walking past our gig it looked like absolutely no one was there. But they were all just back in under cover. It was just one of those really awkward performances.

My biggest non-musical influences:
Walt Disney films. I watch them now as much as I did as a kid. I just love animation and children's films. I think there's always something so profound to gain from them and they're just so creative in terms of their hyper-colour visuals and interesting characters. I love Beauty & The Beast, I love Princess & The Frog, which is a more recent one. My favourite animated film is probably Horton Hears A Who!. Actually, I take that all back, it's The Lion King – that's definitely my favourite!

The coolest person I've ever met:
That's really hard. Okay, I've got it, it's Van Dyke Parks. He is incredible. He's this 69-year-old guy who's worked with The Beach Boys and everyone, really. He did the strings for Diorama, he's worked with Joanna Newsom, all these incredible things. He's just this crazy Californian, white-haired, beautiful man who's just got stories for years. And he's extremely talented and I think I'm going to be working with him soon, which is very exciting. He's just the grandfather I never had and he's got all of these amazing stories about working with my favourite artists and he speaks in this beautiful thespian way that is just so inspiring. I can't explain it, you'll have to watch interviews with him. He's just so jolly!

If I could hang out in any time and place in history
I think it'd probably be Woodstock in the '60s. That would be a pretty crazy experience, wouldn't it, just to get a taste of the '60s and rock out to some sweet bands? I would have loved to see Jimi Hendrix live, that would be incredible.

If I wasn't making music
That's a hard one. I think I'd want to be working with children somehow, doing something creative with kids. I don't know, I just feel like it would have to be a job to do with people. I think I'd have to do something that was social and connecting with kids and somehow making a difference. I think I'd need to do that, I'd need to feel like I was doing something good for people. A children's album? That's an idea! Watch this space.

Kimbra plays Groovin' The Moo at Hay Park, Bunbury Monday 21 May