Match Made In Heaven

Last year was a big one for Danielle Caruana. The songstress gained international attention with sophomore LP, The Magician's Daughter, as well as an ARIA nomination. And in addition to her touring commitments, she kept up with the demands of being a parent, alongside her husband, John Butler.

Her partner in crime in We Two Thieves, Emily Lubitz is the face of Australian gypsy-folk stalwarts, Tinpan Orange. The group recently added to their ripening discography with fourth studio album, Over The Sun, and Lubitz, too, is dealing with the stresses of motherhood. But the list of similarities doesn't end there, with the girls both sharing an unlikely path to success; Lubitz busking on the streets of Darwin with her brother Jesse to make a few dollars, while Caruana battled with severe anxiety and self-doubt for years before she ever gained the confidence to share her music.

Now, they've joined forces and will play a string of live shows in the coming weeks, culminating with the renowned Nannup Music Festival. “Nannup is one of those great festivals that incorporates existing venues. It just feels like the town itself is celebrated which is why it's so great.” But its true significance runs much deeper, as it was here where the pair first crossed paths. “I instantly fell in love with both Emily and her music.” It was an affinity that would flourish through regular impromptu appearances on stage thereafter. “It was a really organic process, we didn't force anything, it just evolved on its own.”               

This organic evolution has now blossomed into the Broken Songs project; “There are so many songs written about heartbreak but they're always written from a really negative perspective, so we got interested in the idea of how to respond to being broken. To some people, heartbreak is the catalyst to everything amazing that happens in their life thereafter.”

The collaboration represents a symbiosis between Mama Kin's soul influenced sound and Tinpan's playful folk, the result being raw-edged country. “I'm a little bit more rough then Emily, she's a very gentle, soft spirit, and when I stand behind her I feel a bit jagged, but when we party together that's always been proven wrong.”