Katy SteeleFew artists can capture a moment in time with just a few notes of their voice, transporting you to a specific place.
That’s Katy Steele for so many Australians, the talented Perth-native artist behind Little Birdy, who gave us hits like Come On Come On and Beautiful To Me. Steele’s raw and raspy sound earned her Best Female Vocalist in 2003, 2005, and 2006; an era in which she reigned supreme.
The Music recently caught up with Steele to discuss her new project, undressed, a 10-track stripped-back EP that is released on April 24th, with a national tour in tow.
Steele admitted she had no expectations when she stepped back into the studio last year, beyond exploring her solo and multi-instrumental sound. The result was a collection of three reimagined Little Birdy favourites, two solo songs, and four carefully-chosen covers.
“It’s been a solo effort. A very insular process,” Steele explains. “It was all very spontaneous, the idea of jumping in the studio and doing an album, and a vinyl, and a tour.
“I’ve always wanted to do something like this. That’s why I called it Volume 1; it's open-ended. I could do a Johnny Cash where I do three volumes. It’s very, very stripped-back. So if you don’t like my voice, you probably won’t like this record.”
Last year, Little Birdy assembled for the first time in almost 15 years for the 21st birthday of their debut album, bigbiglove.
The tour included ten headline shows across Australia, and took place at the same time Steele had started her solo project.
“It’s just been nice, reconnecting with the band,” she admits.” It's been fun, and added more to my life, and we are planning to do some new music too – it’s just hard when we all live in three different states. We’re all so busy with our lives.”
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For undressed, Steele has reinterpreted Lou Reed’s Perfect Day and has created a stunning rendition of a much-loved song. She admits that the choice to cover this came out of nowhere, but notes an attraction to the classic-sounding songs on this record, such as Because The Night, a Patti Smith cover.
In fact, Steele’s carefully-curated cover selections have even hit closer to home, with Steele joking that she has been instructed to be careful with such classics.
“There is also A Light That Never Goes Out, The Smiths’ song,” she explains. “My husband said, ‘You can’t cover this song, man’. He said your version better be a really, really good cover. And I thought you know what, I’m just going to do my own version.
“I'm hoping people like my solo versions of my solo songs. I think they were kind of overlooked on my solo records due to too much production. So it's been really nice exploring, because when I play solo, and when I tour, I strip it right back, and it's nice for people who might not have heard me [like that] on a show.
“Especially songs like Rescue Boat, which has become one of my favourite songs to play when I play solo,” she adds. “I am excited for people to hear that. I think it will reach people in the right way, as it was meant to in the first place.
“Things can get overproduced, things kind of lose their initial feeling – you get in the studio, and everyone has an opinion. I have really lost my way a lot over the years… It's nice to do something simple, and you're in charge of it all. Finally.”
Relapse is a perfect example of what Steele has achieved in this project, with Steele’s voice, guitar and piano maturing the beloved song that was released twenty-three years ago on Little Birdy’s debut bigbiglove record.
Stay Wild, from Little Birdy’s 2009 Confetti album, is another beautiful ballad, and such a treat to have Steele’s voice front and centre without the noisy rock, and just a piano to elevate the mature sound that has seemingly only gotten better over the decades.
Steele’s undressed proves that there is immense value in revisiting work and exploring its elasticity in a different environment with a different perspective.
Undressed will feature unreleased sessions made over the years in Los Angeles and New York. In a time where sound can be bent and shifted by all kinds of technology, production and collaborations, Steele’s approach is a departure from this.
The music captured was largely recorded in one take, with Steele’s musical chops on full display.
The undressed tour kicks off in Hobart, with a local indie folk artist and triple j unearthed feature artist, Abby Wallace, announced as the support. Support artists for future shows are yet to be announced, but punters unable to attend a show can secure a limited edition vinyl.
Katy Steele’s undressed, Vol. 1 EP arrives on April 24th, with pre-orders available now, and tickets to her national tour on sale now.
Katy Steele – undressed Australian Tour 2026
Thursday, April 23rd – Altar Bar, Hobart, TAS
Thursday, April 30th – Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide, SA
Friday, May 1st – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne, VIC
Thursday, May 7th – Lefty’s, Petrie Terrace, QLD
Friday, May 8th – Mary’s Underground, Sydney, NSW
Saturday, May 9th – Belco Arts Centre, Canberra, ACT
Friday, 2May 29th – The Rosemount, Perth, WA
This piece of content has been assisted by the Australian Government through Music Australia and Creative Australia, its arts funding and advisory body
