Premiere: Naomi Keyte shares an intimate video clip for Travelling Woman

Adelaide-based musician Naomi Keyte has become notorious for the intimacy that lays within her work. Over the last three years particularly, she's proved time and time again that her brand of rich indie-folk is amongst the sound's most potent and emotionally indulgent to come out of Australia - and most definitely Adelaide alone - with her work often allowing us to enter her world and leave more informed and knowledgable on the musician behind it all, something that often takes a lot of strength and skill to be able to achieve.

It's something that was front and centre on her 2017 debut record Melaleuca. a charming ten tracks that introduced us to her world for the first time, and it's something that's featured on everything she's put out since, and particularly so her last single, Travelling Woman. Released back in May, Travelling Woman has the exact, inward-looking quality that defines a lot of the musician's work, telling the story of a complicated stint of touring - it was written in Tasmania, where she was playing at the time - and the effects it had relationships in her life.

"The song tells the story of loving someone perpetually on the move," she said on the single, which welcomed the musician back into the public eye for her first single of the year. "It speaks to the push/pull of a relationship in transition, of lingering hope and of reckoning with the unknown."

Today, however, we're premiering the single's official video clip, which takes us even further into the life of Naomi Keyte and her trademark, remarkable charm. Filmed on a Super 8 film camera, the video is a washed-out and hazy moment of reflection for Keyte, who pairs these warm, earthy shots perfectly with the tones that match the single's emotive drawl. There's a touch of nostalgia in there too - being filmed on Super 8, the clip has this very 80s-esque touch- that somehow deepens the track's potency, making it a really brilliant moment well worth a watch.

As Keyte explains, the video also goes a little deeper into the track's themes of a push-and-pull relationship, and the complexities that come with it. "This video clip aims to invite the viewer into the intimate nature of everyday life and reveal the uncertainty of a relationship in flux - memory, reality, confusion and longing move in and out of focus throughout," she says.

You can take a dive into the video clip below as it premieres on Pilerats, and underneath, introduce yourself to the rising force. With plenty on the way, there's no better time than now to meet someone who very soon may be a force to be reckoned with:

Tell us about yourself?

I’m a musician from Adelaide. I’ve been writing songs since I was a kid but in the past few years I’ve become really interested in the art of songwriting. As well as music, I’ve also studied anthropology and yoga, which, I suspect, speaks to my curiosity and love for human beings. I’m currently working on a new record. The idea, as it stands, is to write a series of song portraits about people who’ve made an impression on me in some way. 

What’s the ‘vibe’ music-wise?

I don’t think it’s ever easy for original artists to put what they do into words. I think what I’m making is indie folk / alt-pop. Themes that I explore include identity, the relationship I have to myself and others and beauty. Many of my lyrics pick out small, sometimes mundane things in our lives that are actually quite beautiful. Sound-wise, I love simplicity and space. I think there is a lot of potency in arrangements that are understated. 

What are your production and writing processes usually like?

Sometimes songs come to me when I’m driving or walking but I write in my room, on my nylon string guitar. Once I have the chord progression, melody and lyrics I take the song to the band and we arrange it together. The thing that I’m learning is that playing the song live, until it’s really familiar, makes the recording feel a lot more alive. We recorded Travelling Woman in one take, the whole band in the same studio at the same time, which was a really rare and special experience. Recording this song was my first time in more of a producer role and I also mixed that track with Jarrad Payne (engineer). 

Can you tell us about your new single, Travelling Woman, and its video clip?

Travelling Woman is a song about being in a relationship with someone who is perpetually on the move and the impossibility of that. The song speaks to the push-pull of a relationship in transition, and all of the unknowns and hope that accompany loving someone in that way. It reckons with the unknown and yet still has an undercurrent of hope running through it. It’s quite slow and nostalgic.

This video clip is attentive to the intimate nature of everyday life. Memory, reality, fantasy and longing move in and out of focus throughout. George Graetz (cinematographer) and I chose to work with super 8 film so that the clip has a home video aesthetic. This analogue approach mirrors the way the track was recorded in the studio.

What does 2020 have in store for you?

I’m currently writing a record. Hopefully, by the end of the year, I'll will have the songs ready to record. I’m hoping to play some live shows later in the year to test out the new songs.

What do you want people to take away from the project?

There are two main things that I hope my music does. Firstly, I want my music to provoke a physical response, a visceral feeling. Secondly, I want it to lead the listener towards an experience of deeper connection with that feeling of being alive.

Where can we find more of your music?

You can find my full discography on Bandcamp. I still have a few vinyls of my LP Melaleuca left. My music is also available on all the streaming platforms. 

Streaming Links (Spotify, Apple Music, Bandcamp, triple j Unearthed etc.):

Follow Naomi Keyte: FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM