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New Book To Focus On Stella Donnelly's Acclaimed Debut Album, 'Beware Of The Dogs'

Tyler Jenke

“Donnelly engaged in a critical discussion of abuse and reclamation, of country and self, when few were brave enough to, and it made all the difference," writes author Emily Wilson.

Stella Donnelly
Stella Donnelly(Credit: Nick McKinlay)
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More than seven years since it made its way into the world, Stella Donnelly‘s acclaimed debut album, Beware Of The Dogs, has been immortalised in a forthcoming book.

Originally released in March 2019, Beware Of The Dogs was the culmination of a rapid few years for Perth-based Donnelly. Having performed in bands such as Boat Show and Bell Rapids, she went solo in 2017 with the release of her Thrush Metal EP, gaining the attention of US indie label Secretly Canadian thanks to tracks such as the “#MeToo anthem” Boys Will Be Boys.

Beware Of The Dogs was the definition of an indie success story upon its release. Charting at No. 15 on the ARIA charts, it scored a J Award nomination for Australian Album of the Year, and took out both Independent Album of the Year and Best Independent Pop Album or EP at the AIR Awards.

Numerous critics praised it as one of the year's best, with many praising it for its unabashed approach to topics such as rape culture, racism, and toxic masculinity, among others.

One person whom the album resonated with was celebrated Adelaide-based writer (and frequent contributor to The Music) Emily Wilson, who focused on the record for the latest volume in Bloomsbury’s 33⅓ Oceania series.

“I’m so honoured to be included in Bloomsbury’s 33 1/3 series, a series that has expanded and informed my love of music for so long,” Wilson wrote on social media. “To write about Stella Donnelly’s Beware Of The Dogs and the impact it had – and continues to have – is such an honour.

“Donnelly engaged in a critical discussion of abuse and reclamation, of country and self, when few were brave enough to, and it made all the difference. Thank you Stella, for your trust and for the music. I hope I have done you justice.”

Per a description on Bloomsbury’s website, the volume focuses on the album and “highlights its skewering of rape culture, contextualizing the indie rock take on gendered violence in Australia's social, cultural, and political milieu.”

It continues:

Beware Of The Dogs (2019) is a significant addition to political Australian albums. Hailed as a generational triumph, Donnelly has been lauded for her savvy songwriting and biting wit; the political urgency in her music has irrevocably changed the landscape of Australian music. This book explores Donnelly's lyrics and their Australian context alongside themes of feminism and social and gender equality, touching on the #MeToo movement and gender roles in relationships as well as institutional and governmental failures in protecting the young and the vulnerable.

 

In the same way that Donnelly sought to interrogate and dismantle power imbalances and cultural hegemonies, Emily Wilson here seeks to interrogate how Donnelly's album comforted the traumatized and attacked the predatory, and how Australia was changed and is still changing as a result.

Wilson’s book will be released on March 4th, 2027 (just four days prior to the record’s eighth anniversary). Pre-orders for digital versions are available now, with physical pre-orders expected to launch soon.