Hatchie, the project of Australian singer-songwriter Harriette Pilbeam, announces new album Liquorice, due for release on November 7 via Secretly Canadian. With collaboration from producer Melina Duterte (aka Jay Som), Hatchie taps something more honest, unrestrained and wholly herself. Like the rich flavors of the twisty, titular candy—sweet, salty, and bitter all in one bite—Liquorice validates how longing and obsession are intertwined in the self-discovery of young womanhood.
Hatchie says, “This album feels like the culmination of everything I’ve wanted to do with this project since I first started it. I focused on the finer details of the trajectory of love found and lost, inspired by my favourite tragic romance films. I’ve never felt more aligned with an album and can’t wait to share the experience with everyone.”
Hatchie also shares the first single from the album, the Britpoppy ‘Lose It Again.’ Co-written with Jeremy McLennan (Orchin), the track leans into earnest vulnerability and is accompanied by a dreamy, ’90s-inspired music video by Joe Agius, which features the band performing among cows in Wildwood, Victoria.
WATCH/LISTEN
Hatchie – ‘Lose It Again (Official Video)
The cover of Liquorice features a closely cropped portrait of Harriette Pilbeam mid-laugh, her smudged red lipstick suggesting the glorious aftermath of a kiss. Captured during a spontaneous backyard photo shoot using a dinky digital camera, the image encapsulates a record that is rough around the edges and joyfully undone with themes of longing, lust, and regret.
After spending significant time in Los Angeles, Pilbeam and her bandmate-slash-longtime partner Joe Agius decided to step away from touring and return to Australia. There Pilbeam reassessed her priorities and focused on her relationships with friends and family. “Ultimately, the inspiration for the album came from living a very simple life and having time to reconnect with myself and be alone with my thoughts.” Liquorice reflects a woman increasingly comfortable in her own skin, no longer feeling the pressure to fit into a box or prove herself, whatever that even means.
Pilbeam began writing Liquorice in earnest while living in Brisbane over 2022-2023, and later at a home shared with Agius in Melbourne. As a musician who has previously worn her influences on her sleeve, Pilbeam strove to write from scratch without any specific musical influences in mind; allowing songs to breathe for weeks, rather than rushing ideas. She found herself drawn to the melodic simplicity of her early songs and embraced her musical insecurities: “I wanted to see my limitations as strengths that inform my style,” she says.
After being recorded at Duterte’s home studio alongside Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint, Courtney Barnett) on drums, Liquorice was mixed by Alex Farrar (Wednesday, MJ Lenderman) and mastered by Greg Obis (Dutch Interior, Slow Pulp, Wishy).
Hatchie
Liquorice
Tracklist:
- Anemoia
- Only One Laughing
- Liquorice
- Carousel
- Sage
- Someone Else’s News
- Wonder
- Lose It Again
- Anchor
- Part That Bleeds
- Stuck
Liquorice is available for pre-order digitally and physically here: https://hatchie.lnk.to/liquorice
Hatchie Online
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