Stella Donnelly makes a masterful return with the announcement of her new album Love and Fortune. A deeply personal and anchored body of work that traces the journey back to herself after a period of profound change. Recorded in Naarm/Melbourne, the album carries the grounding energy of place, offering a sonic landscape that feels both intimate and expansive. Love and Fortune is due for release on Friday 7 November via Dot Dash Recordings / Remote Control.
Following a First Play on BBC 6 with Huw Stephens last night, the Naarm-based, Boorloo-raised artist today also shares new single ‘Feel It Change’, the subsequent to Donnelly’s double A-side ‘Baths‘ / ‘Standing Ovation‘ which was released last month. Reflecting on the creation of the track, Stella shares, “I wrote this song on a baritone guitar in the shed of my sharehouse, plugged into all of my housemate’s overdrive pedals. I think the neighbours started getting shitty after a while because I stewed on the same chords for ages. It’s about the rumination of slowly peeling off the band-aid of a relationship that was doomed to fall apart. Trying to capture that phase of a break up where all you do is bristle and fizz in resentment and finger pointing.”
On Love and Fortune, Stella Donnelly returns with a deeply personal and anchored album, a body of work that traces the journey back to herself after a period of profound change. Recorded in Naarm/Melbourne, the album carries the grounding energy of place, offering a sonic landscape that feels both intimate and expansive.
After several intense years on the road, Donnelly stepped away from touring to re-evaluate her relationship with music and to ask whether she still loved it. That quiet pause led to a deeper listening: to her instincts, her emotions, and the many past versions of herself. What emerged is a collection of songs shaped by multiple endings: the dissolving of relationships, of hobbies started but never continued, the closing of chapters and the echo of things that once felt permanent. These are breakup songs, but not just of the romantic kind. They mark a shedding of skins, a release of old expectations, and a cautious openness to what might come next. The artwork by Sam Love, shows a person held back by fear, unsure whether to dive back into music and the messy whirlpool of public songwriting.
“These songs wouldn’t leave me alone,” Donnelly says. “Like seagulls, they screamed at me when I rode to work, they pecked at me while I wrote essays, and they stole my chips the second I thought I was happier without music.”
Donnelly arrives at a starker sound that lays bare the individual behind the artist. Love and Fortune blends pianos and guitars, as in her earlier work, but this time the arrangements are more exposed, more intentional. Joining Donnelly on the record are longtime collaborators and friends Marcel Tussie, Jack Gaby and Julia Wallace and new guests Sophie Ozard, Timothy Harvey, and Ellie Mason.
Stream / Download: https://stelladonnelly.lnk.to/
Stella Donnelly – Feel it Change (Official Video)
Praise for Stella Donnelly
“Just hearing her voice again! I love it, big fan of Stella Donnelly. We are welcoming this new Stella Donnelly with open arms” – Abby & Tyrone, triple j (on ‘Standing Ovation’)
“And if the stunning ‘Baths’ is anything to go by, this next era is set to be characterised – as is her signature – by immediately arresting vocals and gut-punch emotion.” – DIY Magazine (on ‘Baths‘)
“a bold reentry into the music world” – God Is In The TV (on ‘Baths‘ & ‘Standing Ovation‘)
“Stella Donnelly opens up her process and reaps the rewards on a beautiful, thought‑provoking second album… her tales more evocative and emotionally rich than ever before.” – NME (on Flood)
“…the singer‑songwriter has more than proved her status as an indie requisite… a record of rediscovery…” – Clash Magazine (on Flood)
“Stella’s got the goods to make a strong claim to the lineage of great Australian songsmiths, but the 26yo offers a fresh mix of wit, venom, and storytelling that isn’t quite like anything that’s come before. A voice full of personality – cheeky, caustic, conversational – and the more you listen to her, the more there is to admire.” – triple j (on Beware Of The Dogs)
“With her acute, wry lyricism and crisp voice, Donnelly’s music gives a textured view of her life.” – Vanity Fair (on Beware of the Dogs)
“Grounding her second album in moments of real vulnerability… she zeroes in on her guiding concern as a musician: how we seek and create safety.” – Pitchfork (on Thrush Metal)
Stream / Download: https://
Stella Donnelly – Baths (Official Video)
Stella Donnelly
Love and Fortune
out 7 November via Dot Dash Recording
PRE-SAVE | PRE-ORDER
1. Standing Ovation
2. Being Nice
3. Feel It Change
4. Baths
5. Year of Trouble
6. Please Everyone
7. W.A.L.K
8. Friend
9. Ghosts
10. Love and Fortune
11. Laying Low
Stella Donnelly Online:
Facebook | Instagram | YouTube
