Matt Corby is back with his fourth studio album, Tragic Magic. Inspired by the moments between grief and joy, the multi-ARIA-Award winning and multi-platinum singer, songwriter and producer has crafted his best work yet alongside co-writers and co-producers Chris Collins and Dann Hume. “There was a lot going on in the time I was writing all these songs”, Matt says, beginning with the loss of his partner’s mother from pancreatic cancer. “There are all these conflicting things, and you are analysing your own life and the time span of it. You are questioning how you choose to spend your time alive.” We spoke to Matt about crafting Tragic Magic:

I’m really intrigued by your studio, it feels like you’ve created a very safe, creative space from what other artists tell me. Do you still feel inspired there?‍

Yeah, I do. I definitely do. I think I'm good at knowing when I've gone too far with working and need to refresh. There are definitely days where I'll get there and be like, I’ve got nothing in the tank. I’m not hard on myself in those moments. I just go, oh, I’m gonna do something else.

Is there a piece of equipment you've bought for the space that you're especially excited about right now?‍

I just bought this NINA synth. It’s got pots that reset and move. So if you change presets, every pot actually reflects the true value. Instead of, like if you're using a Moog and you change the preset, all the knobs still point wherever they were, and it doesn’t actually mean what it’s showing. The filter, oscillators, everything’s off. This one’s true to value, which is really cool.

‍Do you have bucket list gear?

‍Yeah, but I feel like I’ll never get it. I really like that API desk, the 1608. But it’s such overkill, I don’t really need it. It just looks cool. I like stuff that looks cool. There are a few mics that I want as well.

Did you use anything new on this album that changed the sound?‍

Not really, no. I wouldn’t say we experimented with different instruments. We’re always searching for sounds on synths or using soft synths. There are amazing plugins these days that sound incredible.

Do you use a lot of plugins?‍

Yeah, I think everyone does. When it comes to EQ and compression and effects, you try to be sparing, but if you're going for a specific tone or sound, you definitely need them. I do wish I had slightly more analog gear, but it’s a lot easier to just slap on a plugin. That’s the honest truth.

What did you learn about yourself making this record?‍

I felt like with this one I was really just trying to make things feel good. I trusted myself more than normal, just what I think feels good from start to finish in a song. Previously I was like, structurally it has to be what songs normally do, and I’d be more rigid, especially in writing. This time I didn’t really mind where it starts and ends, as long as the whole way through it feels like it’s moving me somewhere. Instead of it being verse, pre, chorus, bridge, I was like, let’s just have this section, then that section, and that’s all it needs. Or let’s do a minute and a half intro on piano. It was nice. I felt less worried about what people expect from a song.

The record explores heavy themes, like death. Did the making of it feel like a release or feel cathartic?‍

I think so, yeah. On some of the heavier ones for sure, they came out because they had to. I feel like all these songs came out because they had to. Sometimes it was just about having fun, and sometimes it was like something really heavy is going on and you feel the need to write about it, to get it out.

How important is track listing to you?‍

I go nuts. There are over a million combinations or something like that. I think it is important. I always feel like I get it wrong, but there’s no real right answer.

Is it more about crafting a story or vibe with the tracklist?‍

I think it’s vibes, it’s feeling. I want it to work, to feel like a playlist where you don’t want to skip a song. That’s how people consume music anyway. So the story is second to how it feels when songs switch over. I like the way this one moves. I did spend a few weeks getting a bit sick of listening to the songs, trying them in different orders.

Who are your North Star songwriters?‍

Thom Yorke. You can’t mess with him, he’s the best.

What's your favourite Radiohead album?

In Rainbows is the obvious one, but it is such a good album. I also really like A Moon Shaped Pool. There’s a lot of Hail to the Thief that’s excellent. And Amnesiac has some of their most famous songs, like You and Whose Army? - unbelievable track, really great chords too. All his stuff, even what he does with The Smile, is amazing. Whatever he touches turns to gold. I’ve always loved D'Angelo, just for his delivery. These are obvious, but there’s a reason. I guess I really love Paul Simon too, huge fan. You can’t mess with The Beatles either, together, and Harrison as well. Incredible. Again, obvious, but yeah. I really love Men I Trust. So good. I also really love that recent Clairo album, it’s excellent.

I love the album artwork. Tell me about the visual process of this album.‍

I’m really bad with visuals, that’s the last thing I think of. When we finished the record, I was like, I wonder what the artwork’s gonna be. I was staring at a picture in my house, that became the artwork. Miriam, the artist, she lives in New York now, she’s local. You know those primary school artworks with colourful backgrounds and black scraped designs? That was the basis. I thought, why don’t we just call her and ask to use it? She was so chill about it, amazing. We went through a lot to make the vinyl, it was expensive. But she was great the whole time. Pat Fox, who did the design stuff, was great. You can be loose and say, I want it to feel like this, and he’ll come back with 20 options.‍

I love the song Maggie. Tell me about making that one.‍

So the intro, we were at Chris’s studio that morning. It was me, Nat Dunn, she’s an amazing writer, and Chris. We’d just had our morning debrief, and this magpie started going. Me and Nat were like, that’s a really nice song. Magpies have a few different calls, and some are tritone-y, but I rarely hear that melody. We were like, what would the chords be to that? I went to the piano, hit record on my voice memos, and that’s what you hear as the intro, me figuring out the chords. It’s like my brain ticking over. Then right as I hit the last chord, it sang with me, man and nature combined.

I was going to ask if Australia still shapes your sound but it clearly does. ‍

Exactly, and you don’t have to pay magpies publishing.

Listen to Tragic Magic HERE.

@mattcorby