09 June 2023 - 0 Comments

Orangefarm has released Conversation With My Grandmother, the poignant third single and video from their forthcoming debut album Inheritance.

Listen Here

The track follows the earlier release of Settle (in your eyes) & the album's title track Inheritance on Failsafe Records. All three songs are now available on Bandcamp & digital streaming services. The full Inheritance album is available June 16.

In its three-plus minutes, Conversation conjures a world of childhood memory, the evocative song on a pop continuum that runs from the Beach Boys' In My Room, through The GoBetweens' Cattle & Cane to the works of Kiwi songwriting great Don McGlashan.

Head Orangefarmer Nigel Mitchell tapped his own memories of his time with his late grandmother in painting an unsentimental picture of the connection between those separated by two generations.

With the sympathetic backing of legendary drummer Caroline Easther (The Chills, Verlaines, Beat Rhythm Fashion) and bassist Peter Holm, the song grows from its chiming beginnings to something sweetly, neatly cinematic, with Grandma's Holden Premier making a cameo appearance in one verse.

That car also features in the kaleidoscopic, ‘stop-motion’ video for the song done with Lille Mayes, the 10-year-old daughter of Failsafe Records label boss Rob Mayes. “We did it as a fun collaboration project. Lille took over set design, built the scenes with her belongings. Suddenly there’s a house and a table full of plates cakes & cutlery. She’s a keen painter so she took control of that, - the car, sky and ground. We shot it together, it was a very democratic set even though I’m the boss, or I thought I was”, says her proud father-producer. “We weren't going for the full Wallace & Gromit. But getting a child’s view to the video fitted the song so well and its themes about memory, and how you recontextualise and remember details.”

As to what the song's dearly departed inspiration might think of it … “She was never one to lavish praise,” says Mitchell of his grandmother. “She would probably say it was 'quite nice'.” And she'd be right.

Orangefarm has been a fixture of the Wellington music scene for 20 years as a vehicle for Mitchell's songs which have channelled the spirit of classic NZ bands like The Chills, Sneaky Feelings & The Clean, alongside international touchstones like Radiohead, Smiths, & Go-Betweens. Broadly indie rock but with a distinct original slant.

Mitchell's talent for crisp, clear melodies was evident in his first band The Rue in 1985 in Christchurch. There, he met Mayes who became the band's sound engineer. The pair collaborated on recordings & kept in touch after Mitchell migrated north to Wellington where, musically, he has delivered a run of releases under his own name and various others'.

In 2021 and based in Tokyo, Mayes reworked Mitchell's Who is Dianne, his 1988 contribution to Failsafe's South Compilation Deluxe Edition. Inspired by the song, he approached the songwriter with a view to creating a new album, taking it all a little bit more seriously & giving his tunes the full production & release treatment. The album includes contributions from previous Orangefarmers —Karen Apperley (drums), & Vivien Reid (French horn). The album also features Celia McAlpine’s backing vocals on selected tracks, & Mayes himself (additional guitars, percussion, bass, backing vocals).

As producer, Mayes brought his extensive experience into making Inheritance, the album, both cohesive & timeless. Recorded during 2021-22, the album showcases Mitchell's distinctive songwriting style, one delivered in a with a laidback contemplative feel with his warm & understated vocals. Inheritance, the album, will be available on hi-resolution digital download with booklet from the Failsafe Bandcamp & Webstore, on usual digital platforms.

Comments

Return to News Archive