STACK #161 Mar 2018

MUSIC FEATURE VANCE JOY THE HEART OF A NATION The title of James Keough's new album reflects the Australian singer-songwriter's knack for communicating intimacy with this wide embrace, which somehow collects us all into his world.The key to connection, says the artist known as Vance Joy, is putting some thing out there – even if it's just a whistle into the dark.

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Words Zoë Radas

T here are several references to the act of ‘calling’ in James Keogh’s new album, Nation Of Two . There’s the beautiful Call If You Need Me , and in Take Your Time there’s the line “You know my heart, it’s waiting for your call,” and when we sit together to discuss his new album, Keogh also mentions literal phone calls: “I like the idea of talking on the phone and knowing what someone is feeling just from the sounds of their voice,” the musician says. Calling is, in essence, reaching out – a request for attention or affection or connection. “I like that as an idea for a relationship,” he says. “I think that the way I view relationships is like you throw a ball, and you just want someone to throw the ball back. It’s that interaction. I feel like, whether I was consciously trying to do it [or not], that emerges a bit in the lyrics.” Nation Of Two – the second record from the ARIA-winning, global chart-topping, probably-most-covered-artist-on-YouTube musician – is all about connections. And practically speaking, Keogh enjoyed a particularly special one in the recording of stand-out track I’mWith You. The song features the subtle rumble of timpani or bass drum as the lyrics describe waking up to a storm, and Keough’s acoustic guitar is delicate and sparse. The success of its simplicity is astounding. “I recorded that in the Catskills with a guy called Simone Felice,” he says. Of The Felice Brothers? “Yeah! He’s got a little world up in the

I like the idea of talking on the phone and knowing what someone is feeling just from the sounds of their voice

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