By Matthew Sims
Endeavour Hills rock, blues and folk musician Gretta Ziller is in the middle of an exciting whirlwind, set to release her third studio album while preparing for a dream trip to Nashville.
After she was announced as the inaugural recipient of The Country Music Association of Australia Academy of Country Music Nashville exchange program in May, Ziller said she was “over the moon” to receive the opportunity to travel to Americanafest on 2 September.
“It has been on my wishlist for many years,” Ziller, who is in the middle of a regional tour across the country, said.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing a lot of people play and writing with them.
“I look forward to this trip being the stepping off point for me becoming a Nashville regular.”
Ziller is also releasing her third studio album, ‘All These Walls’, on Friday 25 August, coinciding with a show at the Noojee Hotel on the same day, followed by a special band performance at George Lane in St Kilda.
“Playing live is wonderful,” she said.
“I write with the hope that people can understand and feel and overlay their experiences over my own.”
Ziller said most of her shows just involve her singing with a guitar.
“In these shows I want to let people in, I want them to get to know me and walk away with joy in their hearts,” she said.
“If you’re seeing a band show of mine, which I rarely get to do, we like to make them big and rocking and full on.
“We want you to feel the joy and love for what we do oozing off the stage and infecting you.”
While the new album was written during Melbourne’s lockdowns, she said it is an upbeat album.
“A lot of the songs are about appreciation,” she said.
“I am really lucky to do the thing I love the most.
“The main themes on All These Walls are love, self believe and self-worth…with a hint of self-doubt because we can’t be too cheery.”
Ziller said the first track on the album ‘Cross My Fingers’ deals with the anxious feelings we all get when we are lying awake at 2am, while songs like St Louis are a lively celebration of soul and jazz music, complete with guest musicians on Hammond organ and keys, saxophones, trumpet, pedal steel guitars and backing vocals.
“St Louis the song had been on my mind and in my heart to write for a number of years,” she said.
“I had written a few versions of this song before a song club prompt gave me the excuse to finally finish the version we recorded.
“The song expresses my gratitude to all the songs, and the writers of those songs, that shaped my musical influences.”
While Ziller is grateful for the support and mentoring she has received from within the country music scene, she is always thankful for the support she has had from her fans since she first released music in 2014.
“Without them, I would be in my bedroom and playing alone,” she said.
“I’m not just a part of their life, they’re a part of my life.”
For more information about her new album or upcoming tour dates, visit grettaziller.com
