Lanie Lane performs at The Loft tonight.
MUSIC festivals can be confusing places — just ask singer-song-writer Lanie Lane.
On the March long weekend this year, she discovered the idiosyncrasies of the Port Fairy Folk Festival and the Golden Plains Festival at Meredith.
“(At the Folkie) I remember being confused as to why people were not standing up,” she laughed.
“No one told me there was a rule that you have to sit down.
“There were a lot of people wanting to get in and I said ‘wouldn’t it be great if you all stood up and let those people in?’.
“And someone said ‘the security will shout at us’.”
As for Golden Plains, she was given some important information before she started playing.
“They told me beforehand, if people start taking their boots off and holding them up, it’s a good sign. I got a few boots.
“That was amazing. That was a lot more rock ‘n’ roll.” Lane’s performances with her band at both festivals were highlights for many, as she gave spine-tingling renditions of tracks from her debut album To The Horses.
That album came out less than 12 months ago, debuting at number 12 on the ARIA charts, and it didn’t take long for Lane to get back in the songwriting saddle.
When The Standard spoke to her, she had just returned from a week of airing “about eight songs” with her guitarist Aidan Roberts in the Blue Mountains. “We’ll probably record the next album later in the year,” Lane said.
She described the lyrics as “more personal”, adding she was “growing up”.
“Getting into your late 20s is a big thing for most people,” the 27-year-old said.
“My mum always said you’re not an adult until you get to 30. That’s true I think. Your brain hasn’t finished growing until that age.”
Moving from Sydney to Melbourne and starting a new relationship have given Lane plenty of lyrical fodder, but her musical inspirations may surprise some.
“It’s trippy and it’s rock ’n’ roll,” she said of her new songs, citing The Doors, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd as touchstones.
“It’s a bit more psyche-delic.”
This may seem at odds with the sound of To The Horses, which features country and rockabilly influences, but Lane is adamant she must keep moving.
“I’ve always been someone who experiments with different looks and different sounds,” she said. “I wouldn’t say (To The Horses) was an experiment — it was what was right at the time.
“All those songs were me learning how to be a songwriter and getting up to the stage where they were good enough.
“(The next record) will be completely different again, a bit more ’70s.”
Lanie Lane performs at The Loft tonight, with support from The Maple Tree and Melva Vs Salvador.
