NEW ALBUM: Charlie Needs Braces 'NYAA WA' + Feature Single 'Woy Woy'
Charlie Needs Braces releases album NYAA WA (Take Care)
+ Feature track ‘Woy Woy’
+ Upcoming festival appearances this Autumn
Ready to take you on a musical journey across her 10 track LP, Charlie Needs Braces releases NYAA WA. NYAA WA means "take care" in Charlie's mob’s GuriNgai language, and the songs on the album emphasise the importance of taking care of lands, waters, and wildlife, and the need to keep culture alive, tell stories, and preserve sacred sites from development. To celebrate the album, Charlie and Miri, the other half of Charlie Needs Braces, will be touring across Tasmania, Victoria, and Canberra for a string of Summer and Autumn Festivals, before a May album launch at Thornbury’s Shotkickers.
NYAA WA, the second full-length album from Charlie Needs Braces, opens with the album's first single 'Dyarrubin', a message and reminder to protect and take care of Country. The album continues its theme with the second track ‘Kurrigoyung’ which means ‘shark’ in GuriNgai language. The inspiration for this song came from an experience when Charlie and her partner were kayaking and fishing down on Bruny Island in Tasmania and flows into singles ‘This Land’ and ‘Wompoo’, and the next track ‘Lorikeet Daze’, which uses a sample of a phone recording of the Yidaki made and played by brother Eden in Darwin inspired by a magical trip to Laniyuk (Berry Springs).
The second half of the album dives into the album feature track 'Woy Woy', meaning ‘water’ in the GuriNgai language. "At night the stars and Milky Way reflect over the water and you can hear and sometimes see the fish jumping in and out of the water in the moonlight. The last time we were there we were making a film clip and there were flatheads, bream, snapper, whiting, barracuda, and crabs. It was delicious and suited the adventures we were having whilst filming’ - Charlie Needs Braces
'Brother' pays tribute to the many families who go through traumas dealing with family members who have a drug addiction, and mental health challenges, and 'Mussels' brings a light hearted vibe and the incredible dance moves that feature in their live shows, encouraging their audiences to flex their muscles and also eat mussels. Charlie wrote the lyrics whilst eating mussels on the beach and comparing muscles as she ate them, only noticing then that it’s the same word but spelled differently.
NYAA WA closes with 'Kariong Lands', a track about ‘Kariong’, a GuriNgai meeting place. Like many other areas nearby and across Australia this site is under threat of being cleared and developed into residential housing which will affect the native wildlife, damage the grandmother tree, and interfere with songlines and the passing down of cultural knowledge.
Charlie Needs Braces has drawn in audiences across Australia, her energetic musical landscapes weaving together stories and language. She is also known for her work with Casey Donovan, The Teskey Brothers, The Seven Ups, and Tek Tek Ensemble. Her debut album ‘Saltwater People’ saw her single and video clip featured on RAGE, was triple j Unearthed Artists of the Week, and was recently featured on the ABC documentary ‘Changing Tides’ as part of a NAIDOC week special. Following the album's release, Charlie has performed across Australia at the Share the Spirit Festival, Woodford Folk Festival, Burramatta Festival, Far East Music Festival, St Kilda Festival, Sydney Road Street Party, Wominjeka Festival, Tanglewood, Oops A Daisy, The Town, and supported the likes of Ziggy Ramo, Kee’ahn, Cookin on 3 Burners, and Harry Angus.
Get ready to dance along to these new gems from Charlie Needs Braces this Summer and Autumn at a Festival near you.
NYAA WA out Thursday 20 February
NYAA WA pre-order now via Bandcamp + Gyrostream
Charlie Needs Braces NYAA WA Tour:
Friday 21 - Sunday 23 February
Clarence Jazz Festival
Rosny Farm Arts Centre, Palawa, TAS
Tickets
Tuesday 25 February
St Kilda Library Gig (All Ages)
Naarm/Kulin Nations, VIC
Event Link
Sunday 2 March
Sydney Road Street Party
Gaanbun (happy) Stage
Naarm/Wurundjeri, VIC
Event Link
Thursday 6 March
Moomba Opening Night
Naarm/Wurundjeri, VIC
Event Link
Saturday 8 March
South Melbourne Market
11 am AEDT
Naarm/Wurundjeri, VIC
Event Link
Saturday 8 March
ROAR Fest (International Women's Day)
Naarm/Wurundjeri, VIC
Tickets
Sunday 23 March
Bunjil Place
Kulin Nation, VIC
Friday 4 April
Shedshaker Brewing
Dja Dja Wurrung, VIC
Friday 18 - Sunday 20 April
National Folk Festival
Ngunnawal, ACT
Tickets
Friday 25 - Sunday 27 April
Wandiligong Nut Festival
Taungurung + Gurnukurnai, VIC
Event Link
Friday 2 May
Album Launch
Shotkickers
Naarm/Wurundjeri, VIC