Sonic flyline
Authenticity binds Angus Stone to Porsche.
Angus Stone’s fans know him well. The Australian musician, singer-songwriter and record producer has captivated audiences everywhere with his magnetic music, famed for its story-rich warmth and emotive depth. International tours, ARIA awards and ten albums – one solo, five with his sister Julia and four with his own project, Dope Lemon – remind us that his talents run as wide as the pure crystal beaches of Byron Bay, his home town. But there is something his fans might be surprised to discover.
“I collect nautical history,” he says, pulling up in the Taycan 4S Cross Turismo at Sugar Cane Mountain Studios, his creative home base. “I have intricate models of ships as well as old wheels and anchors. They all hold these wonderful stories.”
And the source of this fascination?
“My parents. They were sailors.”
They are also the origin of his deep insight and creativity. Angus’s mother was a marine biologist and his father an English teacher – and a wedding singer – and this is where his music story begins.
“As kids, my sister Julia and I grew up falling asleep under wedding tables. Listening to dad’s band rehearse cover songs every week made us both dive into music.”
Today, he’s influenced by other sources.
“I’ve become more inspired by film. It’s so alluring and magical, everything that I want a song to be. I’ll watch a film and it’ll send me off into another world. I love the Cohen brothers, Wes Anderson and David Lynch.”
Before music, Angus was on another creative path with a different medium. But instead of taking him away from music, it pushed him closer.
“I started an apprenticeship in carpentry. I’d think about writing and music all day. Having this kind of rub is essential to being creative and that’s how I figured out what I wanted to do in life.”
It also confirmed his creative philosophy, which he says is all about proof of concept.
Like creating with a tangible medium, “You need to see something through to finality otherwise you’ll never know its potential.” It’s the approach behind many of his memorable songs, including For You, Chateau and Big Jet Plane, which he recorded with his sister, Julia.
Their effects have been powerful.
“A complete stranger will come up to me in the street and tell me how one of my songs has connected with them at a certain time in their life. It’s a reminder this really is a beautiful art form.”
“Music can feel like a thousand-piece puzzle.”
Angus Stone
Connections play a big role in Angus’s art.
“When I travel, I ask my tour manager to draw me a map of local vintage clothing stores and antique shops. I’ll go on these small journeys and find cool things.
“I was in this little shop in Topanga Canyon and there was this dusty guitar. I got talking with the guy and he had this wonderful life with this instrument,” he says, strumming its strings. “It gave the guitar a whole new being and it still tells me stories each time I pick it up.
“I used it when I recorded a song called Broken Brights.”
It’s all part of Angus’s creative process, which can involve simply scribbling down thoughts during the day and later taking them into his studio.
“On other days it’ll be the music that tells me where to go with a song. It can feel like a thousand-piece puzzle. You can see the completed picture in your mind, but you need to assemble it.”
He says putting it together is like releasing a bottleneck of feelings, adding, “I think it is the closest you’ll ever get to knowing me.”
Touring the world lets him share these feelings on stage. Choosing a favourite destination is impossible, he says, but one stands out.
“French audiences are passionate and observant; the Swiss are beautiful like the fans in Australia and New Zealand, and playing in the United States is cool, but I really like playing to German crowds.
“I was in Stuttgart recently and took a date with me to the Porsche Museum. Studying all of those classic sportscars reminded me it takes time to cut your own record, which Porsche has certainly achieved.
“Amongst the obvious evolution, that classic Porsche flyline remains true,” he says, tracing an arc along the Taycan’s silhouette. “It just gets better with age. It’s the same authenticity that powerful songs express.”
For Angus, driving the Taycan might be “like putting your head down on a silky pillow,” but its place amongst the classics is already set, for the same reason great music becomes timeless.
“It’s because they all hold these wonderful stories.”
