For three years Jungalwalla and Leahy traded a bricks-and-mortar home for vanlife on the road, and a spirit of adventure and unbridled joy has taken up permanent residence in their music—no more so than this new collection.
“Living on the road meant we were able to visit some beautiful places to write new music, including an off-grid community in Tassie; a big permaculture property in the Canada’s BC Interior; and, the Sunshine Coast hinterland,” says Jungalwalla.
First single You Be You is a moody, tremolo-tinged heart-tugger—the kind of song you want to hear live with your eyes closed and hips swaying, as Leahy and Jungalwalla’s voices inch upwards to a perfect finish. Pounding second single Driving Roads deserves to be at the top of all post-iso surf-trip playlists, pulling the listener onward through washy, reverb-soaked guitars and rolling rhythms. Not Defined is a powerful opener to the record with soaring vocals, dreamy verses, mixed with punchy guitar solos that serve for an inspiring start to the EP. Where We Go is a nod to nineties rock, combining air-tight grooves with full, cinematic spaciousness, while Sugar is a yearning, riff-heavy body-mover. Full of rapturous nostalgia, EP Vol. 3 is the perfect final instalment to This Way North’s three-part welcome party: a sonic time machine to summer festivals with cold beers, one-handed snacks and bodies pressed close together.
Since their last release in 2018, This Way North—named Music Victoria’s Best Regional/Outer Suburban Act in the same year—had continued full-time touring across Australia, New Zealand and Canada, supporting Ash Grunwald and Kate Ceberano along the way; and, playing local festivals including Queenscliff, Mullumbimby, Woodford, Port Fairy, and the Ness Creek, and Robson Valley festivals in Canada. The duo also released standalone single Night Terrors in 2019, a taste of things to come.
This Way North is currently taking their COVID forced grounding in the historic and arts centric town of Yackandandah in North East Victoria.
Alongside This Way North, Jungalwalla and Leahy also founded Sass the Patriarchy in 2018, an event series aimed at improving gender equality in the music industry. Their events and festivals in Australia and overseas have featured artists including Thando, Dallas Frasca, Hollie Joyce, Bitch Diesel, The Twoks, and Simona Castricum.
EP Vol. 3 by This Way North will be released worldwide on 23rd of February. www.thiswaynorth.com
“You Be You is a gorgeous tune from This Way North, their sweet harmonies sending us drifting all the way up to cloud nine.”
– Sarah Howells, Double J
“This Way North’s music is irresistible! Chewy, tasty hooks, incredible drumbeats partnered with deliciously discreet guitar licks that dare your toes not to tap and your hips not to sway, all topped off with sweet vocal harmonies. Theirs is a sound that is delightful and familiar, yet completely fresh and new. On stage, this duo is absolutely captivating and disarming, bringing a light-hearted energy to the room and an ability to create lifelong fans in a matter of moments.”
– Lisa Schwartz, President of Folk Alliance International, Artistic Director Philadelphia Folk Festival
