Draped in sunny melodics and buoyant brassy hues, the brand new single St Louis from the Golden Guitar-nominated Melbourne powerhouse Gretta Ziller is a grooving, moving wonderland of rock, pop, Americana and blues. Marking a sparkling peek into Ziller’s upcoming third album, All These Walls due out Friday August 25, St Louis will also be witnessed live in action imminently, with Ziller hitting the road extensively throughout August, September and November.

An exuberant celebration of soul-tinged goodness complete with glowing production and affable melodics, St Louis also showcases a formidable array of guest musicians lending Hammond organ and keys, saxophones, trumpet, pedal steel guitars and backing vocals alongside Ziller’s commanding yet sumptuous vocal delivery throughout. A song many years in the making, St Louis also embraces and pays homage to Ziller’s own creative history, as she explains, St. Louis the song had been on my mind and in my heart to write for a number of years. 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. In particular, the first song I performed for an audience; St. Louis Blues written by W.C Handy.”

A passionate storyteller and songwriter, Gretta Ziller not only teamed up with an army of fellow musicians on St Louis; she also amassed multiple talents alongside her own to bring All These Walls to life, while also working alongside producers Paul Ruske, who has worked with the likes of Kyle Lionheart and Skyscraper Stan, and Rob Muinõs, whose previous work spans Didirri, Little May, Dorsal Fins and more. Stylistically inspired by a potent array of influences, including Bishop Briggs, Rag n Bone Man, Tom Petty, Foy Vance, Alabama Shakes and HAIM, All These Walls follows in the footsteps of Ziller’s earlier works, including 2021’s Judas Tree and 2017’s Queen of Boomtown, while firmly showcasing joyful creative evolution alongside a significantly thriving core message summed up by Ziller herself: “The main themes on All These Walls are love, self believe and self-worth …with a hint of self-doubt cause we can’t be too cheery!”

Case in point, All These Walls opens in silken fashion via Cross My Fingers, morphing into a sharp ode to facing one’s demons complete with modern gloss and hints of twanging charm, before sliding into maudlin beauty on the wistful and winsome Dear Damascus. Effortlessly flitting between gossamer restraint and powerful glee, Ziller’s mesmerising vocals thrive throughout the album’s journey, from jaunty, bold tracks coated in brass (Ain’t Even Your Lover), to heart-rending country ballads (Whole) and anthemic stompers brimming with positivity (Bones). In between moments of mellowed beauty (Golden Days, Who Knows) and lush modern production, witnessed in spades on the album’s very title track, Ziller’s capacity to concoct authentic narratives alongside glistening guitars, warm melodics and an unmistakable alt-country flavour shines loudly and proudly, effortlessly baring her soul with self-awareness and captivating compositions – and, ultimately, an unmistakable love for her craft.

A critically acclaimed, classically trained artist, Ziller’s career to date has seen her accrue two Golden Guitar nominations, with her single 5,4,3,2,1also currently sitting just shy of 500K individual streams on Spotify alone. Destined for a life in the creative arts, Ziller was able to whistle before she could talk, hailing as the token musician in a family of farmers and going on to take up the violin when she was just 2 years old. Picking up other instruments along the way, including the bagpipes, Ziller went on to complete a Bachelor of Music at Melbourne University, majoring in voice and starting her musical career as an opera singer and teaching the notoriously complex art that is the bagpipes.

Over the years, Ziller’s potent talents have garnered resounding praise with each new release, including two full length albums, an acoustic album and her debut EP which released back in 2014. Armed with a sharp self-awareness alongside her irresistible blend of modern Americana, blues and beyond, 2020 saw Ziller support Australian legends Ian Moss and Troy Cassar-Daley for their 2020 Together Alone tour, a tour which remains one of her career highlights to date. But the talented Melbourne artist also continues to burgeon her own individual fanbase alongside her trademark sound, with the release of All These Walls set to stun both on and off the stage, as Ziller concludes, “Most of my upcoming live shows are acoustic solo, so in those shows you’ll get to know me and the stories around my songs. 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. 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 & infecting you!”

St Louis is out today, Wednesday July 19.

All These Walls is due out Friday August 25 via ABC Music and is available to pre-save now.

GRETTA ZILLER – UPCOMING TOUR DATES:

Tickets available from www.grettaziller.com

FRI 4 AUG | THE OLD PRESBYTERIAN CHRUCH, SPRINGWOOD NSW 

SAT 5 AUG | HUMPH HALL, ALLAMBIE HEIGHTS NSW

SAT 12 AUG | STAR HOTEL, YACKANDANDAH VIC

SUN 13 AUG | HYDRANT FOOD HALL, BALLARAT VIC

SAT 19 AUG | SMITHS ALTERNATIVE, CANBERRA ACT

SUN 20 AUG | THE CURIOUS RABBIT, WAGGA WAGGA NSW

FRI 25 AUG | THE NOOJEE HOTEL, NOOJEE VIC

SAT 26 AUG | GEORGE LANE, ST KILDA VIC

SUN 27 AUG | BAYVIEW COUNTRY ARTS CLUB, BITTERN VIC

TUES 19 SEPT – SAT 23 SEPT | AMERICANA FEST, NASHVILLE TN

FRI 29 SEPT | DENI UTE MUSTER, DENELIQUIN NSW

THU 16 NOV | QIRKS, KURRI KURRI NSW

FRI 17 NOV | WINGHAM HOUSE, WINGHAM NSW

SUN 19 NOV | CAN YOU KEEP A SECRET, BRISBANE QLD

FRI 1 DEC | THE PALAIS, HEPBURN SPRINGS VIC

Listen: ST LOUIS

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