Getting to know Anna Smyrk

Indie-folk songsmith Anna Smyrk has recently released her sophomore EP. We asked her to tell us about herself:

I am… on a bit of a high after the Melbourne launch of my EP a few days ago! It was one of those magic nights, full of good people and good music in an old 1920s art deco ballroom.

Swim is… a collection of songs I wrote over the last few years while I’ve been living in the Solomon Islands and Cambodia.

Aside from being a musician I… work in international development. This year I’ve been back and forth between touring in Australia and doing advocacy work in the Philippines. It’s a bit of a crazy schedule, but I love it. When I’m working overseas, I tend to do a lot of writing, and then I get to come home with new songs to play as I’m touring around. Kind of the best of both worlds.

Home is… somewhere I’d like to spend more time. I grew up in Central Victoria, so home for me is hanging out on the front veranda and my parents’ place, looking out at the kangaroos grazing in the paddocks and drinking white wine as the sun goes down.

I spend too much time… listening to podcasts. I’m a bit of an addict. Lately I’m really into science podcasts. Ok, I’m a nerd. But seriously, I listened to this one about sharks the other day. Did you know that they can swim super fast because their skin has all these little bumps that create whirlpools in the water to reduce friction? Wild.

It might surprise people to learn that… my secret ingredient for pretty much every meal is lemon. I’m yet to find any food that isn’t better with a squeeze of lemon on top. Trust me, give it a go. It will change your life.

In the future… I will have a lemon tree of my very own. A girl can dream. In the nearer future, I’ll be touring around Australia over summer and then to the UK later in 2020.

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Keep up to date with Anna on Facebook.

Interview by Bobby Townsend.