By Rebecca Skilton
Musician Clint Wilson was so shocked when he found out that a friend had taken money from an ATM that he decided to write a song about it.
It instantly struck a chord with him and formed what would become the first single on his debut EP, Red Headed Thief.
“A good friend of mine was out with her daughters and went up to the ATM machine.
“There was money hanging out and she took it. She told me and I said (that’s) terrible – I’m writing a song about it,” Wilson said.
He said this was a perfect example of how he loves to write songs that people can relate to – even if they might not want to admit it.
Influenced by the likes of Nirvana, Led Zeppelin and Pearl Jam, 33-year-old Wilson has maintained a passion for all things music since his days as a teenager, playing in bands as soon as he could work a guitar.
However, the past three years has seen him gigging as a solo acoustic act, appearing in a number of pubs and restaurants in and around Cardinia shire.
Despite only being available for just over a month, Red Headed thief has received a number of five-star reviews, with Triple J’s Unearthed relating the five-track Indie Rock album to the sounds of David Bowie and Pearl Jam.
“(The album) has a real summer sort of vibe,” said Wilson.
“A lot of it was inspired by spending time up on the Murray River.”
Recorded in Pony studios Hallam, Red Headed Thief’s recording process began in September 2016, before wrapping up in November.
While the songs featured on the EP were written by Wilson himself, the production of the album was an affair combining a number of his family and friends.
“My cousin came in and recorded drums for the album, and a good friend came in and recorded bass for me,” he said.
“My aunty, Leanne Hutchinson, painted (the album cover).”
An apparent trend across his EP, Red Headed Thief isn’t alone in its background, each track connected to an underlying story.
“Jane was sort of written about Jane Bunn, the (Channel 7) weather chick,” Wilson said.
“The song Driving I was actually going to drop at the last minute – I wasn’t going to record it, but someone said ‘nah they’re usually the songs that make it. And it’s pretty cool as well.”
Interestingly, Wilson’s personally favourite song Hungover was also a late arrival for the EP.
“I had the music recorded for Hungover and no words yet. I planned to write the lyrics but nothing would come for weeks,” he said.
“I just came up with the tune a week before we went into the studio and I thought I’d record it since I liked the sound of it.”
Exciting things continue to be on the horizon for Wilson, with an EP launch scheduled for 17 March at the Lakeside Mill in Pakenham.
“I’m doing a launch campaign with a promotions company, so they’re going to release the single Hungover in March with a film clip,” Wilson said.
“We’ll be filming next week at Seaford Beach. It should be really good.”
A new set of songs is also on the to-do list for Wilson, with the hope of releasing a 12 track album on his 2017 checklist.
“I actually had almost 10 songs written on my phone that wasn’t backed up,” Wilson said.
“But over Christmas time, when we were up at the river, it got wet.
“It’s in (the store) trying to be recovered at the moment. Hopefully, we’ll see an album by the end of this year, though.”
Until then, however, Wilson’s fans can purchase a hard copy of Red Headed Thief via the Clint Wilson Music page on Facebook, while the EP is also available for download on a number of music streaming sites such as ITunes, Spotify and Google Play.
