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Short version
Rhiz from Melbourne band Rhiz & the Sugarplums talks about her musical evolution, from mandolin in childhood to honkytonk now, and how she balances her musical life with work as a midwife.
Long version
At the time of this interview, Rhiz – the frontwoman of Victorian five-piece Rhiz & the Sugarplums – was not long back from the band’s tour of several states, travelling in a band and playing in both cities and small towns. That was in October, and the Maldon Folk Festival was still ahead at the end of that month, but this interview wasn’t posted in time (NB: Rhiz mentions the festival in the chat). However, this very weekend they are playing Mt Roland Folk Festival in Tasmania.
Some of the touring would require Rhiz to take leave from her work as a midwife, which she began in 2019, and we talk a little about that and also about her life in music, which began by learning mandolin in childhood. Her father loves all genres of music so she grew up listening to a wide range of music. Her father had a banjo and fiddle at home, but neither was right for a young musician.
‘Mandolin was small and I was small, so that felt like the right first choice,’ says Rhiz.
Guitar followed, then in high school she started playing, accompanying a friend who sang. However, Rhiz didn’t start singing until she was nineteen.
‘Singing just feels much more personal than playing an instrument, I think,’ she says. ‘It’s you, it’s your sound.’
She’s been writing songs for a while, and will write for others as well as herself, saying, ‘I would be happy if I could just write songs for everyone.’
The songs on Rhiz & the Sugarplums’ new album, All Over Again, cover a range of experiences, often from a pragmatic perspective when it comes to relationships, in particular, which is a conscious choice.
‘I try to write songs – particularly love songs – from all different angles,’ says Rhiz.
The album is also highly entertaining, and that too was consciously created. Rhiz’s mother, Ann, died last year after a long illness and Rhiz says she hopes that the album is one that her mother – who was happy and positive to the end – would ‘have a boogie to’.
NB: There is a cameo appearance in the interview by Rhiz’s dog, Dolly the labraspoodle – if you’re listening to the audio only, you’ll have to go to the video version to see her …
Listen to All Over Again on Apple Music
Listen to All Over Again on YouTube
