IF the decision purely rested with Ben Leece then his new single Villains would have remained buried among his many other home demos.
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The Newcastle Americana singer-songwriter is admittedly a poor judge of his own work.
Luckily, ARIA award-winner Shane Nicholson knew there was something special there and he convinced Leece to record the song in his Sound Hole studio at his Copacabana home on the Central Coast.
“Once I’d written it, that was enough,” Leece said.
“I didn’t think it was that good that I wanted to do it, but he picked it out and there was a bit of discussion whether it came out.
“It’s funny it’s now the first song to come out.”
Villains is expected to feature on the former Delta Lions’ frontman’s future solo record.
The reason the 36-year-old was hesitant about releasing the record was the lyrical content.
The song was inspired by Leece’s trip home to the north-west town of Quirindi to perform at a fundraiser for a school friend who was diagnosed with brain cancer.
The death of Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell from suicide that same weekend only added to Leece’s melancholy.
“So all these crazy things were going on and I got talking to a mate who I hadn’t spoken to in a long time, and he’s gone on to do amazing things with his career, and I was comparing it to mine and where I should be by now, instead of mucking around,” Leece said.
“Just for a moment I felt that, ‘can you just not be that good for a second’.”
Villains was released on June 27 and is available on digital platforms.
ICED NOVO
THE second Iced Novo will be held at the Croatian Club on August 18. This year it will raise money to help the Croatian Club go solar.
The event kicks off at high noon with a flea market on the green, food and live entertainment on the Daniel John’s stage.
Come nightfall the green will light up with Fire and Flow while the live entertainment continues inside on the Andrew John’s stage. On the bill is Kahibah Brass, Bitchcraft, Cherry Stain, Motherloade, The Buzzard Mix and East Coast Low.
Bring a blanket and friends for a day and night right in the heart of Wickham. A $5 donation will get you through the door.