CAMP COPE

If Camp Cope’s debut album sounds a bit rough around the edges, it may have something to do with the fact that it was recorded in two days. What it lacks in polish, however, it makes up for with musical and emotional indie-punk power. Vocalist/guitarist Georgia Maq (the daughter of Redgum singer Hugh McDonald) writes with an honesty that borders on the astonishing, frequently referencing her issues with mental health (“You went on tour and I went on medication”, she sings in “West Side Story”; “Those I look up to look down on me/Or maybe it’s just my crippling anxiety”, she muses in “Stove Lighter”). Even when doing good—“Flesh and Electricity” references her work as a nurse—she laments that “Sometimes, though, I really don’t know what I’m doing here/My father says it’s atonement for my reckless years”. If Maq’s lyrics pack an emotional punch—other targets include victim-blaming and the media’s role in perpetuating lies—musically the MVP is bassist Kelly-Dawn Hellmrich, whose melodic and wandering playing is akin to having a second guitarist in the line-up as she effortlessly weaves insistent basslines throughout.