Among the hundred or so bands I saw at SXSW this year, Julia Jacklin's stark, spare voice was memorable. Her debut album is is a lovely listen — no frills. It's the final song on the record that turned out to be a favorite for me, with just the Australian singer and her electric guitar. That song, "Don't Let The Kids Win," turned out to be the last one she wrote for the album, and it's also the title track.
Julia Jacklin told us in an email that she shot the video for this song with her high-school friend Nick McKinlay. "We hung out there all day with my little siblings and my grandparents and my mum," she says. "It was a pretty nice way to spend one of my days off from tour, we just ate snacks and made them look into the camera occasionally."
Having family around is appropriate for this song about aging. "I think it sums up the theme of the record nicely and where I was in my life at the time," she says. "Doubting everything but a bit too tired to let it get to me too much. Just kind of going, well ... yeah I'm freaking out about getting older and running out of time, but so is everyone! So just sing about it, move on and keep working."
Don't Let The Kids Win is out now on Polyvinyl Records.
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