Spinifex Gum is an Australian musical collective based in Cairns, a collaboration between the

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

ensemble the Marliya Choir,

Felix Riebl Felix Riebl (born 1 May 1981) is a singer, songwriter, and composer based in Melbourne. He is the co-founder, band leader and principal songwriter of the internationally acclaimed band The Cat Empire, who have made multi-platinum albums, and are ...

and

Ollie McGill Ollie is a given name and a nickname, often as a shortened form of Oliver, Olive, Olympia, Olga or Olivia. Variants include Olie, Oli, Oly and Olly. People Given name * Ollie Marie Adams (1925–1998), American gospel and R&B singer * Ollie ...

of the

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

band

The Cat Empire The Cat Empire are an Australian jazz/funk band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria, in 1999. For most of the band's duration, the core members were Felix Riebl (lead vocals, percussion), Harry James Angus (trumpet, vocals), Will Hull-Brown (drums), ...

, Lyn Williams, and Deborah Brown. The performers share the stories of the Yindjibarndi people in the

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a g ...

region of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Origin

Spinifex Gum has its origins in a 2014 visit by the Gondwana Indigenous Children's Choir and the founder of

Gondwana Choirs Gondwana Choirs is an Australian national choral organisation. It was founded in 1989 as Sydney Children’s Choir by Lyn Williams AM, who is its artistic director. The choirs' rehearsal studios are located at the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct in ...

, Lyn Williams, to the

, inviting Melbourne musician

. The group met and began a collaboration with the

Yindjibarndi The Yindjibarndi are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. They form the majority of Aboriginal people around Roebourne (the Millstream area). Their traditional lands lie around the Fortescue River. Langua ...

community, and Reibl returned seven times over the following seven years to learn the stories of the community and their ancestors. In 2015 Riebl was commissioned by Gondwana Choirs to compose an original work inspired by the Pilbara region. He worked with his friend and Cat Empire bandmate

and the Marliya Choir, a group formed from the Indigenous Children's Choir for the project and comprising female Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often groupe ...

teenagers from the Cairns region. They premiered ''Spinifex Gum – a Song Cycle'' in 2016.

Ensemble

Spinifex Gum has approximately 30 members, with 12 to 18 performing on stage. The all-female ensemble is aged between 12 and 20, and sings in English and Yindjibarndi. Riebl and McGill act as composers and creative directors for Spinifex Gum, Lyn Williams is the choir director, and Deborah Brown, formerly of

Bangarra Dance Theatre Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company focused on contemporary dance. It was founded by African American dancer and choreographer Carole Y. Johnson, Gumbaynggirr man Rob Bryant, and South African-born C ...

, is the choreographer. Their songs tell traditional stories of the Yindjibarndi people, protest the treatment of Indigenous Australians by the justice system, and decry the effect of dams and mining in the Pilbara, such as the threats to the Weelumurra Caves and the destruction of

Juukan Gorge Juukan Gorge is a gorge in the Hamersley Range in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, about from Mt Tom Price. It was named by the daughter of Puutu Kunti Kurrama man Juukan, also known as Tommy Ashburton, who was born at Jukarinya (Mt Br ...

. Unlike a traditional choir, each singer has an individual microphone, and their choral harmonies are combined with recorded environmental samples of the Pilbara region over contemporary pop basslines.

Recordings

The song cycle was recorded as the studio album ''Spinifex Gum'' in 2017, and toured with activists and artists

Emma Donovan Emma Donovan (born 1981) is an Aboriginal Australian singer and songwriter. She is a member of the renowned musical Donovan family. She started her singing career at age seven with her uncle's band, the Donovans. In 2000, she became a founding m ...

, Midnight Oil's

Peter Garrett Peter Robert Garrett (born 16 April 1953) is an Australian musician, environmentalist, activist and former politician. In 1973, Garrett became the lead singer of the Australian rock band Midnight Oil. As a performer he is known for his signa ...

, and Adam Briggs. The group also released a single with Briggs, "Locked Up", and another, "Mrs Dhu", both protesting the treatment of incarcerated Indigenous people. The group's second album, ''Sisters'', was released in 2019. It included a cover of the song "

Dream Baby Dream "Dream Baby Dream" is a song by the electro-punk band Suicide, written by its members Martin Rev and Alan Vega. It was released as a single in 1979 by Island Records. It has been covered by Neneh Cherry and The Thing on the 2011-recorded album T ...

", sung in English and

; the song incorporated the voices of 10,000 Australians as part of the Dream Baby Dream campaign, a petition for First Nations representation in

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

. Spinifex Gum's third album was a live recording of a sold-out 2019 Sydney Opera House performance, and was released as ''Spinifex Gum Live at Sydney Opera House'' in January 2021. A highlight of the live performance was Emma Donovan's performance of

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

' "Make It Rain", singing the final verse in Yindjibarndi. Waits praised the rendition as "gorgeous" and posted the video to his

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

channel.

Awards

* Nominated for the 2019

Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work __NOTOC__ The Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work is an award presented by Live Performance Australia (LPA), an employers' organisation which serves as the peak body in the live entertainment and performing arts industries in Australia ...

Discography

* "Locked Up" (single) (2017) * "Mrs Dhu" (single) (2017) * ''Spinifex Gum'' (2017) * ''Sisters'' (2019) * ''Spinifex Gum Live at Sydney Opera House'' (2021)

References

External links

*
"Make It Rain" sung by Emma Donovan, 2019
(YouTube) {{DEFAULTSORT:Spinifex Gum Musical groups established in 2015 2015 establishments in Australia Indigenous Australian musical groups Queensland musical groups