“Partnering the song’s sombre focus with the strained stretch of violins and vocalist Adrian Calvano’s elongated, bluntly-delivered lines” – RollingStone Aus
The last quarter of 2016 was a busy but fruitful time for Victorian five-piece The Settlement. After successfully releasing “Clean Trouble” a single described byRollingStone as “a steer closer to their alt-country side” they followed up with an accompanying video that received its premiere on RollingStone. Continuing their momentum the band rounded out the year with a national tour bringing their genre defying sound to audiences all over the county.
Instead of taking a break over the festive season, the band knuckled down to put the finishing touches on their forthcoming album. Recently releasing “Clean Trouble” alongside a confronting music video about heartbreak and trust, showcasing the bands more ‘alt-country’ side but still true to The Settlement’s form – it will be stuck in your head after just one listen.
The song and accompanying video is a tragic love story as Adrian Calvano explains “The song is about a guy reading a letter his partner had left him explaining that she has done him wrong (cheating, lying, stealing) and left.” The song then follows the man reflecting on their relationship as Adrian continues “the more he reflects the more he wants her to come clean and tell him what she has done face to face, all the while he is unsure if his partner (or now ex partner) has purposely tried to cause him grief or it was all unintentional.” The video is a literal reenactment of the story, shot simply and executed brilliantly.
Listing Cat Stevens and Bob Dylan as influences, The Settlement have clear roots in folk but pride themselves on staying honest to their own sound and never staying relevant to any kind of scene. With free minds and no clear sound to conform, the band have been working in the studio with a blank page and open mind. If the first two singles are anything to go by The Settlements forthcoming record will be wonderfully diverse and undoubtedly their best work to date.
