Wine and Cheese: Stella Donnelly and Courtney Barnett
Stella Donnelly and Courtney Barnett’s brand of indie rock relies on their keen eyes and sharp tongues.
It’s your dream collab. The artists you add back-to-back to the queue. The pairing you can’t get enough of. You know they sound good together, but why? Welcome to Wine and Cheese, a series investigating the why and telling you all about it.
Written by C.S. Harper
Photos courtesy of Molly Matalon and Mia Mala McDonald
The 2010s were a tumultuous time for Australia. In the second half of the decade, sociopolitical and environmental challenges fostered a new wave of young singer-songwriters that weave social issues into everyday narratives. At the forefront of this movement are Stella Donnelly and Courtney Barnett, two artists providing witty commentary on the Australian quotidian.
On the surface, Donnelly and Barnett may seem like carbon copies of each other. As Australian female singer-songwriters with soprano vocals and lyrical prowess, Donnelly and Barnett share the same sonic approach to indie rock. However, when listening to their music together on a playlist, their differences begin to emerge.
Barnett’s music has a grungier feel. Simple chord progressions, fuzzy guitars, and monotone vocals give her music a deadpan tone. Balancing this minimalistic sound, her intricate lyrics add profundity to her songs. In “Pedestrian at Best,” she performs a stream-of-consciousness monologue over a wall of abrasive guitars. With lines like, “Give me all your money, and I’ll make some origami, honey / I think you’re a joke, but I don’t find you very funny,” Barnett infuses wit into her storytelling.
On the other hand, Donnelly has a brighter voice and poppier sound. With catchy riffs and upbeat tempos, her songs appeal to younger listeners. Her vocals range from airy to powerful, evoking a variety of emotions from track to track. Her lyrics tend to be simple, focusing on the candidness and emotion of her message. Unlike Barnett, Donnelly explores genres outside of indie rock, as heard in the synthpop elements of her song “Watching Telly.”
Despite their opposing sounds, both artists share a unified artistic vision as songwriters. Their songs revel in the mundanity of middle class life, finding beauty and humor in everyday situations. From the joys of sharing dinner with loved ones to the awkwardness of Christmas gatherings, Donnelly and Barnett perfectly convey the nuances of daily interactions.
Both artists are versatile songwriters, crafting introspective tracks as well as light-hearted ones. As millennials, Barnett and Donnelly delve into issues faced by their generation. Many of the former’s songs deal with loneliness and depression, which is rising at a faster rate for young people than other generations. In “Depreston,” Barnett plays into the stereotype of millennials having trivial concerns while highlighting the grave issues they actually experience. She enthuses over her money-saving percolator in the first verse, then shifts her focus to gentrification and her inability to afford a home later in the track.
On the other hand, Donnelly focuses more on social issues than mental health. Many songs on her debut album, Beware of the Dogs, discuss toxic masculinity and women’s reproductive rights. In “Boys Will Be Boys,” she highlights the hypocrisy of rape culture: “Your father told ya that you’re innocent / Told ya, ‘Women rape themselves.’”
In addition to writing about personal anecdotes and millennial struggles, both artists have been vocal about politics in their music. Barnett’s “Kim’s Caravan” and “Dead Fox” parallel Donnelly’s “Beware of the Dogs” in their environmentalist and anti-capitalist messages. While the former laments water pollution and the destructiveness of big business, the latter criticizes the Australian government’s ineffective environmental policies.
Stella Donnelly and Courtney Barnett write with a punk attitude, unafraid to speak their minds on political and social issues. While the former complements her social justice commentary with a cheery sound, the latter combines hers with dreary instrumentation. Despite their clear sonic differences, these artists are unified in their unfiltered critiques on capitalism, misogyny, and political corruption. Stella Donnelly and Courtney Barnett perfectly capture the young adult experience during times of crisis, making this pairing an essential one for the millennial listener in 2020.