Rin McArdle

Emerging from a tight-knit creative community that fosters and celebrates her myriad talents, Rin McArdle’s music finds profundity in specificity as it darts nimbly between conflicting emotions, and harks sonically to some of the greats of the guitar-led confessional – Phoebe Bridgers, Alanis Morissette, Liz Phair, Julien Baker.

Her self-titled debut album – on which she wrote, produced, and played every instrument – showcases 90s indie-rock sensibilities and a hooky familiarity that feels evergreen. The palpable tension and momentum evident in Rin’s work is entirely organic and purely instinctual as she never records demos – each song is the result of improvising and writing in-studio (sometimes sleeping on the couch for days) which she describes as feeling: “like splashing paint on a blank canvas.” 

Rin’s refusal to bend to traditionalist methods stems from the therapeutic purpose that her songwriting serves; never writing just for the sake of it, always to help her find a way through whatever life serves up: “Music is the only thing that’s been able to soothe me, or make me feel better… even when I’m co-writing, it’s all about: how do you feel?” This approach has attracted the fervent support of some of the country’s biggest names in music – it was a supportive remark after a sold out set at The Tramway from Angie McMahon that first flipped a switch in Rin’s mind, a newfound internal voice assuring her: “I can make a record”; with Courtney Barnett and Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint) giving their weighty stamp of approval on the songs that would come to form her debut album. 

Brutal and bruising, there’s both hurt and healing here.

The Guardian

Rin McArdle – Something Blue (ft. Georgia Maq)

Despite letting go of a music scholarship in high school due to her unconventional approach, largely that she doesn’t read music, and being told by previous bandmates who were out of the Conservatorium that “chords [couldn’t] be like that,” Rin’s virtuosic nature has seen her write for other artists including Bec Sandridge, play live with Camp Cope (notably on US TV CBS Saturday Mornings), and Courtney Barnett at their 2020 Bushfire Fundraiser and more.

Rin brings with her an intensely emotional live show that holds audiences close – it’s not uncommon to see people crying during – and has played with Romy Vager (RVG), Sarah Mary Chadwick (Brunswick Music Festival) Palm Springs (Erica Dunn/TFS/Harmony), Al Matcott, Jacob Diamond and more.

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