Angus Stone: ‘I just wanted to have a beer and write music’

Each week, Benjamin Law asks public figures to discuss the subjects we’re told to keep private by getting them to roll a die. The numbers they land on are the topics they’re given. This week, he talks to Angus Stone. The ARIA- and APRA-award-winning singer-songwriter, 39, has recorded six albums alongside his sister, Julia, the latest of which is Cape Forestier. He performs solo as Dope Lemon. His latest album is Golden Wolf.

Angus Stone: “There’s a therapeutic value I get from sitting back and listening to something that I’ve penned.”Credit: Getty Images

RELIGION

Did you grow up with religion? We weren’t an overly religious family. In a way, music was more our religion. Dad was a wedding singer and we grew up listening to all the greats being played, falling asleep underneath wedding tables in an orbit of love and joy. Watching and listening to him do that was really powerful.

Does making music – whether in the studio or on stage – feel like a spiritual experience? Definitely. I can walk down the street now and a stranger will come up to me and treat me like family. We’ve never met, but they’ve lived alongside different chapters of my life through my albums. It’s almost this parallel universe of togetherness. [Playing live] is a place where time stands still. I’ll close my eyes and walk through my own short films. And it’s therapeutic, the way that I can tell myself things that I wouldn’t necessarily be able to otherwise. I love being able to go to those places. Music allows me to do that.

What particular Commandments do you have for making music? I’m a completionist. For me, it’s really important – no matter what idea is on the table – to make sure that you give it the justice it deserves and see it through. It may not reveal itself to be this great thing at the beginning but, if you stick with it, great things can occur.

Complete this sentence for me. “Others go to church. I go …” Fishing. There’s something about watching the land disappear and you’re out in the deep blue, just a droplet in the ocean.

BODIES

So much of your work involves travelling, late nights, playing in front of an audience. Adrenaline up, adrenaline down. How do you make your body go through that night after night? For me, something that has taken a lot of years to figure out, is that you really need routine. Another is making sure that I go for a run each day, followed by a sauna and steam. So, I’ll sweat it out, go for a nice cold beer, then walk on stage after that.

You’ve been performing from such a young age. A lot of people get messed up by performing so much – and getting famous – so young. How have you managed your mental health? For me, it’s the music itself. I grew up writing down how I was feeling and what I was going through. There’s a therapeutic value I get from sitting back and listening to something that I’ve penned, whether it’s on a voice note or on the bus. It’s like a puzzle piece that I can push back into place. Also, a stranger might walk up to you on the street and share a story about how the music has affected them in a profound way. Those are the moments where it all makes sense; they bring so much joy to your heart.

How’s your health right now? It’s good! I literally just got out of the sauna and had a big glass of water. I feel good. I wake up in the morning and I’m still excited about life. I feel pretty lucky.

What’s your superpower? Man, I can sleep for days; I’m a proper little bear. I love to go to sleep to dream. My superpower is doing nothing.

What’s a superpower you wish you had? I wish I could eat snacks forever and not turn into an absolute beast!

MONEY

You mentioned your dad was a wedding singer. What about your mum? Mum was a marine biologist.

No way! That’s so cool. She was also into theatre and did plays and stuff. Dad was also a carpenter and schoolteacher.

What was money like growing up? We were middle-class – nippers who were down chasing flags every Sunday morning. We went to public schools. Dad was a public-school teacher, so his stance on that is strong. Mum and Dad were lucky: they had a beautiful home. Money wasn’t always readily available, but they taught us that you could have a comfortable life, and that if you felt overworked, you could stop and rest on that hard work.

When you and Julia found success through music, was there a point where you remember thinking to yourself, “Oh, I’ve made it financially”? For me, that happened early on. I was just happy enough to be able to take my friends out for a beer and dinner. I had an old car; for me, it wasn’t ever about the money. I just wanted to have a beer and write music.

Still, music is a business. What lessons would you like to impart to younger musicians starting out? It’s a good question; people are always looking for that magic moment where it all began. But the question you have to ask yourself is this: “Is this something that I’m willing to do and not be successful – not have fame?” Because, at the end of the day, that’s what it’ll come to.

Tell me something about the economics of music that might surprise punters. We’re living in this brilliant day and age where you’ve got friends in New York and Berlin; all of you can, literally, be sitting in your own rooms recording at the same time – for nothing. What we have now is incredible. [On the other hand], it’s becoming really unrealistic to tour a band. It’s a tough one: you have to really back yourself and you still might lose it all. It’s a big game of risk.

What do you like spending money on? Vintage jackets and vintage guitars.

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