Amy Shark’s swimming with the big fish

It’s been a whirlwind few months for Gold Coast singer-songwriter Amy Shark since she featured on the cover of U on Sunday in July ahead of the release of her debut album Love Monster.

Amy Shark. Picture: Luke Marsden

It’s been a whirlwind few months for Gold Coast singer-songwriter Amy Shark since she featured on the cover of U on Sunday in July ahead of the release of her debut album Love Monster.

The album debuted at No.1 on the ARIA charts, with the news coming through backstage at Splendour in the Grass at Byron Bay just before Shark was due to make her main-stage debut at the festival.

Earlier this month, Love Monster was certified gold in Australia, and the album’s first single I Said Hi has attained double-platinum status and after winning two ARIA Awards at last year’s ceremony, this year Shark is up for nine awards, including Album of the Year, Best Female Artist, Best Pop Release, as well as publicly voted categories including Australian Live Act of the Year, Best Video and Song of the Year.

“I’m very proud of Love Monster and I guess I poured everything into that and didn’t look up for too long, so when it comes to the end of the year and promoting this body of work, it’s nice to get a little pat on the back, even just to get the nods,” Shark tells U on Sunday from Hamilton Island where, despite conducting interviews, she’s officially on her “last day of holidays”.

“I think it deserves it obviously, I think it’s such a great album, but everyone thinks that of their own work. I’m just happy to be amongst all the other artists and bands that are up for it. It’s a huge achievement and win or lose it’s going to be a fun night.

Despite Love Monster being Shark’s debut full-length album, this is the second time she has been nominated for best album, after she scored a nod in the same category for her six-track EP Night Thinker last year.

Amy Shark. Picture: Luke Marsden

“[At the time] I was like ‘oh wow, that’s pretty amazing for an EP,’ and now that I’ve gone through the gruelling experience of putting an album together I’m like ‘I shouldn’t have been up for that’,” she laughs.

Since wrapping up her last Australian tour in September, Shark has been touring the US to steadily building crowds.

“I’d done so many tours of the back of Adore and I did another lot of tours off the back of Night Thinker, so by the time Love Monster was ready and I was about to go back and tour there people were ready for it,” she says. “Everyone sort of knows who I am now and knows all the words and it just was a different feeling.”

When asked what the most surreal thing to happen to her in the past year has been, Shark is quick to answer, recalling an encounter she and her husband had with Home Alone star Macaulay Culkin at a Los Angeles restaurant last month.

“It’s not like he’d hit me up on Twitter or anything, it was just random,” she says. “He just turned around and was at the table next to me and told me what dessert to order and bought me a dessert wine. I looked at him and just saw Kevin (McCallister). He ended up joining our table and was really cool.”

Shark says Culkin was unaware she was a musician, but was in no doubt by the time they had parted company.

“I wasn’t leaving that table without him knowing about my music,” she jokes.

Before she heads to Europe and the UK early next year, Shark will be performing at Falls Festivals in Victoria, Tasmania, WA, and Byron Bay in late December and early January. She has also just been announced as the headline act for next year’s Way out West festival, which will be held at Winton in the state’s central west in April.

“I usually try and say yes to as many regional festivals as possible because I just love the vibe,” Shark says. “It’s just so much more alive and people love the fact that you’ve come there.”

The 32nd Annual ARIAs will be screen on Nine from 7.30pm on Wednesday. Amy Shark plays Falls Festival, Byron Bay, January 2, ticketmaster.com.au; and headlines Way Out West, Winton, April 25-28, wintonswayoutwestfest.com.au