Feature: Lottie Mcleod - The Boathouse EP
Lottie McLeod reveals an intimate coming-of-age "for people who love to feel deeply" drawing from indie, alt-pop, folk and beyond - The Boathouse EP.
Signalling a young artist coming out of her shell, stepping into the confidence to follow her own path and express herself openly, marking McLeod's much-praised ability to make the personal feel universal stronger than ever.
An alternative folk-pop lament building from gentle acoustic guitar and vocals rich layers of trumpets, banjo, pedal steel, stunning vocal harmonies and violins run through a guitar plug-in that crescendo bittersweetly in the song's bridge, focus track 'Thomas' is "about seeing a future with a person who wasn’t sure about you and never getting closure about why", says McLeod - wrapping with an intimate voice memo version of its chorus: an echo of that uncertainty.
Keeping true to Lottie's signature ability to balance warmth with sharpness and turn "hyper-personal moments into something painfully recognisable" (Backseat Mafia UK),
'Thomas' was produced by Josh Beattie (Dami Im, Serendipiti) at 4000 Studios and arrives alongside a heart-wrenching seaside video shot on Quandamooka Country and directed by Adam Potts (FELONY., Emeree), contrasting black-and-white split-frame pensiveness with nostalgic, colourful moments of connection shared between two people - flipping dramatically between the two as their fates diverge.
Lottie McLeod's The Boathouse EP is an intimate coming-of-age "for people who love to feel deeply" drawing from alternative sounds, indie-pop, folk, alt-country and beyond - signalling a young artist coming out of her shell, stepping into the confidence to follow her own path and express herself openly, making McLeod's much-praised ability to make the personal feel universal stronger than ever.
With 7 tracks - each inspired by a relationship from the past 2 years of Lottie McLeod's life - written diaristically (mostly on the floor) with thoughtful, emotive lyricism, The Boat House EP feels like listening in on and sharing in those serious, intimate conversations across Lottie McLeod's experiences of being a self-described recovering people-pleaser, modern dating ('Sunburnt', 'Boathouse') and ill-fated romance ('Thomas', 'Important To You') as well as sex, agency and bodily autonomy ('In Theory', 'Take It Back') - not without its lighter-hearted, witty moments ('Wednesdays at the Waterloo').
Produced across two studios in so-called Australia and Turtle Island/USA: North Carolina's Stadium Heights Sound on the land of the Catawba, Cheraw, Eno, Occaneechi, Shakori, Tuscarora and Lumbee peoples with Caleb Wright (Samia, Charly Bliss, Hippo Campus - who reached out to Lottie as a fan of her 2025 single 'The Line'), and 4000 Studios in Magand-jin/so-called Brisbane on Turrbal/Jagera Country with Josh Beattie, The Boathouse EP will resonate with those who never fail to play close attention to lyrics.
In a sweet nod to the family ties that keep her safely moored, mother Carrie McLeod lovingly documents her daughter across many of the project's official photoshoots. Of the EP and her journey to it, Lottie McLeod shares:
"Music, songwriting, playing live has helped me navigate my world and helped me process my thoughts and experiences. It’s kept me centred. I am by nature a peace keeper - my family has always said that I’ve always been the one that evens out the energy. I’ve often kept to myself, been introverted and just agreed with what others have thought was best for me. But over the last couple of years, I’ve learnt to use my voice, be less afraid of what conflict might arise if I say what I want, or if I need to have a difficult conversation. This has been especially true in the making of this EP. Going to the US and meeting my EP co-producer Caleb Wright - someone I admire - for the first time and working with them, forced me into a space of just being my authentic self and being okay with not knowing it all. During my last EP Bug I had this feeling of imposter syndrome due to not being a technically trained musician. With The Boathouse, I am owning that, and sitting in a place of being comfortable that I have strengths that produce music I’m proud of. I am more comfortable owning that I don’t know it all, and also more aware that what I can bring to the table is a strength in itself."
Lottie McLeod is a lover of getting off the bus/train three stops too early just because she can, stained glass, soft blankets, lamps and crosswords.
The Boathouse EP the latest release from Lottie McLeod is available to stream now via ABC Music.
