The Essential Advent Calendar – 15 December: Indie-Pop Artist Asha Jefferies Ponders The Christmas Holidays With New Single, ‘Keep My Shit Together’

Brisbane, Australia based indie-pop riser Asha Jefferies has unveiled her new single, ‘Keep My Shit Together’, following recent tour supports and shows with acts including Julia Jacklin, Stella Donnelly, City and Colour, Lime Cordiale and Middle Kids.

Originally from the coastal region of Northern Rivers in Australia, but since raised and now firmly based in Brisbane, Asha Jefferies is heartily celebrated for her glowing idiosyncratic sounds that lie between the indie folk arrangements and melancholic pop songs of Angel Olsen & Big Thief and a sense of fun and optimism that could be filed alongside Sheryl Crow. 

Newly released single, ‘Keep My Shit Together’, was produced and mixed by Sam Cromack of widely adored Brisbane band, Ball Park Music, in his cosy studio Prawn Records in the inner north of the city.  Testing her own bravery in the face of milestone-induced anxiety (in this instance, celebrating Christmas with a new partner) – “I get sentimental around the holidays” Jefferies proposes in the song’s opening refrain, before asking herself “Why do I stay in the city? / With all these angry people” as the song bounces between head-spinning indie-pop, demonstrating both assured humour and a sense of gravitas.

Speaking on the track’s creation and its lyrical inspiration, Asha Jefferies said:

“Keep My Shit Together was written one hot and sweaty day around my piano in December. While feeling stuck and existential, this song is an ode to bringing lightness to hot and heavy feelings around Christmas time. We recorded this in mid-December, air-con cranking and all in organised matching white tank tops.”

Asha Jefferies’ 2021 debut EP, ‘The Pinnacle’, introduced her as an artist with limitless potential. The project received extensive rotation across Triple J, Double J and Triple J Unearthed, with its follow up single, ‘Tank Tops’, also being added to full rotation on Triple J – becoming a local queer anthem and one of 2022’s most celebrated local tracks.

Asha Jefferies – photo credit: Jeff Andersen Jnr

With such a wide range of influence and comparison, Jefferies’ songs are euphoric in more ways than one, coming from the most vulnerable depths of a young woman learning to express her queerness. Written in a time of tremendous change, discovery and exploration, Asha notes the impact of acts including Angel Olsen, Big Thief, The Beatles, Lucy Dacus, Father John Misty and Radiohead on her upcoming releases.

Currently adding the finishing touches to her debut full length album, Jefferies is reflecting on honesty.

“When everything builds up in my head, I create these narratives that spiral around things that happened, but they aren’t always the actual truth. I owe it to myself to be honest with myself, so I always want to come back into my body, to see the reality of things.”

To date, Asha Jefferies has played notable Australian festival slots at BIGSOUND, Icebreaker Festival, Against The Grain, Bluesfest, Woodford Folk and Mullum Music Festivals. Asha has won a Queensland Music Award, triple j Unearthed’s NIDA Competition and has been a finalist for both the Vanda & Young Songwriting Competition and the International Songwriting Competition (ISC).

Asha Jefferies‘ new single “Keep Me Shit Together” is out now via Nettwerk. Her debut full length project is due for release in 2024 coinciding with plans for her UK live debut.

Find out more about Asha Jefferies and her music online on Instagram, and Twitter.

Asha Jefferies - Keep My Shit Together (Official Lyric Video)

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