Today, Naarm / Melbourne based songwriter and musician Geography leaps into the light with her new single ‘What You Want’ out now via COHORT/Sungull Records (Juice Webster, RINSE, Mimi Gilbert). LISTEN + WATCH HERE.

Expanding on the traditional discipline that underpins her stage name, the musical project of Georgia Smith conjures a deep connection to place. Analysing our human relationship to physical spaces, the phenomena Smith manifests in her art, comes from the reconciliation she seeks through her own straddling of disparate worlds – an affectionate, rural upbringing in regional NSW’s Guyra and the landscapes that guide her, against the community and self-discovery Melbourne’s urban scene provides outsiders.

Today’s release ‘What You Want’ hones in on her craft unlike before. Mixed by Jake Aron (Solange, Snail Mail, Middle Kids), the single peaking to the struggle for authenticity in a relationship, seeking refuge in each other during a time of turbulence, ‘What You Want’ is forthright with desire: “I don’t ever want to keep you in… I never want to dim you… I want to feel you in the weather, it’s cold as hell.” Flanked with taught guitars of gusto, there’s no faint, feeble folk to be found here.

Of the single, Georgia shares “What You Want is about navigating the ebb and flow and trying to build trust in a new relationship while being impacted by the volatility of the outside world. It was one of those songs that formed quite quickly, I remember playing the guitar part and scrambling for a notepad. The lyrics were written pretty off the cuff and quick and are simple and unpoetic, I guess trying to be direct and longing for clarity in the situation.”

WATCH: ‘What You Want’ (Official Video)’

The official music video, directed by Meg Duncan, draws on the quiet uneasiness of solitude, finding a balance between stoicism and vulnerability. Speaking on the video, Meg shares, “We thought about peering and tracing while making this clip. Tracing time and tracing feelings and tracing shapes. It’s playful and pretty and was a pleasure to make with supremely talented friends. This song is a forever song, enjoy x.”

As Geography, her music is warm and tactile bedroom pop bound by dusty guitars, modest melodies with a childlike innocence that bellies nostalgia ever slightly. Galvanising the spirituality of nature with misty recounts of love, friendship and the sky, Geography finds her feet between sensitivity and twee. Intrinsic to the Melbourne community as a touring member of Armlock (currently traversing the UK and US), and previously Japanese Wallpaper, Hachiku, Smith has sharing stages with The Breeders, Aldous Harding, Lily Allen and Allday in her time, more recently solo for Slowly Slowly, Phoebe Go, Fan Girl and others.

Leaping into the light, Geography first took shape under the presence of lockdowns where music came to conjure hope for Smith. Carefully, she looked to her foundations in the records played at home – Dido, Natalie Imbruglia and The Corrs – strengthening her skills with time taken to fortify her own self sufficiency in writing and production the project boasts writing and production at Georgia’s own hands. Her purpose is clear, “I’m not trying to portray an idea of perfection but I’m really looking for truth and feeling and a space to grow and explore.”

To celebrate the release of ‘What You Want’, Geography will be performing a headline show at The Gasometer in Naarm / Melbourne on December 19.