Melbourne-based songwriter Kirsten Mallyon has a knack for making the air feel a little heavier and a lot more honest. Her second single, 'Sometimes', arriving earlier this month, is a fragile yet firm piece of folk that emerged from the claustrophobia of Long Covid. It serves as a precursor to her debut album, 'Repair Shop', a project forged in the quietude of long-term illness. While the backstory is rooted in physical struggle, the music itself is remarkably airy, leaning on the kind of unhurried, rhythmic acoustic guitar and soft fingerpicking that fans of early Iron & Wine or Adrianne Lenker will find instantly familiar.
The track is a lesson in the power of holding back. Working with producer Pip Norman—known for his polish with artists like Missy Higgins and Troye Sivan—Mallyon chooses a path of stark emotional clarity. There is a specific warmth here, aided by a slide guitar that drifts through the arrangement like a slow-moving cloud. It’s a sound that mirrors the internal tug-of-war Mallyon explores: a blend of melancholy and a stubborn, quiet optimism.
Lyrically, 'Sometimes' is centered around impermanence — the idea that difficult times pass and the comfort that can be found in that. Speaking candidly about the song, Kirsten shared, "It was written during one of my worst days of Long Covid, to remind myself that all things must pass."
Written during her most difficult days of illness to remind herself that "all things must pass," the track feels like a deep, steady breath. It is a beautiful, unembellished slice of Australiana that offers a quiet reassurance to anyone currently navigating their own period of uncertainty.
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