A former dancer with the Royal New Zealand Ballet who performed alongside luminaries like Douglas Wright and Michael Parmenter, Jessica Shipman turned to music later in life. Raised in rural Palmerston North as one of six children, she chose her moniker to mark a personal milestone: carving out a space entirely her own rather than remaining just another position in a sequence.
Released through DRM NZ alongside a video for lead track ‘Caravan Living’, her seven-song debut album ‘Tempered’ arrives as a quietly convincing calling card for an artist turning a lifetime of lived experience into something intensely personal.
Operating within a sophisticated folk-pop zone, Shipman’s craft relies on peeling back the noise to tackle truth, family, motherhood, and identity. The album opens with ‘Caravan Living’, where a steady pulse of self-assurance underpins her declaration, “I’d rather be me than belong”. That resilience carries into ‘I Eat Fire’, an anthem about converting emotional heat into inner strength as she sings, “as I become the power of the sun”.
Yet ‘Tempered’ is equally defined by its willingness to ache. On ‘Left’, she captures the disillusionment of living apart from a partner, mourning lost sanctuary with the vulnerable admission, “I wish I had the strength to speak”. The realities of domestic duty surface on ‘Walk The Ride’, where the weight of parenting amidst endless goodbyes manifests in poignant detail: “Three little voices calling from the trampoline, 'When is Dad home?' The weeks just bend”.
Musically, the record thrives on subtle shifts. ‘Little Firefly’ channels a restless inner spark with the line 'I don’t want to die here”, while ‘Why?’ finds Shipman opening in an expressive speak-sing style reminiscent of fellow New Zealand artist Reb Fountain as her foundational stability wavers. Meanwhile, ‘The System’ delivers a sharp rebuke of corporate workaholism. Produced by Luan Meaker and mastered by Chris Chetland, the record occasionally stays within safe folk-pop boundaries, but its emotional gravity ensures it lands with real weight. ‘Tempered’ feels less like a tentative debut and more like the start of a vital conversation.
Keep up with The Shipman Sister by streaming ‘Tempered’ on Spotify, listening on Bandcamp, and following her updates on Facebook and Instagram.
