.

.

ALEX THE ASTRONAUT
enlists childhood friend
to direct music video
for fan favorite
‘SOUTH LONDON’

Lifted from 2x
Aria nominated album
HOW TO GROW A
SUNFLOWER UNDERWATER

Watch the ‘South London’ video

Listen to How To Grow A Sunflower Underwater here

+ Performing at Paul Kelly’s Making Gravy Festival and SummerSalt 2023 w/ Ben Harper, City and Colour and more +

.

Photo credit Alessandro Zotti

.

Praise for ALEX THE ASTRONAUT
& HOW TO GROW A SUNFLOWER UNDERWATER

“…her most vulnerable work yet. With her tumbling wordplay again at the fore, the album is dense. It feels like there’s a lot of life on there.” – Rob Moran, Sydney Morning Herald

“Lynn’s sweetness shines through… this is fine folk storytelling – a kaleidoscope of colours” – Jeff Jenkins, STACK

“The record sounds nothing short of magical… You’ll melt into its transcendental grasp before the lyrics start to make sense, and when they do, you’ll be welcomed to an entirely separate world of colour and calamity.” – Ellie Robinson, Australian Guitar

“remarkably refreshing and uplifting… Only through the lens of an artistic songwriting maven can we begin to see and experience the world in neoteric ways.” – Jake Challenor, Rolling Stone (4.5 stars)

“a series of joyful, sky scraping indie-pop songs… it’s time to welcome Alex the Astronaut into your orbit” – Simon Heavisides, The Line of Best Fit

“being eternally curious is what makes Alex the Astronaut’s song-worlds so incredibly evocative” – Bryget Chrisfield, Beat

“I think she’s one of the greatest songwriters of our time.” – Andrew Mast, Press Play

“Evolving not just as an artist, but as a human too… it’s Alex the Astronaut at her most empathetic and emotionally-transparent.” – Tyler Jenke, Rolling Stone

“celebrates the simple, messy joy of discovering who you are meant to become – or at least feeling like you are getting closer to it.” – Nathan Jolly, The Guardian (Best New Music)

“Melodies to glide effortlessly through surging waves of life’s complexities to a calm expansive horizon of self-discovery.” – Will Backler, Pilerats

“Bubbling with positivity and joy… a celebration of personal growth, self discovery and friendship.” – The AU Review

“Heart-wrenching” – Parry Tritsiniotis, Purple Sneakers

“One of our absolute faves” – Bobby Townsend, Something You Said

.

.

ALEX THE ASTRONAUT today shares the music video for ‘South London’, the fan-favourite at shows and most streamed album track from her critically acclaimed, 2x ARIA nominated album How to Grow A Sunflower Underwater out now via Warner Music Australia. Called “her most vulnerable work yet” (Sydney Morning Herald), How To Grow A Sunflower Underwater has been nominated for Best Adult Contemporary Album and Best Cover Art (by Giulia McGauran) at this year’s ARIA Awards, and as a body of work reinforces Alex’s graceful ability to merge the playful with the profound as she documents the complexities of life. 

Watch the ‘South London’ video – directed by Alex the Astronaut’s childhood friend Jessica Vincenza Long – here.

“And so much stays / so much changes”

Alex the Astronaut lived in London for a number of years with her family as a child – it was the first time she saw snow, and the first time she had to make new friends in an entirely new city. ‘South London’ was written after she returned to visit for the first time a few years ago, the song’s seed forming when she noticed one jarring difference in an otherwise familiar setting (in this case, someone else’s car parked in the driveway of her old family home).

The video features two young actors as Alex and her sister Sophie, running around their neighbourhood, jumping in ponds and exploring with curiosity and wonderment. When it came time to finding a director for the video, who better to bring something so personal to life than someone who saw it first hand. Alex the Astronaut shares, “My childhood friend Jessica directed this music video. When I was ten, my family moved away to England and she came to visit me. We played on bikes and rollerblades and filmed ourselves on my Mum’s camera. For her to make this video now, years later, is spooky. Seeing the kids who were cast to play my sister and I was like being in a memory. The song’s about looking back on your childhood and I think Jess captured that feeling perfectly. The little actors were amazing. It was such a fun shoot. The video makes the song what it is. I don’t think the song makes sense without it now.”

Director Jessica Vincenza Long continues, “South London is such an emotionally layered song. I feel like we all have those fond memories of our childhood where we may not have fully understood our surroundings but as an adult are able to make more sense of the world we grew up in. With this film I wanted to lean into the sentimentality of childhood, where life seemed simpler and to see Alex reminiscing and making sense of her experiences in London. Alex’s lyrics tell such a strong story and so it was important to mix the dark with the light.”

.

.

Alex the Astronaut’s new album How to Grow A Sunflower Underwater is an intimate exploration of post-traumatic growth, and a body of work affirming Alex as a truly essential songwriter, capable of transforming the way we view ourselves and the world around us. The album documents both the seemingly mundane (a haircut, a therapy session, a trip to the beach and the supermarket) and utterly life-changing moments (her experience as a caretaker and the PTSD that followed, her recent autism spectrum diagnosis) imbuing her songs with equal parts awareness and sensitivity, imagination and idiosyncratic humour.

With over 40 million streams and over 3 million views on her music videos under her belt along with adoring media fans at The New York Times, NPR, BBC Radio 1, triple j, The Guardian and The Line of Best Fit, Alex the Astronaut has captured hearts and fans around the globe. Her new album How to Grow A Sunflower Underwater has been praised by critics and fans alike, debuting at #4 on the Australian Albums Chart, earning 5-stars in NME (“an introspective triumph”), Feature Album in The Australian, Album of the Week on Rolling Stone Australia, Album Spotlight on triple j among many others.

Alex the Astronaut has released two acclaimed EPs, To Whom It May Concern (2017) and See You Soon (2017), and her critically acclaimed, ARIA-nominated debut album The Theory of Absolutely Nothing (2020), which was named “a work of genius” by NME and included as an Honourable Mention in Rolling Stone’s Top 200 Australian Albums of All Time.

.

‘South London’, How To Grow A Sunflower Underwater, and all single artwork by Giulia McGauran. Alex & Giulia have been nominated for Best Cover Art at the 2022 ARIA Awards.

.

ALEX THE ASTRONAUT
2022/23 Tour Dates

Friday 9 December – Paul Kelly’s Making Gravy – Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Naarm/Melbourne, VIC
Friday 27 January – SummerSalt – Ngunnawal Country/Canberra, ACT
Saturday 28 January – SummerSalt – Dharawal CountryWollongong, NSW
Sunday 29 January – SummerSalt – Walyalup/Fremantle, WA
Friday 3 February – Summersalt – nipaluna/Hobart, TAS
Saturday 4 February – SummerSalt – Wurundjeri Country/Yarra Valley
Sunday 5 February – SummerSalt – Wadawurrung Country/Torquay, VIC
Saturday 11 February – SummerSalt – Gumbaynggirr/Coffs Harbour, QLD
Sunday 12 February – SummerSalt – Yugambeh Country/Gold Coast, QLD

For tickets and more information: alextheastronaut.com

.

How to Grow A Sunflower Underwater
Out now (Warner Music Australia)
lnk.to/HTGASU

Artwork by Giulia McGauran

.

Follow ALEX THE ASTRONAUT
Website – Instagram – Facebook
Spotify – Twitter

.

.

AMNPLIFY – DB