The first single from the new Greg Williams album is reviewed and he answers the Pure Pop Phive

By Henry Lipput

Australia’s Greg Williams has been known in his home country for his work with the band Splurge where he was principal songwriter and lead vocalist.

Williams is about to release Stone on Stone, a new solo album, on September 30^th and has already given us two singles from the album. The first, “This Life" (Bandcamp), hits you right away with it’s wonderful vocal and sparkling melody. For me, along with some others who know more about it, the tone of his singing and the sound of the song remind us of the late great Grant McLennan especially his solo work. And I can give Greg no higher compliment than that.

The Pure Pop Phive

Greg answers the PPP to make sure the cool kids know all about him.

How would you describe your music?

Rock/pop, heavy on guitars and melody.

What/who are your major influences?

My favourite music has great rhythm guitar, acoustic or electric, and great songs, songs, songs: Tom Petty, Beck, Radiohead, The Pretenders (80-81), The Beatles, Bob Dylan.

Do you perform live? Do you have any upcoming gigs?

When I saw Beck solo in early 2023, he said it was his first gig since the pandemic.
That made me feel better about not playing lately while I've been finishing the album.
My new gig idea is to play in record stores because that's where the people who like music go.

How do you support yourself so you can continue to make music?

What I make from music might buy me a coffee some days. In my other life, I've been a journalist, a website designer, and worked in corporate IT. That bought me a bit of a buffer, so now I have a house with a studio where I can work on music full time.

What’s an album you can’t live without (that's not one of yours)?

Only one. Jeez. They'd probably be all Bob Dylan albums anyway. This one especially because it blew my mind, aged 15: Bob Dylan, Blood On The Tracks