It’s no secret that good coffee and good music go hand in hand. We think coffee forms the basis of all good creative, work and recording sessions. It’s the foundation that cafes are built on, and our lives are enriched by.
Coffee Supreme Press is here to help more good coffee amplify more good music. Its mission is to support and showcase a range of underrepresented and emerging artists working hard to create tomorrow's sound.
Our first Supreme Press project in Australia, sees us working with Melbourne-based musician, Queenie, to produce a limited run of 7” vinyl of her first pressing, Naked Again.
Queenie, the trash queen alter-ego of Eloise Thetford is a fearless performer who wears her heart on her sleeve. Her live shows shake, shudder and smoulder with fiery charisma and freewheeling stagecraft whether she’s performing solo or with her band, a rogues gallery of Melbourne’s finest musicians. Beneath all the sizzle, though, is a unique and powerful voice: tender one moment and visceral the next, Thetford can soar from Emmy-Lou Harris to Mariah Carey at the drop of a hat, launching her deeply emotive songwriting into the stratosphere like a rocket strapped to a Cadillac.
In between writing, recording and her days at Kelso’s, we managed to nab 15 minutes of Eloise’s time to chat about her new album, her favourite Supreme coffee and what’s on the cards for the rest of the year. Put the kettle on, make a cuppa and read on.
Q. Hey Eloise, tell us a bit about yourself. How do you spend your days when you’re not busy in the studio?
Hello hello! I currently spend my days slingin‘ (Supreme ) coffees and sandwiches at Abbotsford’s own Kelso’s Sandwich Shoppe! I just love the hustle and bustle of Johnston St, there are so many wonderful creative spaces down there.
Q. How did Queenie come to be?
Queenie was actually a project formed in the dreaded 2020 lockdown. I had been playing in my old swamp rock band The Bone Shack (RIP) as well as my other band Badgers, but obviously, the pandemic put a stop to all our shows. I’d played solo for years and years but hadn’t written anything for a long time, so I sat down on my bed with an acoustic guitar, took advantage of newly bestowed hours of spare time; and an album’s worth of songs just poured out.
Q. The cat’s out of the bag, you’ve got a new album coming. How long has this been in the pipeline and what was the inspiration behind it?
I do! We’ve been working on these tracks for about a year now, just letting them take shape slowly; which has been a really nice, relaxed process. I’d been so used to smashing everything out in a small timeframe, it’s been refreshing to just let them come together gradually. I went through a breakup at the start of 2020, so I had MEGA inspiration for a lot of the songs. It was such a strange time to be processing being without someone after 10 years, and I think the writing was definitely my saving grace throughout that period.
Q. What’s your coffee setup at home or in the studio?
I’m ashamed to say I have a Nespresso pod machine. But to be fair I actually barely use it, seeing as I’m working from 8am nearly every day with a $20k coffee machine coupled with unlimited espresso right in front of me!
Q. Got a favourite Supreme coffee?
Supreme Blend is my absolute fave. I may be biased, but I don’t even care. That blend SLAPS.
Q. Smooth or crunchy?
Honestly, I’ll eat either out of the jar with a spoon, or crying on the couch, but I definitely lean more towards smooth.
Q. Favourite snack in Melbourne?
Now that’s a tough one. Besides the Kelso’s Tuck Shop Salad — I make for myself religiously 5 days a week — I reckon my fav snack would have to be the chocolate-coated pretzels I get from a wholefoods shop near my house in Eltham. I’m obsessed with those things.
Q. Dream with us, you’ve got tickets to your all-star gig, who are the three headlining acts? Dead or alive.
Ok, I’m actually probably the worst person to ask this question because I don’t even have a favourite band. I listen to so many random genres from punk to pop to psych to jazz to EDM to 80’s metal to trap, but Betty Davis is definitely the numero uno. Co-headlining would be Tom Petty and Cardi B.
Q. What’s in the pipeline for Queenie this year?
Well, the album release is definitely the next big thing, we’ve got a few festivals, and some fun supports coming up, but I think this year I really want to focus on recording more material and booking more band shows around the country. We’ve just got back from playing Tamworth, and now I’m itching to play more shows outside of Naarm/Melbourne.
You can grab your copy of Naked Again here.
Stay up to date with Queenie on Instagram.
Listen to Queenie on Spotify.
