Great Aunt
The Purple Fiddle, 96 East Ave, 26292 Thomas Directions
Sun 20.09.2026 19:00
$12
“An Australian duo you need to know..” – The Bluegrass Situation
Great Aunt is an Australian country folk duo – winners of the 2024 Folk Alliance AustraliaArtist of the Year (Duo) award. Comprising Megan Bird (mandolin, resonator, guitar, vocals) and Chelsea Allen (double bass, vocals, percussion), their music blends folk, bluegrass, and country with influences from their careers in punk, jazz, soul, and rock. Known for their soaring harmonies and weird and wonderful instrument pairings, the duo has played majorAustralian fes:vals and iconic U.S listening rooms. Their debut album, ‘It’s All Downhill From
Here’, is due for release in early 2025.
Performers
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Great Aunt
Raw and austere, simple and bold; full of stomping feet and clapping hands, chants and harmonies, whispered words and soulful lament - that’s the music of Great Aunt. Listen, and you'll hear tales of joy and grief, whiskey and wine, gratitude and purpose-seeking.
Formed in 2016, the duo is a collaboration between songwriter/instrumentalists Megan Bird (mandolin, guitar, vocals) and Chelsea Allen (double bass, vocals, percussion), and draws inspiration from the traditions of old time, bluegrass, and gospel music, with loving and subtle homage to the pair’s diverse background in punk, jazz, roots, and folk music. The instrumentation and arrangements are bare and bold: using only various combinations of mandolin, guitar, or resonator with double bass and percussion, and the sonorous voices of Bird and Allen in harmony.
