Saturday 17 December 2022
Violet Town, Taungurung Country
Morning light reflects
off Murchison-Violet Town Road
and partially passes through
my aviators.
I ease off on the accelerator
as I reach Violet Town’s main road—
Cowslip Street—
and start to crawl past
Victorian and Edwardian buildings.
For the sake of safety and taste,
I make the snap decision
to stop for coffee
before hitting the Hume Highway,
before beginning the main leg of this long journey
from my hot hometown of Bendigo
to our cool bush capital, Canberra.
As I parallel park on Cowslip Street,
I pull off my aviators
and reflect
on Violet Town’s most famous exports:
Ella Hooper and her band.
Though I love the Gang of Youths track
sounding from that new CD in my old CD deck,
I find myself wishing
that I’d either packed my scratched CD
of Killing Heidi’s debut LP, Reflector,
or upgraded
to one of those modern car audio systems
with limitless listening options.
As the song and engine stop,
I suddenly find myself lost
in an ultraviolet memory
of Ella Hooper and her band performing
with trademark vigour
atop an outdoor stage in Bendigo
about 20 years ago.
I unexpectedly realise
I’d jump through electrified hoops
to return to my youth
for just a bit.
I walk dreamily past unfamiliar faces
toward one of V. Town’s quaint cafés,
all the while thinking
that my chances of seeing Ella Hooper
resplendent in her ageless beauty
here in her own hometown
are so slim.
Reaching the café counter,
I order a cafè latte from a young lady
then stand aside
to continue reflecting.
Crossing calm oceans of our differences,
I start to consider the creeks and rivers
that connect Ella Hooper and I.
I come to see
we are two writers and performers of verse
born in ’83 and raised in
regional Vic.
two people
who are now pushing 40,
who are now moving even further from youth
radio station Triple J’s
target demographic.
The barista soon interrupts my introspection
to announce my coffee is ready
to go.
Walking back to the car,
I ask myself those hypothetical questions
that Ella posed in the explosive chorus
of Killing Heidi’s first hit
‘Weir’.
I don my aviators,
ignite the engine
and, by way of reply,
assure myself
that I will make it
to all my destinations
in time.
Stereo Story #696
Ella Hooper’s new album Small Town Temple is out on 20 January.
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As an 80s child I can so relate…
42 now and what I wouldn’t give to jump back momentarily in time to the cooler version of myself and my more brag worthy music taste. It’s now all commercial radio controlled by my tween daughters….
Loved your poem.