Photo by Katja Liebing at Blue Moon Photography (via theorangepress.net)
. . .
To be honest, The Sketches Australian Tour wasn’t the homecoming I’d hoped it would be…
In the scheme of one’s career, a single not-so-successful tour isn’t the end of the world. And I know from experience that, here in Australia at least, it takes tour after tour after tour before the investment begins to pay off.
But there’s only so much an independent artist can do when they don’t live here. There’s also only so many times they can visit, especially on their own dime, and particularly with little-to-no support from local industry or media (the kind of support that, even in small doses, can transform a music pursuit into a sustainable career).
I’ve tried to build something that can survive outside of that support system – but it’s either not possible for me, or I’m simply doing it wrong. Either way, I now need to take some time out to figure out how to move forward.
I knew going in that this would be my last Australian visit indefinitely. I can’t afford another visit any time soon – I’m struggling to survive in Berlin as it is. And putting my all into Australian visits, and everything leading up to them, takes me away from trying to build something in another part of the world – which, it now seems painfully clear, is where my energies should be directed from now on.
Big, big, BIG thankyaz to everyone who came to the shows, spread the word to friends, and kept in touch throughout the Project all the way up to this visit – it is because of you I believe enough in what I’m trying to do, to do it with everything I have.
Hope to see you again soon,
R x