Biography
Born 1966 in Bendigo, Dja Dja Wurrung land, I was raised in bushland of Junortoun, Australia. I collect cats and verbs. Sing to trees. Cherish tangible books. My politics are progressive left. Spiritually I’m polytheist, respecting diversity of faiths. I hold a BA from the Uni of Melbourne (English, Fine Arts, Philosophy, Classics), a Diploma of Education and a bunch of publications, quirks and congenital conditions. But no grudges. My CV quivers with anomalies, from fairy storytelling to music on indie labels. Oh, and I’m nocturnal, pansexual and allergic to bigotry.
Short Bio:
Make a selection to see details of my published writing or recorded music
Longer Bio with photos:
‘I didn’t lie! I just created fiction with my mouth.’
- Homer
Mentors & Mischief
Early influences include Joni Mitchell, Judy Durham and Stevie Nicks. I wrote songs with my sisters Catherine & Rebecca and friends Jenni & Amanda, titles such as ‘Mystical Stream’ & ‘Tropical Rainforest’, perched in trees with sprinklers, which did wonders for the instruments. My first original studio recording at age 10 was an ode to an island paradise. We read fantasy chronicles: Narnia, The Wizard of Earthsea, The Lord of the Rings and Faeries by Brian Froud / Alan Lee. When I met Brian over 30 years later, we discussed universality of Fey Ones.
For three wonderful years at Flora Hill High, we three extended our creative circle to six. Moving to Melbourne for boarding school (which was loathsome, though there were sparks of kindness and great teaching), I wrote songs in basements or forbidden balconies tangled in ivy. Happily I’ve kept in touch with my earlier friends (Super Six) along with some later comrades.
At the University of Melbourne, listening to Kate Bush and medieval cassettes run off vinyl LP’s from libraries, I thrived on philosophy, literature, fine arts and classics, while continuing to write, illustrate and sing of elves, gnomes, tree spirits and other fey creatures.
During the 1980’s I sang at The Green Man and other folk hubs. That pathway ended with widespread venue closures in Melbourne’s 80’s recession.
Ethereal Groups
In the late 80’s into the 90s I made music with ethereal duo Fionvarra and the group Megwyn. Collaborators were Andrew Persi, Sheri Dyson, Peter Allen and Kristine Wood, respectively. All brilliant. In a less hostile industry, we might have stayed together. Perhaps we still are, in another universe?
What the Funk?
Mishearing a stranger in a club – thought he was into Folk not Funk – I accepted his call to sing. His band swung into ‘Sex Machine’ and ‘I Got You’ by James Brown. Realising my confusion, the band began yelling lyrics; the audience joined in, taking us for a comedy act. We called ourselves ‘What the Funk?’ Ever since, I’ve found it hard to resist morphing into an imp.
Faerie Storytelling
By 1990 I’d become a storyteller at Australia’s first fairy shop, Wonderwings; later also at the Royal Melbourne Show, Moomba pageant, Royal Botanical Gardens, Vic Arts Centre, heritage sites (Rippon Lea, Como House), fairs and festivals, that gave rise to the carnival atmosphere in songs like ‘Madame Alchemier’ (Alexandria), ‘Alice in the Garden of Live Flowers’ (Ariel), or ‘Beautiful Lie’ (Djinn). A record executive’s advice, “drop the unicorns and mermaids”, encapsulated the Aussie industry’s prosaic attitude: the only way my songs found gigs was through a back ditty door of faery storytelling.
I’m also grateful to Wonderwings proprietor Anne Atkins for commissioning a soundtrack by that name with my duo Fionvarra.
And then there was Julia, a wild child who hung with us at gigs, stayed with me overnight, dressed in my grandma’s silk pjs and rocked up at Wonderwings for a story.
Contrary Currents
Late 80s into 90s I shared a rambling terrace house with such artists as clothier Helen Navarre, singer Liz Van Dort and sculptress Dawn Perry, sister of Brendan Perry of Dead Can Dance. Her beautiful cat Sinbad would sprawl on the stair while Dawn made a mermaid throne or played piano, its notes drifting up to my loft. Dawn introduced me to DCD albums, which appealed to my interest in medieval music. Yet while DCD’s Lisa Gerrard lit a path of divine wordlessness, I swung a lantern on heathen folklore. It’s possible to respect others while moving in contrary currents. Contradiction generates energy. Independently, my co-songwriter Mark discovered DCD via 4AD’s collection This Mortal Coil. Brendan’s subtle lyrics soothed, or stirred, misfits in rebellion.
Melbourne’s underground was diversifying: goth, darkwave, Pre-Raphaelite, new Romantic, pagan folk, post punk, contemporary medieval and other genres abounded. We enjoyed a revival of mythology.
Studios
Singer/ housemate/ groove buddy Liz Van Dort introduced me to producer Harry Williamson, who introduced me to musician Sean Bowley (Eden), who introduced me to producer Brett Taylor. All have cast their influence.
These photos show only the two main, longtime producers I’ve worked with: Harry Williamson at Spring Studio and Brett Taylor at Pilgrim Arts. Other studios I’ve worked in beforehand or in parallel to them include Whirled Records, Mad Cat Sound and Golden City Sound, among others.
Moontalk
In 1993 I married co-songwriter Mark (Mirek) Krol, a Polish immigrant, teacher and voracious collector of music & books: “I have fallen into Moontalk” (‘Paper Door’, Alexandria). Many instrumental lines – like horns in ‘Madame Alchemier’ (Alexandria), or ‘cello in ‘The Seagiant’ (Ariel) – lyrics & main vocal melody of ‘Which of these Worlds’ (Apple Pentacle) and entire songs (half of Djinn, including its opening) – were Mark’s compositions, conveyed via humming. I took them to the studio as vocal or keyboard guides for others to play.
Mark also tutors my expression and advises on arrangements, e.g. removing the prime instrument to create spaciousness in the song ‘Alexandria’. Mark’s contribution is underestimated as he is humble, never flies or performs, and avoids social media. As of 2024, we’ve been together for over three decades.
Underground, Overtime
We moved between casual jobs on Melbourne’s urban fringe, as struggle permeated our lyrics:
I won’t be leaving you
In embers of failure
In the pool of our Winter
Glisten eyes of our Daemon‘I’m not Walking’, Argo
One more festival glittering past
If they want something they’ll come to me
‘Madame Alchemier’, Alexandria
We’ve lived through a time when most of the world’s creative musicians have carried additional jobs to survive. I’m sure it’s shortened our lives. Pushed the body into doubling its energy. Split the soul into multiple personalities. In an era of fractured security, global economic meltdown and rapid technological change, there was scant rest or reward. This is no place to unpack our countless jobs, which for both of us included teaching teenagers in the outer urban fringe. In my case, carnival gigs continued on weekends and ‘holidays’. We gave each community our best, shaping each other’s humanity.
Hyperium
former German indie label
Prior to the internet, industry gatekeepers ruled every genre. Changes of legislation allowed corporations to control media ownership. Their homogenous mindset blocked our releases. The internet changed that.
When I was about 30, after 5 fey albums on cassette, our CDs began to appear on indie labels overseas, starting with Hyperium, Germany’s answer to UK’s 4AD or USA’s Projekt. This led to work with other composers on that label, such as Olaf Parusel of Stoa. In his compositions, my voice appeared on German documentary soundtracks.
Prikosnovénie
former French fairy label
A French indie record company, Prikosnovénie, was distributing Alexandria (for the German label), when its co-founder Frederic Chaplain fell in love with the music. So around 2000 he invited me to sign. By then, our next album Ariel was ready!
As with the previous label, their catalogue impressed me. I stayed for several albums, except for a collector’s edition of Alexandria on an American label and guesting on other labels.
Whereas Argo and Alexandria were recorded with Harry Williamson, my 3rd CD Ariel ushered in Brett Taylor, who produced 70% of Ariel including the string quartet in ‘Blackbird’. Both Harry and Brett are accomplished musicians.
‘Blackbird’ (Ariel) inspired a fairytale ‘Louisa’ by French author Alyz Tale, in her book of stories Mon Dernier The.
It was also an honour to be in the hardcover book Carnet Noirs, a history of gothic music. Both books were published in France.
Love Sessions
My first visit to Europe in 2001 fostered recording with Stoa (Germany) and label mates Lys (France), Daemonia Nymphe (Greece) and Gor (Italy). A few days for each location made it quite a whirl.
Frederic Chaplain, the label’s co-founder, produced Love Sessions Volume 1 in France, where most of us first met.
Travels
A second European trip, 2003, heralded three collaborative albums: Love Sessions Volume 2 with Lys in France and Gor’s clarinettist Francesco Banchini; an ambient album I hear the Water Dreaming with Gianluigi Gasparetti (Italy); and the album Ghost Fish with Daemonia Nymphe (Greece). All in two months. Gianluigi, an ambient alchemist and physician, died a few years later and is dearly missed. A white owl visited his old castle on the cliff overlooking the medieval town of Orte.
Alongside these recordings I toured with multi-instrumentalist Francesco Banchini. Enchanting harpist Keltia joined us in Belgium. We were lucky to play in such legendary venues as La Loco in Paris, Le Botanique in Bruxelles, and Castello di Arceto in central Italy. The show in Arceto was hosted by Elisabeth Mantovani with the magnificent longstanding organisation, LaRoseNoire associazione culturale.
At the Parisian gig it was fun back stage with Swedish band Arcana, and meeting locals. La Loco is beside the Moulin Rouge in the Red District. Naturally, we tried spying through a gap in the wall.
Pentacles
2005 spelt release of our 5th CD, Apple Pentacle, on the French label.
In 2006 I shared a compilation with Loreena McKennitt, Effleurement. Although my instrumentation is often more dreampop than folk, Loreena and I both admire Clannad & Alan Stivell. I like her interpretations of Romantic / Pre-Raphaelite poetry. Comparisons with Loreena (as with Lisa of DCD) are overplayed. I’d been setting tales and poems to music since childhood and first heard Loreena’s music in my late 20’s in her doco The Burning Times. It was a revelation to find a female songwriter exploring history and poetry with success, defying the corporate system.
I performed occasionally, alongside teaching teens, mostly new immigrants including refugees and asylum seekers, and enjoyed being an aunt. 2006 we rescued our first fairy lion, whom I’ll miss forever. Our 6th CD Djinn carries her name. Another stray, Dulcinea, arrived in time for her own tribute. The French label released that album in 2008.
At this time an American label Forest of the Fae - a division of Dark Symphonies - approached me to release a 10th Anniversary edition of our second CD Alexandria. Whereas the German label Hyperium had replaced our Australian coverart with its own, the Americans reverted to the original Australian painting by Karan Wicks. They added some of my poetry and illustrations.
Between these albums, acclaimed illustrators & cinematic puppeteers, the Frouds, made a clip entitled ‘Muse’ for our song ‘Which of these Worlds?’ (5th CD Apple Pentacle), presented with their book World of Faerie and on You-Tube
Trolls et Legendes
festival in Mons, Belgium
In 2009 Frederic Cotton - the host who arranged my 2003 Belgian shows - invited me to perform at a major festival in Mons: Trolls et Legendes, run by le fantastique. He flew me over, all expenses paid, setting me and friends from several nations in a plush hotel. He found a band for me, who learned my songs from CD. Their leader, Nehl Aëlin, is stellar. We had one rehearsal when I landed, jetlagged and exhausted from a teaching term. I was still learning names on stage. Nick and Naomi of Australia’s duo Dandelion Wine accompanied some songs. All played superbly. Despite acoustic challenges, we had great fun both on and off stage. It renewed my pride in music. I even won an award.
Here I also met the Frouds, reunited with Stoa, Daemonia Nymphe and Keltia, met her partner Karl Delandsheere who designed our dragon waterfall and made new friends such as American band Woodland and French band Rajna. I would go on to record and perform with Woodland.
Faerieworlds
festival in Oregon, USA
Faerieworlds Festival in America (2009, some 15,000 attendees) & recording & performing with mythic rock band, Woodland. Reminder to self: find my article about it in the Spellcraft mag and adapt best lines here.
Participating in recording of Woodland’s album Seasons in Elfland - Shadows, meant joining them to sing some of those songs on stage at Faerieworlds. I also played a couple of my own sets on the main stage, as did more famous bands such as Faun from Germany.
Musicians from several bands (Woodland, Sugar Beats, Trillian Green) joined me on some songs, along with Billy, America’s revered Green Man.
Faerieworlds carries a sweet, sorrowful irony for me. I felt joyous belonging, as we revelled in diversity and imaginative play. Yet I was unwell (with conditions as yet partially diagnosed), so every greeting was a goodbye.
2009 was the year two great concert hosts had flown me to their countries for major festivals in Belgium and America, all expenses paid. But it all came too late. The global financial crash had already struck. In the months and years that followed, it moved like a tsunami through the indie music world. By now, I had burned out of teaching and would never return to the classroom. Nor would I travel overseas again.
(Faerieworlds did invite me back for Live from Home during the pandemic. A sweet reunion, rekindling shared magic and remembrance.)
Ripples & Spirals
Rescuing fairy lions kept me in Australia, along with other personal ties.
From 2010 to 2016 I worked part time with ecologists in the field of water harvesting. My role was an odd mix of admin, editing, drafting grants, assisting academics, tutoring postgrads and a fair dose of pastoral care.
I enjoyed collaborations with pagan folk-rock band Spiral Dance at events such as Feline Fairy Fest in Melbourne, Elf Winter and Midsummer in Adelaide, the Witches Ball in Sydney, and more Phantosea shows. Collaborators included Dandelion Wine, Jenni Heinrich, Bronny Lloyd, Kimberley Brown, Aphrodite Rose and Rachael Hammond, to name a few. My first childhood friend Jenni Heinrich (nie Brown) joined us.
Focus on writing grew, with small publications; my poem ‘Twenty Ways to Greet a Tiger’ appeared in a national anthology, 2011 Award Winning Australian Writing (Melbourne Books). Fables, features or reviews landed elsewhere. I worked on longstanding manuscripts across fantasy and surrealism.
I liaised with non-profit fey groups, storytelling guilds and fairytale rings. An especially joyous gathering was a Wonderwings reunion at Myths & Legends Fairy Shop in Gisborne. Those who have left this life, live on in our souls.
In 2013 one of our brilliant collaborators died at 55, after a long illness: Gianluigi Gasparettti (Oophoi), rest in peace. This was also the year my hubby and co-songwriter Mark fell ill.
Elderbrook
While working with water ecologists part time, I recorded a soundtrack Elderbrook for my chronicles. Fifty artists - musicians, illustrators, producers - participated from several nations.
We made a video for one of my characters, ‘The Green Lady’. Its star is not me. It is the bewitching, talented dancer Rachael Hammond. The clip also features two other beauties, Melissa Rose Tonkin and Zeinab Yazdanfar. I made only a brief appearance, being clumsy and shy. (Nearly all clips or slideshows of my music on the web are by listeners, unbidden.)
Amicably, I signed off the record label to publish Elderbrook myself as an illustrated double album digipak in eco-materials with each disc peeking from pockets like two half moons, pictured here.
Law of Lore
Oregon hosts invited me to sing in Faerieworlds Live from Home, Faeriecon and other online events in 2020-21 from USA. Reuniting with these fey folk was blissful, especially Kelly Miller-Lopez of Woodland and Priscilla Hernandez beaming in from Spain. Here is Pris viewing my stint with her own magic. Considerably younger, she’s taken ethereal music video production beyond any of us, with her exquisite sonic, visual and poetic talent in bloom.
Up until 2021, my non-profit work involved serving on committees, founding ezines and fairy rings, hosting events and promoting fey art at my blog, Australian Fairy Review. Groups ranged from a storytelling guild to a fairytale salon, connecting scholars with grassroots community arts. I strove to unite them into the multi-arts movement I’d witnessed overseas. We attained lasting overlaps. Then came the pandemic. Worldwide, the Arts suffered from two global viruses; one physical, the other political. Much is made of the former, but I feel the latter did more lasting damage.
A group that survived is the Australian Fairy Tale Society. Intercultural and interdisciplinary, it unites writers with puppeteers, dancers, folklorists, illustrators, quilters, musicians, glass artists, storytellers and other artists.
Publication of an anthology I co-edited happened in 2021, South of the Sun: Australian fairy tales for the 21st century, including tales or endorsements by Australia’s leading fairytale storytellers and authors.
That year I won the Australian Fairy Tale Society Award.
Hobnob
Circumstances had meant juggling duties, which imagination reconciled with a re-enchanted world. Mark has been too ill to work since 2013, and I since 2016. I also signed off my record label and ceased touring. Yet still I sing to trees. We’re happiest with a cat on one knee and a book on the other. So far we’ve assisted nearly 20 cats, adopting six whom we transformed from outdoor to indoor dwellers at Fairy Lion Park.
A tree-change to my beloved birth-town Bendigo in 2018 meant long awaited so[u]litude in reclusion, except for relaxing with childhood mates and the odd neighbour or traveler. Jenni Heinrich, my earliest co-songwriter, performed with me here 2022 and we’ve resumed recording together.
2023 I completed my fantasy chronicles, Elderbrook. Now to complete my surrealist, satirical crime novel Madame Alchemier and other manuscripts. I’ve also begun developing a puppet theatre and mini village called the Train Lion.
Mark and I are close to completing one more album. One of those songs, ‘Hobnob’, is at Bandcamp. Here is a direct link to the song.
Tributes to many of you are at my fairy blog along with hedgewitchery and other mayhem. Thanks for being you. All of you.