By: Jenny Chase
Coming from a small town in Australia, Stonefield has been touring the US and came to perform their latest album, Far From Earth at Lincoln Hall this past Saturday.
Four sisters make up the female rock group heavily influenced by 60s and 70s psychedelic rock. Their inspiration to make music together is credited to their parents.
“They always had records playing through our childhood and we always just loved it,” said Amy Findlay.
Natural talent is obvious but their music has evolved tremendously since their first album, released in 2010 when the youngest member of the band was only 12.
“Being really young when we started made things kinda hard,” said Amy, the oldest sister, who was 20 when the first album came out. “We were very vulnerable and easily swayed and thought we knew nothing and trusted everyone elses’ opinions way too much.”
Their growth is evident as you listen through the albums. “Far From Earth” is by far the most creative and matured. It’s also the heaviest rock they’ve released. Adventurous yet polished, the psychedelic lyrics take you through a journey, spinning through a galaxy in search for a sense of self.
I was curious what made this album so raw and different from the rest. Amy said “we pretty much changed the whole team we were working with and that had a lot to do with us doing exactly what we wanted to do because I feel like before that we were kind of restricted with our old record label…with Far From Earth we pretty much just wrote it, went and recorded it, did everything ourselves and it was just easy.”
Stonefield took the stage confidently at Lincoln Hall, opening for King Tuff. Their presence immediately captivated the audience. The Findlay sisters got into position with Hannah on guitar, Sarah on the keyboard, Holly with the bass, and Amy on the drums and lead vocals.
They began with one of their hits, “Delusion,” which showed the crowd their instrumental talent. Hannah came in strong with impressive and invigorating guitar riffs, while Sarah on the keyboard used iridescent synthesizers to tastefully add to the psychedelic experience. They went through some of their most popular songs, including “In The Eve,” “Far From Earth” and “Visions,” which demonstrated their boundless capacity to experiment with a different sound or even genre. Amy’s impressive, rich vocals, pulled off while playing the drums, definitely gathered comments from the audience. The show was incredible and would absorb anyone with a passion for vintage psychedelic rock.
Watch their music video for the song “Visions” below for a taste of what Stonefields is all about.