August 1, 2025 • 9 mins
The debut album from Australian musical group Folk Bitch Trio, ‘Now Would Be a Good Time’ is filled with beautiful harmonies and dark wit.
Estelle Clifford joined Jack Tame to give her thoughts on the album and the way the trio puts their own spin on the genre.
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Teams podcast
from News Talks at Bcome.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Next, sade.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
M good.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Good.
Speaker 4 (00:44):
Oh that's harmony is a beautiful amy. That's f BT.
It stands for Folk Bitch Trio. That song is called
Hotel TV. They've got their brand new album out. It's
called Now Would Be a Good Time. It was recorded
in New Zealand. Now music viewer Style Clifford's been listening.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Hey, oh we're in a Hotel TV. Great song. At
the start, there's this real mood setter, if you know,
when you arrive at a hotel and it's a bit
gloomy outside and there's the rain. They've got that sort
of soundscape to open the song. And then what catches
you the entire way throughout this album is exactly what
you said about the harmonies. When those three voices come together.
(01:25):
I mean, it just screams to you that they are
really in sync with each other, because I don't reckon
you can hit those kind of harmonies and the strength
and power behind them if you're not really in tune
with each other.
Speaker 4 (01:35):
Yeah, for sure, literally yeah yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
That's right, Like an emotional level, and then musically wise
to just be able to create them. And I've really
enjoyed this album for hearing so much more of that.
Like sometimes they're not the kind of the melody goes
off a little bit, which I think makes harmonies even trickier.
When you go off on this kind of maybe so
like minor key or something like that, and then you've
(01:59):
got these harmonies that follow along, It's yeah, it's pretty magical.
This is a kind of album for me where I
listen to it a couple of times just through a speaker,
but I think they actually had to sit with it
a bit closer. I had to put my headphones in
and really stay with it, because then that's when you
start getting through the harmonies and the melodies and you
actually start hearing some of the lyrics. They're very Kiwis
(02:22):
and Aussie's We're kind of cousins here where we had
that dark witch about us yea, and they very much
lyrically right into that and lean into that. Folk music
can often be a little bit self absorbed and sometimes
quite ah, I don say depressing, but it can be
a bit you know, like emotional like that, where I
think these girls manage to bring in quite a bit
(02:44):
of humor, even if it is a bit dark and undertoneish,
and you get that the more you actually hear the lyrics.
But I think it's an album you can listen to
and go, yeah, I really like the music, and then
you can take time again at some stage to kind
of sink into those lyrics a little bit more and
hear that storytelling folk focus in the fact that they're
really good at the storytelling, but I think a bit
more modern because they do sort of jump part of
(03:06):
that typical genre thing of being down buzz all the time,
which I really really like. Yeah, they've worked alongside producer
Tom Healley, So if you think Tiny Ruins, Lady Hawk,
Marlon Williams, he's done most or his latest album on
latest couple of albums. And I've got a little bit
confused here, Deck, and I think that I needed to
(03:26):
iron this out, and I haven't quite got the answer
for you, because I know they recorded the song You're
going to play soon, God's a Different Sword very fleetingly.
They had a visit here to open for Ben Howard
and during that time they quickly laid down that track.
So I don't know if they recorded the full album
or they did that. I think Tom Healley might have
then also still helped produce some of the other songs,
(03:48):
but that one in particular was the one they recorded
while they were here in his studios. But I'm pretty
sure he worked more across the album as well, But
I can't one hundred percent put my thumb on that
for you, but I know he's had a touch on it,
which I think is great because if you think of
Marlon Williams, even though he's worked with Lady Hawk people
like that, you know, he really is quite good at
(04:10):
adding some of that little bit of magic that you
hear and the music, and he's really good at capturing
people's voices. I think, like the vocals are real forward,
and the microphone sometimes they've almost got that old school
like it will sound great on an actual record where
it's got that sort of crackly distorted mic sort of
sound almost to it with the lead singer and then
(04:31):
the harmonies coming and behind. Yeah, just really it's quite
dynamic constructures vocally, quite a lot of dynamic stuff going on.
There's got these really beautiful bright flourishes, confessional storytelling with
a bit of edge, which I really like that that edge,
that they bring to it, and I guess that, again
is the modern version of what that genre is, that
(04:53):
they're taking it as their own. Yeah, they've done that's
opening for other Yeah, lots of opening for other people,
even for our favorite can Gizar and the Lizard Wizard.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
Ah of course.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
But they're they're coming back in September and they're doing
their own shows. They're doing Turning Falk and Auckland, San
fran and Wellington and it's a place in Littleton and
I can't think what it's called at the moment. That's
the end of September, and I think that'll be quite
nice because you'll just be able to get a little
bit more of them when they've got a full album
as well. There's a whole body of work in the showcase.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
Saw them open for Ben Howard the.
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Amazingly so yeah, yeah, yeah, and they just didn't stick
around in long enough, I think. But now that there's
an album behind that more for people to get. Yeah,
And you kind of want that when you go and
see a band live too, And yeah, I think you'd
get more of the richness of what the stories and
the music is when you actually go to see them live.
If you get the chance to so. Yeah, but really
really enjoyable album.
Speaker 4 (05:48):
I really liked it, fantastic. What'd you give it?
Speaker 3 (05:50):
I'm going to give it a nine out of ten?
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Nice? How good?
Speaker 3 (05:53):
Okay?
Speaker 4 (05:53):
So the album is Now would be a Good Time.
The group is Folk Bitch Trio aka f BT. We're
going to leave you with FBT Folk Bitch Trio their
first album. Their debut album is called Now would be
a Good Time. And this is God's a different sword.
See your next way name.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
Hold a guy at the bottom of my drawer. A
conversation that I started to ignore. He go, just if
(06:39):
I left it just a little wild with these questions
turn to answers and I need a little pie? Could
I be good on my own card? We'll have a nose.
I need it. But God's a different sword, he goes, just.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
I forbetter know.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
I feel awake up and lie in and I'll book
nut just waiting for my brains. Can't deny it. My
body keep scorbing. I told me that you need it.
I can get up over my floor. He just wor
(07:43):
wall woke up early just to rull up, lay down.
(08:07):
My future has written out on my Sunday dinner play.
Could I be good on my own accord? Have notes
I needed? Because a different.
Speaker 4 (08:19):
Story this world.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live
to news talks it'd be from nine am Saturday, or
follow the podcast iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Teams podcast
from News Talks at Bcome.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Next, sade.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
M good.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Good.
Speaker 4 (00:44):
Oh that's harmony is a beautiful amy. That's f BT.
It stands for Folk Bitch Trio. That song is called
Hotel TV. They've got their brand new album out. It's
called Now Would Be a Good Time. It was recorded
in New Zealand. Now music viewer Style Clifford's been listening.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Hey, oh we're in a Hotel TV. Great song. At
the start, there's this real mood setter, if you know,
when you arrive at a hotel and it's a bit
gloomy outside and there's the rain. They've got that sort
of soundscape to open the song. And then what catches
you the entire way throughout this album is exactly what
you said about the harmonies. When those three voices come together.
(01:25):
I mean, it just screams to you that they are
really in sync with each other, because I don't reckon
you can hit those kind of harmonies and the strength
and power behind them if you're not really in tune
with each other.
Speaker 4 (01:35):
Yeah, for sure, literally yeah yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
That's right, Like an emotional level, and then musically wise
to just be able to create them. And I've really
enjoyed this album for hearing so much more of that.
Like sometimes they're not the kind of the melody goes
off a little bit, which I think makes harmonies even trickier.
When you go off on this kind of maybe so
like minor key or something like that, and then you've
(01:59):
got these harmonies that follow along, It's yeah, it's pretty magical.
This is a kind of album for me where I
listen to it a couple of times just through a speaker,
but I think they actually had to sit with it
a bit closer. I had to put my headphones in
and really stay with it, because then that's when you
start getting through the harmonies and the melodies and you
actually start hearing some of the lyrics. They're very Kiwis
(02:22):
and Aussie's We're kind of cousins here where we had
that dark witch about us yea, and they very much
lyrically right into that and lean into that. Folk music
can often be a little bit self absorbed and sometimes
quite ah, I don say depressing, but it can be
a bit you know, like emotional like that, where I
think these girls manage to bring in quite a bit
(02:44):
of humor, even if it is a bit dark and undertoneish,
and you get that the more you actually hear the lyrics.
But I think it's an album you can listen to
and go, yeah, I really like the music, and then
you can take time again at some stage to kind
of sink into those lyrics a little bit more and
hear that storytelling folk focus in the fact that they're
really good at the storytelling, but I think a bit
more modern because they do sort of jump part of
(03:06):
that typical genre thing of being down buzz all the time,
which I really really like. Yeah, they've worked alongside producer
Tom Healley, So if you think Tiny Ruins, Lady Hawk,
Marlon Williams, he's done most or his latest album on
latest couple of albums. And I've got a little bit
confused here, Deck, and I think that I needed to
(03:26):
iron this out, and I haven't quite got the answer
for you, because I know they recorded the song You're
going to play soon, God's a Different Sword very fleetingly.
They had a visit here to open for Ben Howard
and during that time they quickly laid down that track.
So I don't know if they recorded the full album
or they did that. I think Tom Healley might have
then also still helped produce some of the other songs,
(03:48):
but that one in particular was the one they recorded
while they were here in his studios. But I'm pretty
sure he worked more across the album as well, But
I can't one hundred percent put my thumb on that
for you, but I know he's had a touch on it,
which I think is great because if you think of
Marlon Williams, even though he's worked with Lady Hawk people
like that, you know, he really is quite good at
(04:10):
adding some of that little bit of magic that you
hear and the music, and he's really good at capturing
people's voices. I think, like the vocals are real forward,
and the microphone sometimes they've almost got that old school
like it will sound great on an actual record where
it's got that sort of crackly distorted mic sort of
sound almost to it with the lead singer and then
(04:31):
the harmonies coming and behind. Yeah, just really it's quite
dynamic constructures vocally, quite a lot of dynamic stuff going on.
There's got these really beautiful bright flourishes, confessional storytelling with
a bit of edge, which I really like that that edge,
that they bring to it, and I guess that, again
is the modern version of what that genre is, that
(04:53):
they're taking it as their own. Yeah, they've done that's
opening for other Yeah, lots of opening for other people,
even for our favorite can Gizar and the Lizard Wizard.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
Ah of course.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
But they're they're coming back in September and they're doing
their own shows. They're doing Turning Falk and Auckland, San
fran and Wellington and it's a place in Littleton and
I can't think what it's called at the moment. That's
the end of September, and I think that'll be quite
nice because you'll just be able to get a little
bit more of them when they've got a full album
as well. There's a whole body of work in the showcase.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
Saw them open for Ben Howard the.
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Amazingly so yeah, yeah, yeah, and they just didn't stick
around in long enough, I think. But now that there's
an album behind that more for people to get. Yeah,
And you kind of want that when you go and
see a band live too, And yeah, I think you'd
get more of the richness of what the stories and
the music is when you actually go to see them live.
If you get the chance to so. Yeah, but really
really enjoyable album.
Speaker 4 (05:48):
I really liked it, fantastic. What'd you give it?
Speaker 3 (05:50):
I'm going to give it a nine out of ten?
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Nice? How good?
Speaker 3 (05:53):
Okay?
Speaker 4 (05:53):
So the album is Now would be a Good Time.
The group is Folk Bitch Trio aka f BT. We're
going to leave you with FBT Folk Bitch Trio their
first album. Their debut album is called Now would be
a Good Time. And this is God's a different sword.
See your next way name.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
Hold a guy at the bottom of my drawer. A
conversation that I started to ignore. He go, just if
(06:39):
I left it just a little wild with these questions
turn to answers and I need a little pie? Could
I be good on my own card? We'll have a nose.
I need it. But God's a different sword, he goes, just.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
I forbetter know.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
I feel awake up and lie in and I'll book
nut just waiting for my brains. Can't deny it. My
body keep scorbing. I told me that you need it.
I can get up over my floor. He just wor
(07:43):
wall woke up early just to rull up, lay down.
(08:07):
My future has written out on my Sunday dinner play.
Could I be good on my own accord? Have notes
I needed? Because a different.
Speaker 4 (08:19):
Story this world.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live
to news talks it'd be from nine am Saturday, or
follow the podcast iHeartRadio
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