Baby Cool on ‘The Sea’: “Chaos Represents Me Well”

October 17, 2022

Baby Cool is the solo project of Grace Cuell, the co-front person for Brisbane psych-pop band Nice Biscuit. Baby Cool’s debut album, Earthling on the Road to Self Love, is due in February 2023 via Virgin Music Australia. The record’s latest single, ‘The Sea’, is a charming bit of kraut-pop hypnosis, the writing of which corresponded to the album title.

“‘The Sea’ was written after a time when my mental health was so poor that I needed daily reminders of the magic that comes with existing in a human body,” Cuell said. “I wrote myself a love letter on a piece of pink handmade paper and I read the letter to myself every morning. ‘The Sea’ and the concept of the album was born from this daily ritual.”

Baby Cool – ‘The Sea’

Cuell recorded Earthling on the Road to Self Love with producer Sam Joseph of NSW cosmic country band Family Jordan. “Sam has an incredible ear for tone and seems to nail it effortlessly every time,” Cuell said.

The tracks came to life in Joseph’s studio shack in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. Cuell’s Nice Biscuit bandmates Jess Ferronato and Nick Cavendish chipped in, and so did Drew Heyden of fellow Brisbane psych outfit The Flamingo Jones.

“The harp that magically unfurls during the intro of ‘The Sea’ is one of the most treasured parts of the record for me,” Cuell said. “It was performed by Lisa Kelly and recorded by Ali Richardson at Swan Pond Studios, on a glorious spring day in the hills of South East Queensland.”

‘The Sea’ is accompanied by a playful and slightly ridiculous music video, which was overseen by Brisbane-based photographer Imogen O’Doyle. “I had such a beautiful community of friends that helped bring this whole thing to life, and the team working on the film clips became the icing on an already delicious cake,” Cuell said.

The video was filmed on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) in South East QLD. The clip was styled by multidisciplinary artist Miri Badger and edited by videographer Tom Carroll.

“I wanted to create a visual component for the album that was a fantasy-like story, something a bit weird and even funny,” Cuell said. “The clip for ‘The Sea’ is part one of a visual trilogy that will accompany the album. It gets weird and probably doesn’t make a whole lot of sense but I think that kind of chaos represents me well.”

In this instalment, Cuell’s best friend and fellow Nice Biscuit front woman Billie Star delivers what Cuell deemed “an Oscar-worthy performance” as a Mighty Boosh-like blue creature. “She has held my hand through many times of mental turmoil and heartache, so naturally she was my number one choice for this casting,” Cuell said.

Cuell acknowledged the contrast between the song’s tender and heartfelt origins and its light and silly music video. “I guess I am all of these things, and humour is certainly a means of helping me move through the heavy parts of life,” she said.