Geoffrey O'Connor

Whether as a member of the beloved Australian indie pop band the Crayon Fields --or on his own on a series of albums that cast him as a more relatable Bryan Ferry -- singer/songwriter/producer Geoffrey O'Connor displays enough wit, skill, and melodic invention to give his work a very distinctive quality. The 2009 Crayon Fields album All the Pleasures of the World is a treasured artifact for lovers of sophisticated indie pop; his solo albums have a lush, very '80s sound that never lapses into tired nostalgia. On 2021's For as Long as I Can Remember, he teamed up with an impressive cast of female duet partners to create a timeless heartbreak classic, and 2025's I Love What We Do extends the collaborative spirit to the musical side of the equation. Melbourne native O'Connor began making music during high school as a member of Crayon Fields, a group with a lo-fi indie rock approach not unlike that of the Elephant 6 collective bands. They formed in 2002 and included bassist Brett Hudson, guitarist Chris Hung, and drummer Neil Erenstrom. The group supported the likes of the Unicorns, Deerhoof, and Architecture in Helsinki in concert and released their debut album, Animal Bells, in mid-2006 on Chapter Music and Trifekta. At the same time, O'Connor began recording solo material under the name Sly Hats with a more lo-fi, home-cooked approach. He released the very poppy Liquorice Night album in 2007. Crayon Fields were still going strong and issued their second album, All the Pleasures of the World, in 2009, then toured the U.S. for the first time in 2010. O'Connor dropped the Sly Hats moniker and instead shifted to using his own name for 2011's Vanity Is Forever album. He also switched up his musical style, moving from an indie pop sound to a slick, synthesizer-based '80s style that's heavily indebted to groups like Roxy Music and Prefab Sprout. 2013's Fan Fiction followed in similar fashion, and Crayon Fields started up again, recording and releasing their third album, No One Deserves You, in late 2015. All throughout his career, O'Connor had been working behind the scenes on various projects, helping on recordings by Twerps, Summer Flake, Fair Maiden, and Sarah Mary Chadwick. The latter appeared on his album of duets with a cast of vocalists -- including Laura Jean, Nicole Thibault, Summer Flake's Steph Crase, and Mystery Guest's Caitlyn Lesiuk -- from his home country. First recorded with the singers in a background capacity, he revamped the set to give his guests co-starring roles as they sang tales of heartbreak and remorse. Slickly crafted, but with a very human pulse, For as Long as I Can Remember was issued in August 2021 by Chapter Music. O'Connor continued to work in a similar vein of lush '80s-inspired pop on his 2025 album I Love What We Do. On it, he threw open the doors to invite a large number of collaborators -- a list of which contains the talents of Chadwick, multi-instrumentalist Hank Clifton-Williamson, harpist Genevieve Fry, cellist Jessica Venables, and musical saw player Emma Kelley, as well as backing vocalists Emma Russack, Chloe Sanger, and acclaimed folk singer Margret Roadknight. Splicing in rain sounds throughout, the album finds O'Connor adding a touch of warmth to the sound through the use on non-synthesized instruments.
© Tim Sendra /TiVo