When a degree in jazz saxophone just isn’t enough to satisfy the creative itch, you go the plan B route of writing and producing some of the best indie pop and rock songs of 2017. It’s a tale as old as time and the path followed by Alex Lahey: a 25-year-old, Melbournian songwriter and musician who will be performing at uni on Concrete Lawns this Tuesday at 1.

Following up on her breakout song in 2016, ‘You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me’, which took out a spot in Triple J’s Hottest 100, and her EP B-Grade University, Lahey released a new album in 2017 through her own label, Nicky Boy Records, entitled I Love You Like a Brother. The album’s powerful melodies and down-to-earth lyrics, indicative of Lahey’s own dry and straightforward wit, catapulted the album to peak at #15 on the Australian Charts. She has also been nominated for a J Award in the category of ‘Unearthed Artist of the Year’, and her releases have received critical acclaim from the likes of Pitchfork and Noisey, among many others.

She’s been on a worldwide tour since early December last year following her Australian shows in October 2017, hitting locations all across the US and Europe. She has played several well-known festivals, including Australia’s , and is embarking on an Australian tour in April this year. With some shows already sold out, a second Melbourne show has already been added at 170 Russell on April the 18th.

We asked Alex some questions to find out some more about her:

Q: What was played around the house when you were growing up?
A: Although no one in my family actually plays music themselves, I was always surrounded by a super eclectic mix of styles of music growing up. Everything from Maria Kallas to Bob Seger to Miles Davis makes up my mum’s musical palate

Q: Who would be on your ideal festival line-up?
A: An even split of genders across the line-up, as reflected in programming from announcement to the day itself, and a Mary’s burger stand.

Q: What was the first album you ever bought?
A: Like a good young woman growing up in the 90’s, the first album that I can ever remember owning is Spiceworld by The Spice Girls.