Cat Canteri finds relief in sharing traumatic experiences on Inner North

Not Cat Canteri. Post-gig you’ll find the Melbourne singer-songwriter among the punters sharing laughs and stories, and most importantly, making connections.

“Ultimately as a musician and a human being that’s what I crave, that sense of connection,” Canteri tells Weekender.

“I love that sense of connection to the musicians I play with and the audience. I really love talking to people after gigs, it’s one of my favourite things to do.”

Canteri is a rapid and articulate speaker. You sense her mouth struggles to keep pace with her thoughts and observations.

The former Stillsons drummer’s love of story-telling is obvious in the heart-breaking and heart-warming tales she has weaved on her acclaimed third solo album Inner North. 

The Americana and folk record was The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald’s album of the week on its release last month.

It’s a warts-and-all ode to growing up in the Melbourne suburb of Northcote and it’s various characters.

There’s Fitzroy Bowl about a young skater whose violent and dysfunctional family leads into a life of homelessness and Bridget Agnew, which Canteri composed from a 1857 newspaper article about an Irish immigrant who murdered her two children before committing suicide.

Suburban landmarks are name-dropped like Edinburgh Gardens or Coburg Lake, but Canteri says the stories are universal. 

“The songs and music I love is always music about the human condition and about human experience,” she says. 

“Everyone has different lives, personalities, family backgrounds, cultural heritage, but there’s things that tie us together and experiences that we all share, some beautiful and some really traumatic and ugly.”

Perhaps the most traumatic and personal tale for Canteri on Inner North is Pentridge Wasteland. It tells the story of a man who lived on Canteri’s street when she was a child and was friends with many children in the neighbourhood.

When Canteri was 15, the man then in his mid-30s, got her drunk and made a pass at her before she left. Several years later Canteri would learn the man was convicted twice of raping a minor and spent time in prison.

“Playing that song at gigs is really powerful,” she says. “I’ve had a lot of conversations with people after gigs about that song in particular and Fitzroy Bowl and Bridget Agnew, with are about difficult human experiences. I feel creating an environment where it’s OK to talk about those experiences is very important.

“With Pentridge Wasteland I’ve had many conversations about my experiences, their experiences and conversations that just wouldn’t have happened. I’m really grateful for that.”

Cat Canteri performs at the Stag and Hunter Hotel on July 14.