Riverside cottages, evening swims, wine, astrology and mystic tapestries, Mere Women’s Amy Wilson tells Al Grigg on Arvos all about the pleasure and pain of their latest album, ‘Romantic Notions’.

Recorded on the cusp of the pandemic, Mere Women’s latest album ‘Romantic Notions’ has been burning a hole in the band’s collective pockets. Written in the band’s riverside cottage on the Hawkesbury, ‘Romantic Notions’ is an album that captured something new for the band. While their previous outing ‘Big Skies’ dealt with themes of alienation from a move to far west NSW, the writing of ‘Romantic Notions’ felt like more of a homecoming.

“I feel so connected to that part of Sydney… My grandmother used to take me out to that part of the Ku-ring-gai National Park as a kid growing up. All the colours and the smells and the bird sounds are very familiar to me, I definitely felt at home.”

Drawing inspiration from her surroundings and upbringing, Romantic Notions deals with a series of concepts and wisdom passed down through the generations from her grandmother. An astrologer and mystic, the lessons learnt from her make up the fabric of the album.

“The tracks themselves are largely inspired by ideas from her world of astrology and mysticism and things that have just filtered down through the generations and have just become part of who we are. It’s our family.”

While the album delves lyrically into Amy’s world, the album as a whole was a labour of love from all the members involved, each adding their piece creating the “fantasy” around the world of ‘Romantic Notions’.

“The way we have written this record is a very much a collaborative thing. It would sound nothing like what it sounds if any one of us was missing. We’ve all put a lot into it.”

Listen to the full interview to hear Amy reveal her favourite musical baby, future Mere Women tour plans and the amazing story behind the tapestry on the band’s album artwork.

Tune in to Arvos with Grace Farrell and Al Grigg every Friday from 3pm!