Nick Batterham is known for his work in iconic indie bands The Earthmen and Cordrazine, but he is putting on display his musically diverse skills through his forthcoming instrumental album ‘First Snow (music for piano and strings)’ due for release on 17 October. We are very honoured to premiere the video today for the title track ‘First Snow’.
As the title suggests, there is an Antarctic freshness to the track driven by a reflective atmospheric piano underpinned by sweeping strings that emerge through the notes. The strings cannot help but convey a heartbreakingly beautiful melancholy that gives it an element of poignancy and nostalgia.
The video, directed and edited by Batterham himself, is a series of almost vintage montages taken at night in a kaleidoscope of muted colours and endless movement. Batterham says of the video:
I’ve cobbled together this video clip using footage from two of the short films I made in my second year at VCA film school. All filmed on 16mm, they make a nice time capsule of the year 2000. The train and railway station footage was shot by Germain McMicking and the car and city shots were mostly filmed by Anna Jeffries, who upon seeing this clip said it was like an ancient archaeological record seeing people not using mobile phones!
It perfectly accompanies the reflective movements of the track:
The new album comprises new instrumental compositions for piano and strings, following on thematically from the artist’s recent soundtracks for installations by the visual artist Rone. The album will be released October 17 and works from it will be premiered alongside much-loved pieces from Batterham’s soundtracks for Rone’s installations at Tempo Rubato in Brunswick, Monday 10th November, 2025.
Batterham says of the new work:
I started with the pure intention to make an album of piano quartets, but some pieces called for more (or less) instrumentation. I’ve always followed my ear, trusting it to lead me to the right notes, the right emotions. I’ve learned over time to let each composition become its own thing, unfolding, revealing itself to me in its own time. Perhaps for this reason I’m so attracted to melody as a vehicle for emotion.
On ‘First Snow’, I’ve followed my ear into new sounds and tonal combinations, letting my fresh fascination with synthesizers permeate the album in places. Used sparingly, they create a warm and sparse landscape for the often-solitary strings to float above.
Everything was recorded and mixed at my studio in Pascoe Vale South over three years.
Looking back at this journey, I can see my own through line is the communication of emotion – expressing mine and helping others communicate theirs. This album is my first instrumental record of my own. Continuing from what I’ve gleaned from writing soundtracks, the pieces are slow and cinematic, meditative, and emotional, and open to interpretation. I hope you enjoy them.
Artists on the album are:
Zoë Black – violin
Christopher Moore – viola
Michelle Wood – cello
Nick Batterham – piano, synthesisers
The sleeve artwork is a detail from a beautiful painting titled ‘Blink’ by Melbourne/Naarm painter, Drez.
You can pre-order the album here.
Batterham will be launching the album on 10 November in Melbourne – details below and tickets available here.
