Born and raised in the coastal Victorian town of Jan Juc, Xavier Rudd has always been passionate about his spiritual connection to the Earth. Culture and community were ingrained in his soul from the second he first smelt a cool ocean breeze, and such has been a central theme of his music thus far. So for his milestone tenth album, Jan Juc Moon, Rudd endeavoured to embrace his roots more poignantly than ever before. And from the moment that the first gauzy, glittering synth on ‘I Am Eagle’ rings out, it’s clear he succeeded.
Don’t let the 70-minute runtime throw you off: on , Rudd explores everything from twee folk-rock and sunkissed indie to kaleidoscopic psych-pop, whiskey-soaked blues and belting hip-hop. Imbibed with the influence of traditional First Nations is Rudd’s magnum opus – and he knows it, with plans to spread it to the farthest corners of so-called Australia on a 37-date road tour.
