Natalie D-Napoleon

Natalie Damjanovich-Napoleon (born 3 August 1972), known professionally as Natalie D-Napoleon, is an Australian singer-songwriter, poet, and writer of creative non-fiction from Fremantle, Western Australia. Through fronting the Perth-based ensemble Flavour of the Month, she was a forerunner in the emergence of alternative country music within Australia and was the winner of the 2018 Bruce Dawe National Poetry Prize.

Natalie D-Napoleon
Background information
OriginFremantle, Western Australia, Australia
GenresFolk, Country, Alternative country
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter
Instrumentsvocals, guitar
Years active1996–present
LabelsTreadmill Records, Syrinx Music/MGM, Foghorn Records, Household Ink Records
Associated actsFlavour of the Month, Bloom, Victoria Williams, Kenny Edwards, Doug Pettibone
Websitewww.nataliednapoleon.net

Music

Natalie D-Napoleon's emergence upon the Western Australian music scene came via fronting the alternative pop band Bloom. In 1997 Bloom won the Western Australian Music Industry Award for Most Promising New Act.[1]

Following the demise of Bloom, D-Napoleon, along with Month of Sunday's guitarist Grant Ferstat, formed an alternative country ensemble Flavour of the Month.[2] The band's name was taken from the title of a song by The Posies from their album Frosting on the Beater. Flavour of the Month subsequently supported Ken Stringfellow of The Posies on one of his first solo tours of Australia. The band toured nationally in Australia as well undertaking tours of the United States and Europe.

During this period D-Napoleon also contributed backing vocals to several independent recordings including Road to Rome by DM3, which was one of the first solo albums by Dom Mariani after the hibernation of The Stems,[3] and former Stonemason's frontman, Joe Algeri's, solo debut Everything Under The Sun,[4] along with singing with alternative-country band, The Jayco Brothers, on their release Asbestos Fibro.[5]

After the demise of Flavour in the Month in 2005, D-Napoleon started performing solo and in November 2007 released her debut solo recording, a five-track EP titled "After The Flood".[6]

In 2009, D-Napoleon undertook two further solo recording. In April 2009 she collaborated with Santa Barbara-based musician and producer Jesse Rhodes on a six-track EP of cover versions. Titled Here in California the release features three songs from Australian composers and three songs from Americans.[7] The recording features the collective talents of D-Napoleon, Rhodes, Kenny Edwards, Dan Phillips, Phil Parlapiano, and Sally Barr.[8]

In May 2009, D-Napoleon started work on her debut solo album. Partly funded by a Western Australia Department of Culture and the Arts Music Production Grant,[9] the album was recorded at Sound Design Studios in Santa Barbara and produced by David Piltch. The recording features the collective talents of Kenny Edwards, Dan Phillips, Aaron Sterling, Greg Leisz, Victoria Williams, Phil Parlapiano, Jesse Rhodes, and Melanie Robinson.[10]

Prior to returning permanently to Australia in 2019, D-Napoleon recorded a new album of material titled You Wanted To Be The Shore But Instead You Were The Sea. Produced by James Connolly and featuring Dan Phillips, and Doug Pettibone, the album was recorded with a single microphone in a historic chapel nestled in the hills behind Santa Barbara.[11] You Wanted To Be The Shore But Instead You Were The Sea was released in Australia on October 1, 2020 and debuted on the Australian Independent Record Labels Association (AIR) 100% Independent Chart at No. 5 for the week beginning October 6.[12]

In the live arena, D-Napoleon has shared billings with the likes of Morphine, Ken Stringfellow, Jack Frost (featuring Steve Kilbey and Grant McLennan), The Stems, John Butler, Ash Grunwald, Dan Kelly, Whitley, Nic Dalton, Todd Snider, The Gin Club, John Doe, Mia Dyson, Mark Olson, Victoria Williams and Vic Chesnutt. More recently she played the Sings Like Hell (Music Series) staged at Santa Barbara's historic Lobero Theater.

Writing and poetry

Having had poetry and creative non-fiction work published in journals such as Westerly, Meanjin, Southerly, and Australian Poetry Journal, D-Napoleon was a finalist for the Penelope Niven Creative Nonfiction Award in the 2018 and 2017 International Literary Awards through the Center for Women Writers.[13]

In 2018 D-Napoleon was awarded the Bruce Dawe National Poetry Prize for her poem "First Blood: A Sestina" and in 2019 her most recent book, First Blood, was released through Ginninderra Press. The book includes a collection of poems-as-memoir that challenge the preconceptions of girlhood.

In 2019 D-Napoleon was the International Guest Poet at the 2019 Perth Poetry Festival.[14]

Personal life

Resides in Santa Barbara, California and Fremantle, Western Australia.

Discography

Albums
  • Leaving Me Dry (2012)
  • You Wanted To Be The Shore But Instead You Were The Sea (2020)

EPs
  • After The Flood (2007)
  • Here in California (2009)

Singles
  • Thunder Rumor (2020)
  • Wildflowers (2021)
  • You Wanted To Be The Shore But Instead You Were The Sea (2021)

As Bloom
  • The Cable Thing (1997)

As Flavour of the Month
  • Fear of Falling (2000)

Compilations
  • Kiss My WAMI, "Daisygrinding", WAM (2001)
  • Zipped Up and Down Under, "Daisygrinding", Zip Records (2001)
  • Pop On Top, "Sweetness Melting", Zip Records, (2002)
  • Dead Fox Compilation, "Slow Burn", Hooked Up Records (2008)
  • HomeGrown Roots 3, "Slow Burn", Foghorn Records (2008)
  • HomeGrown Roots 4, "To Her Door", Foghorn Records (2008)
  • Sounds Like Cafe, "To Her Door", Foghorn Records (2009)
  • Under the Covers, "You Shook Me All Night Long", ABC Music (2011)

Other recorded appearances
  • Everything Under the Sun by Joe Algeri (1994)
  • Road to Rome by DM3 (1996)
  • Asbestos Fibro by The Jayco Brothers (2007)

References
  1. "WAM – West Australian Music". www.wam.org.au.
  2. "Flavour of the Month | Folk from Perth, WA, AU". ReverbNation.
  3. "Road to Rome". www.discogs.com.
  4. "Everything Under The Sun". www.discogs.com.
  5. "Asbestos Fibro, The Jayco Bothers". www.independent.com.
  6. "SB Questionnaire: Natalie D-Napoleon". www.independent.com.
  7. "Natalie D-Napoleon". RTRFM / The Sound Alternative.
  8. "Have You Heard: Natalie D-Napoleon". themusic.com.au.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 26 May 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2009.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. "Triple J Unearthed". www.abc.net.au.
  11. "Creative Collections". www.creativecollectionsblog.com.
  12. "AIR 100% Independent Chart". www.air.org.au.
  13. "Natalie D-Napoleon". 15 December 2018.
  14. "PressReader.com – Your favorite newspapers and magazines". www.pressreader.com.
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