Dewayne Everettsmith - Surrender (2014)

Widely known as the voice of Tourism Australia’s 2012 international advertising campaign with the soulful, string-embellished folk of It’s Like Love, Dewayne Everettsmith’s debut album Surrender further establishes the musician as a technically beautiful vocalist proficient in communicating old-school charm and depth of emotion. The album’s title track, featuring a guest appearance from Brisbane’s Thelma Plum, is playful and fun, while melaythina is a slow-harmony song of welcome in the Palawa Kani Tasmanian Aboriginal language. It is lovely though to finally hear Everettsmith let loose, shaking off some the adult contemporary appeal with the rhythmic roots-style Whisper.