NME’s latest star of The Cover, Nick Ward, has shared an exclusive playlist to accompany the story’s launch – check it out below.
The Australian singer-songwriter is on this week’s (September 9) edition of The Cover, a renewal of NME’s commitment to supporting emerging talent across the globe on a weekly basis. Every week, a rising artist will feature on The Cover – you can read the profile of Nick Ward here, written by Sophie Williams and featuring photography by Dean Podmore.
Accompanying the story is an exclusive playlist of songs that soundtracked Ward’s first tour of Europe, which took place earlier this year and included an appearance at All Points East in August. The playlist features songs by Aphex Twin, The Cure and Stereolab, among others – but also a more recent track by Aussie duo Armlock, ‘Fear’.
Listen to the full playlist on Spotify below and on Apple Music.
Nick Ward’s appearance on The Cover comes ahead of his debut album ‘House With The Blue Door’, which explores identity, family ties and the difficulties of growing up. “In high school, I struggled with not feeling seen or respected for who I was,” the 23-year-old Sydney native tells NME. “So throwing myself into the album felt like proving that I could do something that has meaning. Making music is an act of becoming a better person.”
For his Cover story, Ward also reflected on collaborating with Troye Sivan for the pop star’s blockbuster album ‘Something To Give Each Other’. “Troye’s vision was so strong for what he wanted to do [with that album] and I learned so much from being around him,” Ward says. “As a human, he is also so generous and graceful. He doesn’t compromise on things and is such a fucking remarkable artist.” Ward will open for Sivan when he tours Australia in support of the album later this year.
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Find out more about Nick Ward in the full Cover story here and see who else has been on The Cover here.