Feature: Derek Lee Goodreid Decodes “Tattoos, Blues and Nothing Left to Lose”
What was the creative process like for this particular track "Tattoos, Blues and Nothing Left to Lose?"
I wrote the song during a songwriting session with the Australian Songwriters Retreat. We would get a prompt, this was Infinite Possibilities and it sparked within me the time I moved from Perth a fairly small city to Oslo, Norway a fairly large city and how it felt to discover new frontiers and places I hadn’t experienced before in Scandinavia, Europe and the UK.
Were there any challenges or breakthrough moments during the songwriting process for this song?
I think the lines ‘shake the dust from my boots’ and 'it's time to move on' summed up how I have been feeling when it comes to relationships where people throughout my life treated me as less than and made it pretty obvious that they didn’t value my friendship. It was good to recognise it and move on over these last few years and find new friendships and people who support me and want to see me succeed. It was good to discover that fresh perspective when writing the song.
What has been one of your most favorite memories along the path to making "Tattoos, Blues and Nothing Left to Lose?"
Discovering that I am worthy of love and that I am not beholden to my past. That I can grow and become who I was meant to be. Writing this song after investing time and effort for the last five years in therapy dealing with cPTSD, clinical depression and social anxiety, I can see the growth reflected in my lyrics and songwriting and it’s an empowering feeling.
Are there any upcoming projects or releases that you're particularly excited about?
I have two albums this year. ‘Built to Last’ which is coming out on the first of March is a sort of acoustic guitar country music confessional, filled with heartache, hope, pedal steel, banjo and violin. “Tattoos, Blues and Nothing Left to Lose” is the opening track and sets the tone of the journey of discovering yourself and your place in the world.
The second album, ‘Accelerated Heartbreak,’ coming out in August is a wild punk, stoner rock, psychobilly ride. A lot of fuzz, distortion, anger and raw emotions. Feels great to let loose on electric guitar and it also features lead guitar from psychobilly legend Adrian Whyte, my mentor and guitar teacher on two of the songs, Bulletproof Underwear and Racing Against Death.
Is there a specific song that holds a particularly special meaning to you? Can you share the story behind it?
I don’t think that song exists for me. l haven’t heard it or I haven’t written it yet. Every song I write is a piece of the puzzle that makes me who I am and every song I hear influences me in some way, either by rejecting it or embracing it. I think that is why I keep writing and keep discovering new music.