"warmth flecked with grit... beauty awaits"
rolling stone
Nigel Wearne saunters after dark in the music of the night, blending blues, folk and Americana-noir. Hailing from Gunditjmara country in the deep south of Australia, he's a guitarist and multi-instrumentalist with diverse influences such as Nick Cave, Tom Waits and Gillian Welch. A deep thinker and truth speaker with a penchant for all things peculiar, he sings of human frailty, grace and the cosmos; songwriting that cuts to the bone.
Nigel has toured Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Canada and he's performed at a long list of music festivals, including the Port Fairy Folk Festival, Adelaide Guitar Festival and Queenscliff Music Festival.
His sophomore album, Black Crow garnered wide critical acclaim including a 4-STAR review in Rolling Stone, a nomination for Best Country Album at the Music Victoria Awards and debuted at #1 on the AMRAP Charts. Singer-songwriter, luthier, poet and gleaner; Wearne paints lyrical pictures with “the narrative-fuelled prose of Paul Kelly” – BEAT MAGAZINE. “An eruption of energy, rhythm and melody” – RHYTHMS MAGAZINE.
Check out Nigel's luthier work HERE.
AUSTRALIAN SINGER-SONGWRITER
LUTHIER, POET & GLEANER
UPCOMING FESTIVALS
APR – MerleFest USA
APR – Old Settlers Music Festival USA
AUG – Multiple US festivals (yet to be announced)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
2023 – Folk Alliance International OFFICIAL Showcase
2023 – AmericanaFest UK OFFICIAL Showcase
2023 – UK Winter Tour
2022 – Music Victoria Awards Nominee – Best Folk Work for 'Above The Bit'
2022 – Australian Folk Music Awards Finalist – Contemporary Album of The Year for 'Above The Bit'
2022 – Folk Alliance International OFFICIAL Showcase*Virtual
2021 – Folk Unlocked Showcase*Virtual
2020 – Folk Alliance International Showcase, New Orleans USA
2020 – Canadian Winter Tour
2019 – Folk Music Ontario Showcase, Toronto CANADA
2019 – Canadian Fall Tour
2019 – Folk Alliance International OFFICIAL Showcase, Montreal CANADA
2019 – Canadian Winter Tour
2017 – Triple j Unearthed Winner – Port Fairy Folk Festival Competition
2017 – New Zealand Tour
2016 – 'Drawing Circles' Double Album Release
2013 – Music Victoria Awards Nominee – Best Country Album for 'Black Crow'
FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS
2022 – Adelaide Guitar Festival, Cobargo Folk Festival, The River Folk Festival, Dorrigo Folk & Bluegrass Festival
2021 – Port Fairy Folk Festival March Concert Series
2020 – Cygnet Folk Festival, Blue Skies Music Festival (CANADA)*Virtual
2019 – Troubadour Festival (CANADA), Maldon Folk Festival, Dorrigo Folk & Bluegrass Festival, Tamworth Country Music Festival
2018 – Port Fairy Folk Festival, Cygnet Folk Festival, Wintermoon Festival, The River Folk Festival, Bendigo Blues & Roots Festival, 2 Worlds
2017 – Illawarra Folk Festival, Birregurra Festival, Blackwood Festival, Surrey Hills Music Festival
2016 – Adelaide Fringe Festival, Bendigo Blues & Roots Music Festival, Nightjar Festival, Wallaby Creek Festival, Tablelands Folk Festival
2015 – Blackwood Festival, Kangaroo Valley Folk Festival, Happy Wanderer Festival, Mount Beauty Music Festival, Yackandandah Folk Festival
2014 – Cygnet Folk Festival, Majors Creek Festival, Fleurieu Folk Festival, Newstead Live! Music Festival, Boolarra Folk Festival, Blackwood Festival
2013 – Wallaby Creek Festival, Wirrina Bluegrass Festival, Kingston Harvest Festival, Kyneton Music Festival, Avoca Music Festival, Fiddlehead Festival
2012 – Port Fairy Folk Festival, Dorrigo Folk & Bluegrass Festival, Black Mountain Unplugged, JamGrass Music Festival, Folk, Rhythm & Life
PRESS HIGHLIGHTS
"warmth flecked with grit... beauty awaits"
Rolling Stone
"a fine exponent of roots Americana"
RHYTHMS MAGAZINE
"Authentic and impressive"
DAVE RUBY HOWE, TRIPLE J UNEARTHED MUSIC DIRECTOR
'Open Mic Artist of The Month' - May 2017
FOLK ALLEY
"Drawing Circles is a glorious cinematic journey, harnessing life’s irregular swells"
THE MUSIC
"A great songwriter"
PAUL GOUGH, ABC Radio National
"the narrative-fuelled prose of Paul Kelly"
Beat Magazine
"an eruption of energy, rhythm and melody"
Rhythms Magazine
"one of Australia's emerging songwriters"
Tone Deaf
"Guitarist to Watch"
Australian Guitar Magazine
"decidedly Australian, a down-to-earth gritty edge"
The Box
"a delicate heart and crisp guitar"
The AU Review
"Painting lyrical pictures"
The Mercury
"music that really speaks"
Forte Magazine
