LIKE almost everybody Ryan Williams had multiple plans ruined by the COVID pandemic. Overseas travel. Album releases. Tours.
But once the NTL Landmarks frontman realised we're all ultimately powerless in this "wild world" he was able to move beyond the disappointment and channel it into creativity.
"I was talking to my psychologist and he was like, 'you think you're in control of your life, but it turns out you're not and you're just moving through with an idea and you're kind of powerless at the end of the day to change things'," Williams said.
"That stuck with me and helped get through a bit."
One of the song ideas to emerge in the early days of the 2020 lockdown will finally be released on Friday. Wild is the first new material released by NTL Landmarks since the Newcastle indie band's 2019 single Phased.
Wild sees the four-piece of Williams (vocals, guitar), his wife Gillian Adamson (vocals, bass), Lachlan Dolbel (guitar) and Alex Thorpe (drums) modernising the jangly '80s indie sound of Australian bands The Go-Betweens and The Triffids.
The track was produced by Vacations frontman Campbell Burns and comes complete with a dream-infused video, filmed by photographer Charlie Hardy.
Wild is the first single off NTL Landmarks' six-track EP, Still Frames, due for release later this year before Williams and Adamson turn their attention to the arrival of their first child in January.
"There's faster songs like Wild, but then there's some slower ballad songs, which is new for us," Williams said. "I think everyone has matured in their songwriting and playing.
"The pandemic takes you out of your circles and I don't think you realise how much you absorb from the circles you're in, so the ballads have come out because everything slowed down."
After a three-year break between shows NTL Landmarks have slowly ventured back to live gigs recently. Even with a baby on the way Williams said he and Adamson are committed to keeping NTL Landmarks active.
"You see other bands and artists doing the things that they love and sharing that with the baby," he said. "[Artist] Lottie Consalvo and [artist, musician] James Drinkwater are ones we look at. They're famous artists but also have a family life and it's inspiring to see that stuff shared with their kids."
NTL Landmarks release Wild on Friday.
