WHEN Newcastle-raised musician Chelsea Reed flew home from Canada after five years during the pandemic she returned with more than her suitcase.
With Reed was her new Canadian husband David Macmichael and a bunch of power-pop songs the couple had written for their two-piece The Tryouts.
In October The Tryouts released their impressive debut five-track EP, Nothing Bad Is Ever Going To Happen, featuring the catchy singles It Is What It Is and Washer, which falls somewhere between The Ben Folds Five and Weezer.
"Even before we were in a relationship our connection was definitely a musical one," Reed says. "We just really admired each other's songwriting and starting writing together then."
Reed (drums, vocals) met Macmichael (guitar, vocals) while the pair were working at a music venue in Toronto, Canada. Shortly after Reed hired Macmichael for her touring band and the seeds of love were sown.
However with Reed's work visa about to expire, the new couple had to expedite their union.
"Right after that she sprang it on me that if we were ever going to see each other again we were gonna have to get married," Macmichael said.
"So that is what we did so we could stay in Canada and we started working as a band at that point."
The impact of the pandemic on the Canadian music scene meant the couple decided to relocate to Reed's native Newcastle. Local music fans would remember Reed's previous eight-piece funk and soul band, Funkwit.
Macmichael couldn't be happier with the decision to move to Newcastle.
"It's like a wonderland," he said. "To me it's just better in every way.
"I love the lifestyle here. I love the weather here. I love the birds and the spiders.
"The other huge difference is the music pay here is mind-blowing, compared to what it was back home."
The Tryouts' strongest track Washer - which would rate among the best singles released in the Newcastle music scene in 2022 - was written during a songwriting holiday to Los Angeles where Macmichael was amazed that the sunny Californian weather allowed people to keep their white goods outside.
From there Reed and Macmichael used the idea of a washing machine and a dryer to compare their differences.
"It was supposed to be just a joke song about our relationship and joking about how it felt a little one-sided and the washer and dryer became the perfect metaphor for us," he said.
"It was the improvisation out in the backyard that we tinkered with for the next eight months to get the lyrics right."
There are several other two-pieces in Newcastle like Baam Bam and Midway and Macmichael said it suits The Tryouts perfectly.
"Everything is just down to the songs," he said. "It's down to the chords, the lyrics and the melodies and that's kind of the way we write and we like to keep the focus there."
You can catch The Tryouts along with The Dusky Lanes at the Oriental Hotel on Boxing Day.
