The kangaroo might be the animal most closely associated with Australia, but the dingo is its most controversial. Harmful and inaccurate press coverage has led to the vilification of an animal that, let’s face it, is just doing what it has evolved to do. Thankfully, we have people like The Amanda Emblem Experiment helping to set the record straight.
The band’s latest single, called logically enough, “Ancient Dingo,” was inspired by a camping holiday on K’gari (Fraser Island), home to a protected, pure-bred dingo colony, and a desire to honor the creature and advocate caution on the part of people going into its natural habitat was born.
Mixing folksome lilts and rock energies, rootsy rhythms and an indie-pop accessibility, the song runs on an almost reggae groove as it seeks to honor and inform about this misunderstood creature.
There are two versions of the song found here. The first is electric guitar-driven, full of ska off-beats and effortless contagion, clever breakdowns, and masterful returns, and is taken from last year’s album, The Wood. Its sonic travelling companion is a stripped-back acoustic version, still buoyant and bouncy, laced with the sound of that other quintessential Australian symbol, the didgeridoo, the sparser nature of the track helping to push the lyrics to the fore.
Music that informs and entertains, a stark reminder of the primal nature of the subject matter, and hopefully helps address the creatures’ standing, or at least ensures that, as humans, we realise we are far from the alpha when we step out into the wild.
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