Intricate finger-style guitar and dreamy vocals reflect the deeply contemplative and evocative lyrics of Melbourne’s Ernest Aines.
A multi-award winning songwriter, noting over a decade of experience, Ernest’s uniquely pure and thoughtful sound has enchanted both fans and critics across the globe.
Ernest’s journey began with busking in the streets of Melbourne, and progressed to him gracing the stages of celebrated events like The Australian Open, The Melbourne Grand Prix, The Port
Fairy Folk Festival, Rockhampton Riverfest, The St. Kilda Festival and Canberra’s Floriade Nightfest. He has appeared regionally in Victoria in Ararat, Hepburn Springs, Creswick, Newstead, Maldon, Castlemaine, Lorne, Geelong, Sorrento, Westernport and Port Fairy, and his indie-folk
styling and unique vocal delicacy has been compared to James Taylor, Jeff Buckley, Ray Lamontagne and Bon Iver.
Ernest’s commitment to captivating live audiences honed by years of busking and hundreds of gigs, means that he can stop people in their tracks and get heads turned towards him and his music. In 2021, Ernest was selected for the Sounds Australia Folk Alliance International Showcase, an achievement that would see his presence within modern folk grow exponentially in the months to follow.
This year he has played multiple Folk Alliance International Showcases at the yearly conference in Kansas City (including being sponsored by Sounds Australia for the official showcase and the Library of Congress Archive for a special tribute show). Several industry deals have emerged from this, including management and an international booking agent.
He has since released three original singles from his highly-anticipated new album – a project five years in the making. The single ‘Rigged Games’ spoke volumes on behalf of Ernest’s unfiltered, authentic approach to the art-form, with live performance clips depicting a compelling devotion to the heartache and desperation of the writing. Along with the single ‘So Far’, the new music has amassed thousands of streams online, and Ernest’s second single ‘Yellowstone’ earned high-
rotation at ABC Country.
Ernest has taken home multiple awards for songwriting over the years, beginning with an Apollo Bay Festival Young Songwriter Competition win back in 2010. He has since noted finalist positions at the International Songwriting Competition (2013), the Melbourne Songwriting Competition
(2016), and the Australian Songwriting Awards (2021), along with another win in 2020, for the City of Melbourne Online Song Competition. 2020 also saw him earn the runner-up position at the Cygnet Folk Festival Song Awards.
Armed with only a guitar and a stomp box, Ernest’s humble arrangements lay bare the evocative nuances and innate charms of his approach. A master of both the stage and the studio, Ernest brings together poetic musings and contemporary storytelling – inspiring a sense of wonder and depth that’s unmistakable once it’s crossed your path.
