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Music

Get a Piece of Western Sydney Pop Wonder Dominic Talarico

We chat to Dominic about 'Piece’, his new EP of modern pop and R&B.

A 40-minute train ride west of the city centre, Rooty Hill isn't one of the most glamorous or urbane parts of Sydney. With the hulking Rooty Hill RSL considered by many as the area's cultural/entertainment beacon, it's not somewhere you immediately associate with sophisticated pop and R&B. But for Dominic Talarico Rooty Hill's affordable housing drew him out along the Great Western Highway, and it's where he created and produced Piece his latest EP of modern R&B.

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The five-songs move from bouncy ABRA like R&B "Could This Be Love", smoky jams "Never Come Through" to "I'm Done", an ode to growing old featuring slow piano and lyrics about living on a steady diet of servo food and chasing a shitty high with caps and rack.

If the song was delivered in a sped up Nottingham accent it could be something from Sleaford Mods, as it is, it's delivered by an astute and talented guy holed up in Western Sydney in a house with no internet.

Listen to the EP below and read a brief chat we had with Dominic.

Noisey: What's the Rooty Hill RSL like? 
Dominic Talarico: I saw Bobby Brown there last year, which was pretty cool. Most of the time they have tribute acts playing but I guess most people are there for the pokies and races. They used to have a sign that read: 'The Vegas of the West'. I was told the City of Las Vegas sent them a cease and desist so they took it down.

What are you doing out at Rooty Hill? 
I'm living here because its affordable, Sydney is pricey theses days. There isn't much to do out here, I don't even have the internet! Boredom makes me creative though. I probably wouldn't have finished the EP by now if I wasn't living here.

A friend described your music as a 'thug version of Arthur Russell'-Ha! What do you say to that? 
I don't think I'm a thug but 90s R&B and hip-hop definitely shaped me as a musician. When I was in school everyone was listening to Nirvana, while I was listening to R&B, hip-hop and pop. I didn't really listen to bands or anything experimental until I was older. Arthur Russell definitely changed the way I listened to music. He could make a country song then a disco song as if he wasn't bound by genre.

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Pop is often seen as light and frivolous but your songs seem very personal and come with a lot of emotional investment. Were they written from real love/relationships? Particularly "Could This Be Love"?
I wrote that song about the moment when you're falling for someone, and the line between obsession and love is blurred. It had been a long time since I'd been in love, so the feeling was foreign to me which is why i'm asking myself that question in the song.

Tyler James Burrows helps out on the EP.  Where is he from? 
Tyler is from the Central Coast, 'm friends with Tyler's brother Joel, who suggested we work together. I was really impressed with the beats Tyler was making and had no idea that he also a guitar maestro.  As soon as we started working we knew we had a strong musical connection because we'd always have a song or two by the end of every session. I contacted Tyler yesterday to put the guitar on "Between Us" which he did in under an hour. I'm lucky to work with someone so talented.

What's your take on current pop in 2016?
Carly Rae Jepsen is not getting enough love. Emotion was the most underrated pop release of last year and she released some B-sides recently that are just as good. I also liked Ariana Grande's new album.

What's your live show like?
Sometimes I have Julian Shaw play beats and sometimes I just sing along to my iPod. It makes for a convenient live show when you've got everything you need in your pocket. I never play the same set twice and usually tailor my set to a venue. I tend to play more of a party set in clubs and more of my slower songs when I'm playing in a pub.