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Body of Work has released the final single from a collaboration with Manchester artist Dan B. Hill, completing the Secondhand Blues EP.
‘Durutti / Durruti Poem’, the title of which is a nod to both the sound and kaupapa of another Manchester act, The Durutti Column – and the Spanish anarchist movement their name is in turn a nod to – is a reflection on the times, and the erosion of a certain kind of humanity.

“I wrote most of the lyrics to ‘Durutti / Durruti Poem’ five years ago, filled in some gaps during COVID, felt and hoped subsequently that the moment might’ve passed – and now sadly the themes of the song are once again far too aligned with the current local and universal moment.

“As the release of ‘Durutti / Durruti Poem’ signals the completion of the Secondhand Blues EP, I want to clearly thank dbh for asking me to work with the songs he’d created – and assuming I could, and Shannon for enabling me to see that through in such a classy yet unassuming way.”

Body of Work has released four earlier singles from the Secondhand Blues EP. Title track ‘Secondhand Blues’ is a summery bop that plays with themes of time and distance; ‘Remember My Decision For One Day’ a reminder that the cloud will always lift; ‘Maudlin To None’ a reflection on the pull between places a person can feel – while first single ‘Bottle To Go’ communicates the pursuit of connection within the context of loneliness.

Birthed in 2019 by the Birmingham-born, West Yorkshire-based Hill, who asked Illingworth to write lyrics for some pop tracks he’d banged out on Logic, the songs have finally been finished – several years after she moved back to Aotearoa c/o Covid.

With initial support from Cam Ballantyne (We Were Dangerous, Nude Tuesday), the songs were rearranged as live entities, mostly performed and entirely produced by Shannon Fowler (Tom Lark, Shannon Matthew Vanya, The Fuzzy Robes). Fowler engineered the tracks, assisted by Maude Morris (Lexxa, LIPS) on ‘Bottle To Go’ and ‘Thinking Of You’. Julien Dyne (himself, The Circling Sun, Half Hexagon) plays drums on ‘Bottle To Go’, ‘Maudlin To None’ and ‘Remember My Decision For One Day’. Jere Toy (Lennie Charles, She’s So Rad, Leonard Simpson Duo) mastered the EP. Thanks also to Big Pop and Big Fan for their generosity and support with studio space.

Secondhand Blues is out now on Bandcamp.

Tracklist:

Bottle To Go (released 16 August 2024)
Maudlin To None (released 4 October 2024)
Remember My Decision For One Day (released 15 November 2024)
Secondhand Blues (released 16 February 2025)
Durutti / Durruti Poem

The cost of making these recordings was covered in part by Irirangi Te Motu | NZ On Air’s New Music Development fund.

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Sarah Illingworth is a writer and communications practitioner from Tāmaki Makaurau. She has a background in music journalism and academic communications, as well as writing to exorcise her feelings. Her musicianship’s limited, but she’s been working on it in her own time – particularly since she moved to Manchester in 2014. Now based back in Aotearoa, she’s releasing the first of a number of songs she’s been working on.

Shannon Fowler is an artist and producer from Ōtautahi. As well as making other people sound good, he makes music as Tom Lark, Shannon Matthew Vanya and The Fuzzy Robes. His 2023 Tom Lark album Brave Star saw him nominated for the 2023 APRA Silver Scroll Awards | Kaitito Kaiaka, the 2024 Taite Music Prize, and Te Manu Taki Ahurea o te Tau | Best Folk Artist at the 2024 Aotearoa Music Awards.

Photo credit:
(2) Pictured: Sarah Illingworth by María Inés Manchego
(3) Pictured: Shannon Fowler by Tony Capri