Wakin' up to say hip hip hooray

I'm glad I'm gay

-’Come Out Singing’ by Lavender Country

In celebration of MELT Festival 2026, Some Folk and Black Bear Lodge present four exciting queer songwriters. Welcome to Lavender Country.

With their infectious pop hooks and dynamic wall-of-sound, Fletcher Dunn has been compared to 5 Seconds Of Summer, Broadside, & G-Flip for their sonic similarities & lyrical themes of mental health & queer issues.

Mathilde Anne writes music for the strange and tender-hearted. The Australian alt-pop artist weaves haunting, introspective songwriting with atmospheric pop and folk storytelling. Drawing inspiration from Billie Eilish, Patrick Watson and The Cranberries, her music explores grief, self-acceptance and empowerment.

Pearl Hart wasn’t born, but came out of an oyster that washed upon the Obi river banks. From a humiliating dedication to telling the truth as a recovering liar, she turned to songs. Stories about owls and bus stops and sleep, abandoned houses and ladders leading nowhere. She uses codes from folk music, rock music, the rhythm of a good joke and the sound of church bells in attempts to tell a story about something undefined.

STAN are a Magandjin based three-piece alternative rock band making fuzzy, scrappy guitar music. Founder, vocalist and songwriter Stan crafts every witty and candid lyric with their soul bare, tackling themes of mental health, loss, addiction and identity. Stan is now a year into transition and finding his feet as a singer with a noticeably deeper voice. It's a big journey and he couldn't be more excited for the next chapter. STAN will hit you in the feels as listeners are invited to find comfort in our shared experiences (and your dad will probably love it too!).

“Lavender Country", A Queer Songwriter Night