gently tearing down a studio, a gut microbiome, and old-school emo – welcome to mumdeathcake’s world
In the middle of moving house and tearing down a studio, Naarm-based artist mumdeathcake is already living in the emotional in-between space that defines his new EP, it’s not a race.
Between old-school emo playlists, squeezy yoghurts, and a rural Victorian upbringing in Numurkah, his world is equal parts tender and chaotic.
We caught up with him about vulnerability, slowcore influences like Duster, and why writing songs feels like “filing things away in a cabinet” while preparing to release the brutally honest EP.
It’s a raw snapshot of growing up, slowing down, and letting go along the way here.
HAPPY: What’d you get up to today?
mumdeathcake:I’m in the middle of moving, so I’ve been tearing down the studio in prep for the move while listening to old-school emo and smashing down squeezy yoghurts. The end of an era (and bad gut microbiota).
HAPPY: Tell us a little about where you’re from, and what you love about it!
I’m from town in rural Victoria called Numurkah. It’s alot quieter than the city and I really miss that aspect of rural life. Everything’s so fast paced here and it just feels like things slow down back home.
HAPPY: First off, for the uninitiated, where did the name “mumdeathcake” come from?
mumdeathcake: Ahh. This is so bleak, but my wife, Alex and I have a band name list in her notes app (like any good muso) and alot of ‘em tend to come from whack phrases in everyday conversation.
This was one of those. We were heading to my Alex’s mate’s place for dinner with him and his mum and Alex had made this cake.
When we rocked up the vibe was just kinda off and we found out that her mate’s grandmother had died.
We kinda sat there awkwardly for a bit in that shit realisation and Alex broke the silence with “well, I brought a cake”.
Without missing a beat, Alex’s mate turns to his mum and goes “ah, a mum death cake”.
We all had a good giggle about it and all of us were like; “chuck it on the list”.
We then proceeded to smash the majority of the most depressing cake ever after dinner.
I guess what stuck out to me about it was just the morbid humour that made us all laugh in a really heavy moment.
It’s a little glimpse of humour and human kindness through the worst moments and I feel like that really encapsulated the feel of this project as a whole.
HAPPY: This new EP is described as “brutally honest.” Now that you’re gearing up to release it, how are you feeling about putting such vulnerable material out into the world?
mumdeathcake: Look, it never gets easier, every EP I feel like I write songs that are more and more vulnerable and every time, its a struggle to reconcile with the fact that they’ll be out in the world.
With this EP I’ve been able to touch on some really personal stuff that I haven’t touched on before and while that’s super freeing artistically, there’s always that fear of putting your heart on your sleeve so obviously.
HAPPY: The title ‘it’s not a race’ feels like a mantra for creative work.
What was the main message or feeling you wanted to capture across the EP as a whole?
mumdeathcake:In a literal sense, it’s a little mantra for myself, I tend to measure my self worth in output and achievements (which is not healthy btw).
On an artistic level, this EP is a reminder that things take time and its okay to take that time.
It’s about growing into yourself, finding who you are (the good and the bad) and realising that you’re gonna be on that journey forever.
These songs are really just a time capsule of what was in my head at the time I came to that realisation for myself.
HAPPY: The lead single, ‘billy no mates,’ is a conversation with your younger self.
Looking back, what’s the most important piece of advice you’d give to that version of you?
mumdeathcake: Protect your peace, and stop with the people pleasing… please. Oh and get out of your own head and touch grass once in a while.
HAPPY: The EP touches on mental health, co-dependence, and the inevitability of change.
Do you find the songwriting process itself helps you process those heavier themes, or does it just make you more aware of them?
mumdeathcake: For me, writing a song is kind of like filing something away in a cabinet. It’s like the final step of processing a feeling, concept or point in time.
That doesn’t mean that I won’t feel those feelings again, but it means I’ve got something tangible to keep me aware of them and hold myself accountable if that makes sense?
HAPPY: You’ve said you were listening to a lot of slowcore and emo while writing this. Are there any specific albums or bands that you feel secretly influenced the sound of it’s not a race?
mumdeathcake:Duster’s Stratosphere LP was a massive influence on the movement of the songs, I feel like alot of that sluggish slowcore dreaminess came across in these songs.
The other big one would probably be Citizen’s As You Please LP, purely for their experimentation and diversity across the record.
That record really redefines what rock music can be for me and made me push the boundaries of what I thought mumdeathcake could sound like.
HAPPY: Looking at the year ahead, with the release and the live shows on the horizon, what does a dream 2026 look like for mumdeathcake?
mumdeathcake:I just wanna play music around Melbourne with my best mates to people that dig the songs and have fun doing it.
HAPPY: Lastly, what makes you happy?
mumdeathcake:A good gut microbiome and Bloons TD6 playthroughs on YouTube. I’m a simple man.
