Lost in translation? Sam Nicholls turns life’s nonsense into gold with ‘Double Dutch’.
Since relocating from Melbourne to Newcastle, indie artist Sam Nicholls has carved out a distinctive space in the local music scene, blending introspective lyricism with a sound that nods to blues-rock and experimental influences.
His latest single, ‘Double Dutch’, set for release in July 2025, delves into the confusion and unpreparedness he felt transitioning into adulthood, using the metaphor of nonsensical guidance to capture the struggle.
The track marks a shift toward a heavier, riff-driven style, influenced by Newcastle’s rock scene and artists like Wunderhorse.
Currently on his first Australian double-headline tour, Nicholls reflects on his journey. From sold-out shows at The Lass O’Gowrie to waking up amidst banana trees after a Coffs Harbour backyard gig.
With “Double Dutch”, he invites listeners into his candid exploration of growing up, while hinting at more new music on the horizon.
Read on as Nicholls discusses the song’s origins, his evolving sound, and why a pub footy session with mates still tops his happiness list.
HAPPY: What’d you get up to today?
SAM NICHOLLS: Today I woke up the morning after my first show on tour in Coffs Harbour. It was a backyard show, on the most beautiful piece of property I’ve ever seen, meaning I was lucky enough to wake up in my swag and enjoy the sunrise over the acres and acres of banana trees up on the hills. Pretty surreal.
I then packed up all the gear into the car, and drove down the coast to Old Bar, where we’re playing tonight. We’ve got a fun little acoustic trio gig here, which will be good for satisfying my love for improvisation with a couple of the guys.
HAPPY: Tell us a bit about where you’re from, and why you love it!
NICHOLLS: From the ages of 5 to 20 I lived in the Brunswick area in Melbourne. It’s such a beautiful spot for embracing not only local music, but creativity on a whole.
Walking down Sydney Road on a Saturday night is one of the best community atmospheres ever – every second pub has a band on, others have DJs, there’s incredible restaurants – it’s just the best.
Everyone is also just really nice to each other which is very refreshing. The best thing that supplemented the awesome venues was how many good craft breweries are around, which are pouring all through the suburb.
The best setup for a Saturday night is: Retreat Hotel, live band on, with some Moon Dog Old Mate pale ales. Can’t beat that.
HAPPY: What’s the story behind “Double Dutch”?
NICHOLLS: This song started as I was completing a New York Times crossword before bed as I do every night. One of the prompts was “Double Dutch need”, with the answer being “rope”.
While this didn’t inspire me to write a song about skipping ropes, I did love the other meaning of the phrase, where people are talking to you nonsensically.
Since my previous double single, I’d been on the hunt for a song about the difficulties of entering adulthood, but struggling with my lyrics being too cliche, and this idea gave me an entrance into some lyrical lines I thought were pretty unique.
Immediately I wrote down what is now the second verse of the song, and hummed what is now the rhythm guitar line into my voice memos, and promptly went to sleep.
Now, with it being a whole piece, I’m starting to understand that the song is about a lack of preparation I felt I was given from school, and other figures of authority – especially for myself, not wanting to enter an office job, and wanting to embrace my music and go for it.
As soon as I graduated high school I felt like I was lost trying to do what all my idols did, with no idea how to get there.
HAPPY: Can you explain your use of “Double Dutch” as a metaphor? What’s the meaning, and why did you choose this?
NICHOLLS: The main meaning of it in the song is just not understanding what people expect of you, or want you to do. It explores a lack of preparedness I felt towards the end of high school for what was to come, which was something I battled with for a while after graduating.
What I love about it in a metaphorical sense is the use of it as the skipping rope game you’d play as a kid, meaning that the lyric “they’d talk to us in double dutch” could also be interpreted as being spoken to like a child, rather than an 18 year old about to enter the real world.
Since writing the song I’ve found a million different things it could mean, but that’s the beauty of lyricism I think, the fact that you can interpret it however you like, and I don’t mind at all.
HAPPY: How does this track differ from your past work?
NICHOLLS: Recently I’ve been writing songs based off a riff, which is what I did with this song, and half of my previous double single “Soliloquy”.
I’ve been enjoying this method a lot more, as I find it opens up more doors for creativity in my guitar playing. This does mean that I’m seeing my songs have a more blues/rock flavour, which I’m absolutely loving leaning into.
To supplement this is my new-found love for the band Wunderhorse, who I would assume write songs the same way. I’ve fallen in love with the balance of blues rock with intricate, soulful percussive hits, which was also an inspiration for Double Dutch.
HAPPY: How has Newcastle shaped your sound vs. Melbourne?
NICHOLLS: Newcastle slowly but surely has made my music heavier. This city is so full of really quality hard rock bands, which I’ve grown a love for, and has made me want to do somewhat the same. I’d say I moved to Newcastle as I was still a moldable artist.
I started making music wanting to make R&B/Soul, wanting to make music sounding just like D’Angelo and Anderson .Paak, then briefly had a stint wanting to be like Bon Iver, but then arriving to Newcastle and seeing what music everyone else does up here kinda made it impossible that I would ever do anything else other than make some heavier rock music.
HAPPY: What’s your most memorable live show so far?
NICHOLLS: Probably my double single launch at the Lass O’Gowrie in Newy. That venue is just so much fun to play at, and combining that with the release of the two songs I was proudest with to date, in front of a lot of my friends, and a really energetic audience.
Playing with my band was still a relatively new thing, I think it was only our third or fourth gig together, but we felt really tight, and it was a really memorable night. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Melbourne show this week overtook that one.
HAPPY: How did teaming up with Jarrod Grant for your upcoming tour come about?
NICHOLLS: Jarrod and I have been really good mates for a while now (which is one of the beauties of the Newcastle music scene – everyone just gets along), and we’ve gotten together in the studio to work on some tracks before.
The idea of touring together was all quite serendipitous actually, we were both kinda secretly planning tours in July and told each other about it back in January, and from there the conversation didn’t even really need to happen, we both just planned a co-headline tour.
It’s worked out really well because we get the cool experience of every show being somewhere where at least one of us knows some people, meaning we get to play in front of a pretty cool crowd for every stop.
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HAPPY: Does playing a hometown show in Melbourne add pressure?
NICHOLLS: I wouldn’t say pressure, but definitely excitement. It’s really cool listening back to what my music sounded like when I was last there, compared to how it is now (in both genre and quality).
There’s so many things that are different with my music and how I play it live, which none of my friends and family at home have heard, and that’s very cool.
It makes me think about all the parts of the set where I’m definitely a bit of a weirdo, and I’m thinking I’ll probably amplify those moments just to wig them out a bit.
HAPPY: What’s next after the tour, more new music?
NICHOLLS: Definitely more music. I don’t quite know what I’m going to record yet, but I have a few songs I’m really excited about.
At the start of the year I set a goal to release four songs this year all as singles – and now that Double Dutch is out I’ve got one more song to go to reach that goal, before an EP in 2026.
I’m hoping that heading into that EP I’ve established a unique sound, one with loud guitars, but also having funky basslines and hard hitting lyrics.
HAPPY: Lastly, what makes you happy?
NICHOLLS: The obvious answer is being on stage, just being myself. There really is nothing like playing a set you’re really proud of, in front of people that support you.
Aside from that, while it is very simple, is sitting around with some of my best mates having a couple beers in front of a game of footy.
I’m pretty confident my mates are some of the funniest people in the world, and there really is never a dull moment with them.
When I’m able to get back to Melbourne it’s awesome just catching up and telling stories of what’s happened in the previous few months, while having a couple schooners at the pub.
