Diesel set to return to South West for Forever Tour

Australian singer-songwriter Diesel has achieved nearly everything an artist could dream of — hit songs, multiple ARIA awards and a career spanning more than three decades. It is impressive now, but not everyone thought as highly of him when he was better known as Mark Lizotte. As a teenager, he was even knocked back from Churchlands Senior High School’s music program. “My dad got so angry because they were like ‘your son has perfect pitch, but he failed the aptitude test’,” Diesel said. “I get all esoteric and creative, and it results in the wrong answers.” It is a trait which has served him better outside of school, even with the title of his latest album, Bootleg Melancholy. When asked how he came up with the name, Diesel described it as being similar to naming a child. “You sort of think of names and then you finish them — or in the case of children you look at them when they are born and go ‘mmm, that name doesn’t suit them’,” he said. “I did have this working title and I thought it was just going to be a working title ... but then the song presented itself to me.” The record is his 16th release, with each a snapshot of a particular period in his life. “Sometimes you go ‘well, I was feeling that and I can’t be that guy again, but I still feel that’,” he said. “Even just doing live shows, in some ways I feel like an ice sculptor who gets a big chunk of ice every time I get on stage and sculpts it into something. “Then by the end of it, it’s melted into a puddle on the floor and you can’t look at it anymore.” Diesel will make his return to WA for his Forever Tour next month and will play just two WA shows. He is performing at the iconic Regal Theatre in Subiaco — a place he still remembers from his childhood as an operating cinema — before heading south to Margaret River. Diesel will be playing at Margaret River HEART on March 23. To buy tickets, visit dieselmusic.com.au.