Following on from the release of ‘Dinner Table’, ‘Boss Level Shit’ and ‘Tracey Grimshaw’ Naarm singer-songwriter Hassall is back with another hint of what is to come on her much-anticipated debut album, MEANS MORE TO ME THAN IT DOES TO YOU, with ‘Overpopulater’.

With this new track, the listener is pulled further into a meticulous space of sound and lyricism that Hassall has been creating since we first met her in 2021. Beautifully layered and personal songwriting meets honest perspectives and outlook. In a similar vein to artists including Courtney Barnett and Angie McMahon, there’s a distinct emphasis on lyrical delivery and tone that makes this sort of music unique to Hassall herself.

Of ‘Overpopulater’, the songwriter explains: “‘Overpopulater’ is for anyone who, like me: a) drinks too much coffee and b) can’t decide whether they want kids or not (due to environmental reasons, of course), and c) is head over heels in love with at least one person 24/7.

“I’ve been playing ‘Overpopulater’ live for a while now, and it always seems to be one the audience remembers. I think that’s credited to its relatability for a twenty-something (particularly one who lives within a 25km radius of Melbourne city. See: left-wing coffee addicts), and also the fact that this may be my only song that you can dance to for the entire duration of the song.”

Along with the single release, official visuals for ‘Overpopulater’ have been shared by Hassall today. Filmed by Willem Kingma (Bones & Jones, The Grogans), the music video takes place in a number of locations in the small town of Colac, Victoria. For Hassall, the objective of the clip was to replicate the song’s overall feeling of being over-caffeinated.

“My favourite part of the day was shooting at our friend Maggie’s house – it was a beautiful old house with feature pieces of furniture, and each room was painted a totally different colour, which made it ideal for filming.”