Trouble of the Good are an emerging Northern Rivers velvet-alt indie band weaving threads of psychedelic, blues and folk into their sound. Their original songs are honest and evocative, driven by the striking polarity of sweet, haunting vocals against riffs that linger long after their songs end.
Seven spoke to lead songstress Cassie Douglas in the lead up to their show at Music in the Valley 2025.
You’re new on the local scene – can you give me a breakdown of the band?
Yes! Paul Van Der Vorst on guitar and vocals, Daniel Russek on bass, Dan Llewellyn on drums and I’m on vocals and guitar. We’re Northern Rivers based – Main Arm and Mullumbimby specifically, and we write honest and evocative songs that cross over many genres.
Who are your influences?
My personal influences are much of what I loved as a teen – Sonic Youth, The Breeders, PJ Harvey. The strength and vulnerability that came from that music was exciting. They all had such an unmistakably unique sound. I also really love the juxtaposed sounds of delicate vocals alongside distortion and chaotic instrumentation.
How did you all find each other?
Paul and I have a long history of playing music together. We used to write and perform our songs back when we lived in Western Australia many years ago and we’ve always had a musical connection. A couple of years ago I contacted him with the idea of playing music again.
We both had zero songs or any idea if we could still make music. But we both wanted to try. To begin, we just played covers, which is always fun, but I really love writing originals. There is nothing better than making music from scratch. It wasn’t easy at first – you always have to make bad art before you make anything good – but we persevered. We now have loads of songs and many more in the pipeline.
How does songwriting work for you?
Most of the time, I come up with the bones of a song. Which means writing some lyrics and putting them to chords. The song has a general feel, but all of it is subject to change. Paul is a wizard and composes insane guitar riffs and melodies that are really original and complement the song. He’s very intuitive to what the song needs. He also writes some songs and although our styles are different, they seem to complement one another.
Is there a record on the horizon?
Of late, we’ve been recording some demos and next year we will start on our first album. We’ll also be playing around Byron Shire over the summer months and we’re looking forward to playing at Music in the Valley 2025!
What is it that you love about Music in the Valley?
Music in the Valley is a super down-to-earth, grassroots kind of festival. Local musicians, barefoot kids and the community coming together in gorgeous Main Arm. The festival always has a joyful energy, and the kids love it.
Why are events like Music in the Valley important for small communities?
They bring us all together, and music, as we all know, has an incredible way of connecting people. Music in the Valley is the perfect excuse to carve out your Sunday to slow down, listen to some great live music, kick your shoes off, and just have fun.
What other performers are you looking forward to seeing?
Orly Raquel! And… Emily Lubitz is always completely captivating in her performances.
What music will you be performing at the event?
Although we have a few covers that we pull out from time to time, we are playing all originals….
Cassie – are you having enough fun?
10,000 per cent ! Making music – writing, creating, rehearsing, performing – never feels like work and outside of our families, it’s our absolute favourite thing to do.
Music in the Valley is a free, family-friendly event at the Main Arm Public School on Sunday, from 11am to 4pm.
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