Having just returned from the States, Melbourne-based folktronica artist Whitley is set to hit the road for a nationwide tour. He promises it will deliver fans “a more dynamic and powerful Whitley set”, though he notes there is likely to be “a sooky little acoustic session in there too.”

Some new songs will be thrown into the set-list, which Whitley sees as a “kind of goodbye to the sound that we’ve worked on for this album’s touring cycle, and a hat tip to everyone who has supported me by coming to shows and relating to the songs in their own lives. It sounds like a gobful of crap, but I mean it.”

Said stateside tour included dates with singer-songwriter Tristan Prettyman, and an appearance at the massive industry conference South by Southwest, held in music-mad Austin, Texas. For the first-time US tourist Whitley, the festival, which involves well over a thousand different bands, was an almost overwhelming blitzkrieg of activity. “It was interesting, stimulating, fun. I played a billion shows in five days, did breakfast radio, TV interviews and still managed to party with the lads. No small task… [It] was very tiring, but the stimulation of Austin kept me going.”

Other stimulation came in the form of a meeting with his idol Mason Jennings, whose “completely unpretentious” songwriting is a source of inspiration for Whitley. “It was an honour and privilege to play with the songwriter I relate to most as a listener,” he explains. “In his songs he sums up the emotional complexities of an average guy and manages to do it with comedy and tragedy working side by side, just like all great writers.”

Initially a somewhat reluctant tourist, Whitley has very much warmed to life on the road, which is fortunate given his extensive touring commitments in May, which precede a run of theatre shows with Powderfinger in June. “I have really enjoyed the experience of the road more for the simple reason that me and the guys in the band are as close as brothers. Most of us had a really hard 2007. We make sure we have a great time. We support each other as friends before bandmates. I can’t believe my luck with this band and I’m flattered that they play with me.”

Whitley also treasured the experience of playing with dreamy West Australian popsters The Panics last year. “We feel like we found some people that are not just on the same tree, but perched on the same branch, beer in hand, smile on face and understanding.”

A return to the studio is also on the cards later this year. “I can’t wait,” Whitley says, adding that his band’s approach to recording The Submarine was a very simple one. “We’d take the songs and then experiment with all the different production elements. I think I will do the same on the next album. I understand it better now, I have more clarity in my mind surrounding what it is I want to sound like.”

Whitley is on a national headline tour right now. He’ll then be supporting Powderfinger on their sold-out Upstairs At The Downstairs shows in June.

Whitley tour dates:

Thursday May 8, Great Northern Hotel – Byron Bay, NSW
Friday May 9, The Zoo – Brisbane, QLD
Saturday May 10, Hoey Moey – Coffs Harbour, NSW
Tuesday May 13, ANU Bar – Canberra, ACT
Wednesday May 14, Oxford Tavern – Wollongong, NSW
Thursday May 15, Clarendon Guesthouse – Katoomba, NSW
Friday May 16, Annandale Hotel – Sydney, NSW
Saturday May 17, Northern Star Hotel – Newcastle, NSW
Wednesday May 21, Karova Lounge – Ballarat, VIC
Thursday May 22, Golden Vine Hotel – Bendigo, VIC
Friday May 23, Jive – Adelaide, SA
Wednesday May 28, The Loft – Warrnambool, VIC
Thursday May 29, The Corner Hotel – Melbourne, VIC
Friday May 30, Peninsula Lounge – Moorooduc, VIC
Saturday May 31, Republic Bar & Cafe – Hobart, TAS

Powderfinger tour dates:

Friday 6 June – Lake Kawana Centre, Sunshine Coast
Saturday 7, Sunday 8, Monday 9 June – The Tivoli, Brisbane
Wednesday 11, Thursday 12 June – Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Friday 13, Saturday 14, Monday 16 June – The Forum, Melbourne
Tuesday 17 June – Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide
Thursday 19, Friday 20 June – Metro City, Perth