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Enigmatic singer-songwriter Vernon Cuda (formerly Smells Like Nanna’s House) is turning the dial away from synth-soaked sleaze pop for a spell of soft-rock sincerity, and a fresh start in Sydney. There’s just one problem. “I need a band,” he confesses, “which might be a challenge in a city where I don’t really know anyone.” Sydney-based musicians interested in playing live with Vernon are encouraged to get in touch. It’s a fitting admission from someone whose debut single, ‘Avalon’ is all about pressing forward without knowing quite where you’re headed. It would be easy to take the track at face value: a folksy soft-rock number about a midsize Toyota sedan. But there’s a lot more going on under the bonnet. Cutting through the gentle waves of analogue instrumentation are musings on the car as a vehicle for personal growth and escape; a four-wheeled cocoon from bad decisions, fractured relationships, and the trials of day-to-day life. For Cuda, who reflects candidly that the past six months have been mired by poor choices and regret, the open road becomes a long ribbon of redemption. The inspiration struck after his housemate Janu Kewish (of Cannabyss and Crème Fraiche) bought a burgundy Toyota Avalon for the price of a mid-range TV. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it,” Cuda recalls, “the freedom of hitting the road with nowhere to go, like riding a horse you bought for $2000 across wild plains and over the horizon.” ‘Avalon’ marks the beginning of a new sonic and lyrical direction for Cuda, whose prior releases under Smells Like Nanna’s House leaned heavily on digital synthesizers and drum machines from the deepest crevices of the 1980s. His forthcoming EP, ‘Amnesiadesiac’, due late 2026, continues the journey toward what he calls “Heart On Your Sleeve Hi-Fi”. Though where exactly that road leads, even he isn’t sure yet.