Fresh off two sold-out national tours, a stack of BBC Radio spins and a sold-out London headline show, WA indie favourites Fool Nelson have returned with another emotional gut-punch in the form of their new single, Keepsake.
And if you’ve been paying attention lately, none of this momentum really feels accidental.
Fool Nelson – ‘Keepsake’
The Busselton trio have spent the last year steadily transforming from “local buzz band” into one of Australia’s most exciting rising alternative exports – racking up triple j love, climbing national charts and somehow becoming the only act ever to win a triple j Unearthed competition twice. Casual.
Now, with their debut UK and European tour currently in full swing – including a sold-out London headline date – the band are keeping their foot firmly on the accelerator.
Opening with Tom Broadbent’s instantly recognisable soft croon over rustic guitars, Keepsake begins in an almost painfully intimate place before slowly building toward something much bigger. There’s tenderness in it, but also a roughness around the edges that keeps it feeling grounded – the kind of track equally suited to quietly ruining your own day in headphones or scream-singing in a packed room with strangers.
Produced and mixed by Andy Lawson (The Buoys, Death By Denim) and mastered by George Georgiadis (Ruby Fields, Hockey Dad), the song steadily climbs through soaring pre-choruses before eventually exploding into a cathartic guitar-driven payoff.
According to Broadbent, the inspiration behind Keepsake came from one of life’s unexpectedly tiny moments.
“‘Keepsake’ is a song for our loved ones,” he explains. “Sometimes you get so caught up in your own head that you forget how much these people mean to you.”
“It’s often during completely mundane moments in the day that it can hit you; ‘wow, I really love these people’. I started writing this song during one of these moments.”
Honestly? That sort of emotional whiplash – getting hit by overwhelming feelings while doing something incredibly boring – might be one of the most relatable songwriting premises imaginable.
And Fool Nelson have been collecting plenty of moments worth reflecting on lately.
2025 saw the band crack triple j’s Hottest 200, support Spacey Jane, Skegss and Old Mervs, while also appearing at festivals including The Great Escape and Rolling Sets.
Meanwhile, previous single Bad Dreams hit #1 Most Played on triple j for multiple weeks, helping cement the WA outfit as one of the country’s fastest-rising names.
The release also coincides with the release of the trio’s expanded Bad Dreams [Deluxe EP], which bundles fan-favourite material alongside fresh additions including Keepsake. For a band already moving at breakneck speed, it feels less like a victory lap and more like another marker in a year where Fool Nelson just keep levelling up.
Stream Keepsake up above.
Further Reading
Fool Nelson Drop New EP ‘Bad Dreams’ + Sign Global Deals
Fool Nelson Drop New Single ‘Big Shot’, Announce EP + Biggest Aussie Tour Yet
triple j’s 100 Best Unearthed Discoveries: The Complete List
