BODIE Werleman only ever met Szymon Borzestowski twice before he tragically took his own life in 2012, but the Newcastle singer-songwriter's music left a permanent imprint.
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The Borzestowski family released two albums of Szymon's music - Tigersapp (2015) and Blue Coloured Mountain (2019) - posthumously, the first earning an ARIA nomination and critical acclaim.
Szymon's younger brother and Gang Of Youths percussionist, Dom, is a close friend of Bodie's, having bonded over drumming and church.
Dom even gave Bodie driving lessons when he was on his L plates. During those driving lessons Dom played Bodie unreleased demos of Szymon's music.
"He's probably the main reason I wanted to write some stuff," Bodie said.
"When it [Tigersapp] came out I sat down and properly listened to it and I was getting back into playing guitar and I was blown away. It was, 'Oh my goodness this makes me want to do that'."
On Friday Bodie will release the single Mask, from his forthcoming second record Common Mistakes, which features obvious nods to Szymon in its jazzy instrumentation and multi-layered folk harmonies.
Just like Szymon, Bodie is a talented multi-instrumentalist. The 25-year-old recorded the entire record, except Annastasia Lucas' saxophone and his drum parts, in his Cooks Hill flat.
Bodie will launch Mask on Friday at the Oriental Hotel.
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