Melbourne-based artist Local the Neighbour — the project of David Quested — has announced his debut EP, Sword, led by the deeply personal focus track “Are you okay?” The release marks a defining moment for an artist whose path to indie rock has been anything but ordinary, and whose songwriting has quickly become one of the more compelling stories in Australia’s new wave of guitar music.

“Are you okay?” sits at the emotional core of Sword, and for good reason. It’s the first song Quested ever wrote, and the song that essentially birthed Local the Neighbour as a project. In his own words: “This is the first song I ever wrote, ever! It’s the song that started lt and the song which gave me a taste of what song writing was. I’ve had this song for a while now and it just never felt right to release it until now. It’s about being afraid to ask the ones you love if they’re okay because you know the answer is no. I realised it’s tough to hear the things you don’t want to know and it’s easier said than done.” That emo-tinged honesty is the thread running through the entire EP.

Quested’s journey to this moment is the kind of left-turn origin story that makes for great liner notes. Originally from Darwin, he relocated to study jazz drumming at the Victorian College of the Arts before further sharpening his craft at UCLA under revered jazz figures like Jeff “Tain” Watts and John Riley. He performed alongside ARIA-winning jazz musicians and toured internationally as a session player — and then walked away from it. Reconnecting with the nostalgic rock and emo records that shaped his youth (think Blink-182 and Paramore), he started over, this time with raw songwriting and self-production at the center.

The pivot has paid off. Recent singles “Midday Pilates,” “Hard,” and “Preacher” have racked up major editorial support on Spotify and Apple Music, heavy rotation on triple j and Double J, and international spins from KEXP, RADIOK770, and WNRN. Tastemaker coverage from Rolling Stone AU/NZ, The Guardian, Happy Mag, and The AU Review has followed, as have live runs supporting Real Estate, a slot at St Kilda Festival, and a steady build of headline dates.

That live momentum continues with a stacked run of support shows. Local the Neighbour will support Hudson Freeman at Oxford Art Factory in Sydney on April 30, before joining Rum Jungle on a national tour: June 19 at Princess Theatre, Brisbane; June 26 at Roundhouse, Sydney; June 27 at Northcote Theatre, Melbourne; July 4 at Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide; and July 5 at In The Hanging Garden, Hobart.

Sword marries the technical precision of Quested’s jazz background with the raw immediacy of indie rock, and “Are you okay?” is the perfect entry point — a song unafraid to sit in discomfort while reaching for connection. Stream Local the Neighbour on Spotify and dig into the catalogue ahead of the EP: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1sxWrNyQmTVxjoc7bohhu5

Catch him on tour with Hudson Freeman and Rum Jungle this winter, and keep an ear out for Sword — a debut that lands as both a beginning and a statement of intent.