Marlon Williams sets sights on North American tour

Marlon Williams.

Having spent the best part of the past seven years winning over Kiwi audiences in Christchurch-based band The Unfaithful Ways, and more recently in his partnership with Delaney Davidson, alt-country rocker Marlon Williams is forging his own path.

His debut self-titled solo album charted at number four in the New Zealand charts on its launch in April and across the Tasman, where Williams is based, his career is on a sharp trajectory.

"It was quite frightening how quickly the Australian market was to call me their adopted son. It's an easy catch-cry but it's also flattering," he says of the response he's had since moving to Melbourne in 2013.

"They were very welcoming. In Australia there's this whole extra population to reach out to. It's the main reason I moved over."

To make the most of the new vast territory open to him, Williams has spent the past few years doing some pretty heavy-duty touring. "It's a lot of to-ing and fro-ing, but it's exciting. I feel like I'm in the invincible position of being able to do what I like now," he says.

And it's not just music. Williams is also venturing into acting and although he can't reveal too much about the roles he has taken on, he can say that one is for a major ABC television drama and the other is a feature film expected to be shot in September.

"They saw the video for Dark Child and, funnily enough, both jobs are similar plots," he says.

The video for the album's lead single is a dark and unsettling watch, in which Williams plays a series of characters, including one that dissolves into a dribbling fit of rage mid-arrest in the back of a police car.

It's a compelling performance by the talented Williams, not to mention a cracking tune.

So it's no wonder his upcoming return to New Zealand will be a fleeting visit for a handful of shows, before he heads off yet again, this time with North America in his sights.

It is almost guaranteed the young troubadour will put Kiwi-grown alt-country firmly on the map - as he's done in Australia.

Marlon Williams' debut album is out now. Visit marlonwilliams.co.nz for gigs, including the Crystal Palace in Auckland on June 26.