Kirin J Callinan

Kirin J Callinan (born 21 January 1986) is an Australian musician known for his lead guitar work in bands such as Mercy Arms, The Night Game and Jack Ladder and the Dreamlanders, as well as his solo career. Since Mercy Arms broke up in 2009, Callinan has released two solo albums: Embracism (2013) and Bravado (2017). Referred to as the enfant terrible of Australia's underground rock music scene, Callinan is known for his flamboyant public persona, confronting live shows and diverse musical output in which, according to Spin, "the distinctions between talent, irony, and genuine bad taste bleed together until they’re indistinguishable." Callinan said that his primary motivation as a musician is to "excite and confuse, ... But you can't do that for any length of time without having sincerity." Callinan has collaborated with a wide range of musicians, including Jimmy Barnes, James Chance, Alex Cameron, Connan Mockasin and brothers Neil and Tim Finn. Barnes and Cameron feature in Callinan's 2017 single "Big Enough". Barnes' distinctive screaming cameo became a famous internet meme. In 2017, Callinan was cast by director Jane Campion in the second season of her drama television series Top of the Lake. "Kirin was a joy to work with because he was imaginative, playful and exploring," said Campion. "He seems somehow to push the limits of human being in the biggest sense, like he might have been raised by unicorns."