The Paper Kites have soundtracked major milestones over the past 15 years with their relatable lyrics, sweeping guitar melodies, and spellbinding harmonies. While the five-piece band’s music has made an indelible impact with fans, their songs have also been featured in pivotal scenes of Grey’s Anatomy, This Is Us, and Virgin River. The Paper Kites’ seventh studio album, If You Go There, I Hope I Find It, continues the tradition of providing music for life’s most memorable and vulnerable moments.

The indie folk rock band, which formed in 2010 in Melbourne, Australia, is comprised of cousins Sam Bentley (lead vocals, guitars, harmonica,) and Josh Bentley (drums), Christina Lacy (backing vocals, pianos, guitars), David Powys (backing vocals, guitars, banjo), and Samuel Rasmussen (bass). The Paper Kites began when Sam Bentley and Christina Lacy, as teenagers, started performing at local cafés - just two friends with a shared love of music. Those early shows, played to small crowds, were the first spark of something much bigger. As the pair’s musical connection deepened, they joined with Sam’s cousin Josh Bentley, as well as longtime friends David Powys, and Samuel Rasmussen. It was a natural, heartfelt progression, fueled by friendship and a desire to write songs they love.

The Paper Kites’ gradual ascent was built on unwavering fan loyalty, nurtured through grassroots efforts and word of mouth. Early fan favorites include the poignant finger-picked ballad “Arms,” one of several songs the band burned on CDs for friends and sold at shows. The group’s DIY mentality included hand-designing the brown cardboard CD sleeves themselves, which have since become collector items for fans.  

Breakthrough hit “Bloom” started similarly. The first song they had traction with, the RIAA Platinum-certified track’s journey has seen a recent resurgence. The song amassed 2 billion views on TikTok, 8 million monthly audio plays, and an average of 8,000 monthly creates. Even Kelly Clarkson has covered “Bloom” on her daytime talk show.

“It’s one of those songs that keeps finding new life over the years,” frontman Sam Bentley says of the nostalgic 2010 ballad. “It’s tied up in a lot of people’s lives and in their memories. It’s been very good to us. That’s often the gateway for people discovering who we are, the kind of music that we make, and what we do.”

Since forming in 2010, The Paper Kites have accumulated over two billion global streams across platforms, with 40 million monthly views across social media. Accolades continue to stack up with RIAA Platinum certifications and industry nominations, including nods for Best Adult Contemporary Album (On the Corner Where You Live, 2019) and Best Blues & Roots Album (At the Roadhouse, 2024) at the ARIA Awards.  

The Paper Kites’ new 10-track album and seventh release with Nettwerk, If You Go There, I Hope I Find It, builds on the success of the band’s versatile catalog. Multi-instrumentalist David Powys describes the album as a coming home for the band following their 2023 release, At the Roadhouse, as an eight-piece band.

“It’s the five of us again, stripping things back to what feels comfortable and natural for us,” David says. “It feels like returning to what we know and what we do really well.”

This coming home was quite literal for The Paper Kites, who wrote the majority of If You Go There, I Hope I Find It at a friend’s farm located within the Yarra Valley in Melbourne. The area, situated between big fields and paddocks with picturesque views of the mountains in the distance, also serves as the band’s frequent rehearsal space.  

“I didn’t have anywhere to write, and so a friend of ours let me use a room at their farm, which is where the identity of this record really took shape,” Sam explains. “When I listen to these songs now and I think about this record, it really does feel like home. There is this thread of hope and healing through all the music.”

Lead single, “When the Lavender Blooms,” exemplifies this hopefulness. The uplifting song also embodies a sense of longing that The Paper Kites are known for offering listeners, alongside sunny guitar parts and universal lyrics.  

I want to put my feet in the ground / Of the place that I found you

Try some good living / When the lavender blooms

The band had several ideas for the musical arrangement of “When the Lavender Blooms.” When David began working on the music, he added arpeggiated guitar over the chorus and post-chorus, resulting in a distinct ’90s guitar band rhythm, and the band loved it. With added tambourine and bongos, the song transformed from its original stripped-down demo.  

“We’re always quite particular about how the song feels and how the rhythm plays a part in how the song feels,” David explains.

The bluesy “Shake Off the Rain” serves as the project’s anchor. The album standout came late in the process, as Sam says he felt he hadn’t offered everything he had yet as a songwriter.

“Nothing to me sounded more like what I think this band is,” the band’s chief songwriter explains of the striking ballad. “It’s rain-drenched, but hopeful, and a quiet, powerful song. That’s the one I keep coming back to. I think when we recorded that, we captured something that you don’t always get on a record.”

“Shake Off the Rain” is a song that quickly became a favorite of the band, and their co-producer Matt Redlich (Tom Snowdon, Husky, Mammals). Another standout moment is the stripped-down “Deep (In the Plans We Made),” where Sam, Dave, and Christina sang and played around one microphone. The trio recorded the stunning track with three-part harmonies in one take.

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Matt was in the control room, and everyone’s just holding their breath,” Sam recalls. “We even tried a few more takes after that, and it wasn’t the same. When you’re tracking live like that, you’re making room for things like that to happen. I hope that it translates to the listener. It’s a beautiful thing to do at the time, even though it’s sometimes terrifying in how revealing it can be. That’s what we want to offer up to people. If you’re not prepared to be vulnerable in front of the microphone, how can you expect people to feel that in the same way?”

The Paper Kites decided to record If You Go There, I Hope I Find It live in the studio. Sam says the process allowed him to care less about perfection and more about vulnerability in the way they present their music.  

“We want to be vulnerable with the music that we make, and I think that’s what the people that come to our shows want to experience,” he says. “I think they are open to feeling something in the same way that we’re open to expressing it.”

The album title, If You Go There, I Hope I Find It, is a phrase Christina wrote on a dusty bus window on the farm. Sam likens the property to a creative place of comfort, despite it being “dusty and cobweb-riddled,” while David describes it as cleansing. “It’s become very fertile ground for us creatively,” David says.

“It’s become this place for us that has really allowed us to further explore the kind of musicians that we are and the kind of band that we want to be,” Sam adds.

The Paper Kites continue to push themselves creatively on If You Go There, I Hope I Find It, which was mixed by multi-Grammy winner Jonathan Low (Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, The National, Gracie Abrams). Songs like “Strongly In Your Arms” and “Every Town,” both written by the entire band, and “Change of the Wind” demonstrate this growth and willingness to be flexible in their music.  

“Every Town” pushed Sam vocally as the song features him in a higher register alongside a wall of harmonies on the chorus. While he admits his voice kept breaking in the studio, he managed to hit the high notes. Sam says the outcome was beautiful, and as a vocalist who focused on perfection throughout most of his career, he is far more interested in the character of someone’s voice.  

“This record in particular, I think I will remember as the point that I stopped caring about it being totally perfect and caring a little more about how I delivered things and how it felt, or how it made people feel, and how it made me feel,” he says. “I have cared so much less about my own performance and have tried to be one of five, playing in a room together, and not caring about it too much beyond, ‘Is the feeling and the soul of it there?’”

A large part of The Paper Kites’ journey has unfolded on the road. The band has toured internationally for over a decade, performing at iconic venues like London’s O2 Forum and The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, and sharing stages with artists such as Stephen Sanchez, City and Colour, Bombay Bicycle Club, and Passenger. Their emotionally resonant live shows have earned them a loyal global following, with performances at major festivals including Austin City Limits, Calgary Folk Festival, and Australia’s Bluesfest. In recent years, their touring reach has expanded further with sold-out headline dates across India, Thailand, and the Philippines - a testament to their growing international presence and the universal connection their music fosters. In 2026, the band will be playing their biggest headline shows to date as well as main stage festival slots.

After 15 years together, The Paper Kites remain inventive and continue to challenge themselves musically and sonically with every album release. If You Go There, I Hope I Find It brings The Paper Kites back to their roots and highlights the band’s vulnerability while also inviting listeners to embrace their own.

“When I listen to the album, it feels like an honest reflection of who we are as people and as musicians,” David says. “This album has become really affirming to know, that as the five of us playing for 15 years together, there is still a lot of magic to be made.”

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