Saturday, April 26 

Dapto Leagues Club

Country music siblings The McClymonts are scaling back on the electric guitars and amplifiers on their next tour to make way for a bumper batch of nappies.

The chart-topping trio will launch their Acoustic Harmony tour in Belmont on February 1 with an extra member in tow, Brooke McClymont's one-month-old daughter Tiggy.

The first baby born into the band has made an immediate impression on the girls, with proud aunties Sam and Mollie struggling to stay focused during rehearsals.

"Sam and Mollie can't keep their hands off Tiggy and when they do put her down she starts to cry so I'm hoping a pattern doesn't develop there," says Brooke.

"She's being spoilt rotten and extremely well looked after so it's fair to say I've had it quite easy as a first-time mum."

The tight family band are set to become even closer on their 22-date tour as nappy changing and burping become a necessary part of life on the road.

Brooke's husband Adam Eckersley will tag along for a few dates but otherwise the girls are relying on the generosity of friends.

"I don't have any babysitters but I'm sure there will be plenty of people to help," says Brooke.

"Tiggy is definitely going to be a road baby so the sooner she gets used to other people the better."

The McClymonts are riding an upwards trajectory on the back of their six years of non-stop touring.

Popular in the United States as well as at home, the girls have shared stages with country music's biggest acts, including Lady Antebellum and Jason Aldean, and once supported Ozzy Osbourne at a bikers' festival.

The sister act are also gaining critical radio support. They recently scored a PR coup when a presenter on America's National Public Radio compared their synchronised talents to The Beatles.

A lot has been said of The McClymonts' blood harmonies and on-stage chemistry, but oldest sister Brooke is typically modest when pushed on their growing reputation.

"It's great that people think we're getting better but we are sisters and so there is that shared tone in our voice," she says.

"It comes naturally most the time but if there's a song we're stuck on we sit down and work it out together."

Originally from Grafton, NSW, and now split between the Central Coast, Sydney and Melbourne, the trio are finding fewer opportunities to write new material.

Over the coming months they hope to work on a follow-up to the ARIA-winning album Two Worlds Collide, although the main focus will be on the retrospective tour featuring acoustic versions of old songs.

AAP