Hawaii-based singer-songwriter/ guitarist Donavon Frankenreiter is returning to Australia following the release of his fifth full-length album, ‘Start Livin’.

“It's so hard for me to talk about my own music,” Donavon laughs. “It was really fun making the record. I made it in seven days in my buddy Matt Grundy's studio. We went in there and recorded these nine songs. The process was really fun, it was real positive and I really enjoyed writing the songs over the past few years.

“You know, I was inspired by my family and travelling and stories that came out of my life last year. We really had a blast recording it, we did most of it live and then built off the tracks from there, and it was the first time I've really recorded a record in that way. Then finishing it all in seven days was great.”

Perhaps his most intimate record to date, the interplay between Donavon's warm vocal tones and whimsical guitar riffs effectively evokes the atmosphere of a tropical paradise. Among the collection of folk-laden songs lies the sombre ‘A.I.’, dedicated to Donavon's close friend, professional surfer Andy Irons, who passed away in 2010.

“We live in Kauai, so when I am home his presence there is so heavy. Being close to him and his family, there's never a moment that goes by that I don't think of him. ‘A.I.’ was really just a song that I felt like I had to write; it's a song about the feelings I had at the time. I took until about six months after he passed away before I could write it, but once I could it came together really quickly. It's one of the songs on the record that really wrote itself in a matter of moments.

“It helped me a lot. When I listen to that song it definitely helps me deal with my feelings, because we did a lot of travelling together and it might have been the closest I've ever been with anybody that has passed away in my life. Even though he was my age and a friend, I definitely idolised him. It's such a traumatic thing in the surfing world, that somebody that good and that young can pass away.”

Donavon Frankenreiter plays a free show at the Jubilee Hotel March 3 from 4.30pm.