The Sound of White is the debut studio album by Australian pop singer-songwriter Missy Higgins, released 6 September 2004 by Eleven. It won the 2005 ARIA Music Award for Best Female Artist. Higgins had secured recording contracts with Eleven and Warner Bros. while still in high school, after winning a competition for unsigned artists run by radio station Triple J. Her winning song, "All For Believing", is included on this album. After a backpacking trip in 2002, Higgins toured and wrote songs during 2003. She wrote most tracks alone and collaborated on three songs, with Kevin Griffin, Jay Clifford and Clif Magness respectively. The Sound of White was recorded in 2004 with producer John Porter.

Higgins' first single from the album was "Scar", released in August ahead of the album. Three more singles were released, "Ten Days" in November, "The Special Two" in April 2005 and "The Sound of White" in August. Critics gave the album mixed reviews and it achieved commercial success, reaching number one on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Albums Chart and was accredited platinum twelve times. The album was nominated for five ARIA Awards in 2004 and won 'Best Pop Release'. The following year it was nominated for eight ARIA awards and won five. In 2005, Higgins won the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) 'Song of the Year' award for "Scar".

Background and recording

In 2001, while still at high school, Higgins wrote the song "All for Believing" as part of a music assignment.

Awards and nominations

Higgins received six ARIA Awards for The Sound of White. In 2004, at the 18th Annual ARIA Music Awards, Higgins was nominated for 'Single of the Year', 'Best Female Artist', 'Breakthrough Artist — Single' and 'Best Pop Release', all for "Scar". She won the award for 'Best Pop Release'. with various female Australian musicians, including Alice Skye, all citing the album as a musical influence.

Folktronica musician Gordi discussed the album's influence on her in a Love Letter to a Record piece for Australian music website Music Feeds, stating "[it's] the reason I write songs the way I do, so personally and so honestly, with nothing to hide and everything to give." Pop musician Odette "resonated" with the album, saying: "that album messed me up. If I ever meet Missy, I'll tell her that it's her fault I'm so emotional. Those songs were so relatable and really dark but emotionally bold."

Track listing

The album was slightly varied for its international release, replacing the track "Casualty" with "Unbroken" and including the song "They Weren't There" as a secret track and a remixed version of "Scar", known as the Jay Newland Mix.

Australian release

International release

  1. "All for Believing" – 3:27
  2. "Ten Days" – 3:45
  3. "Scar" (Jay Newland Mix) – 3:32
  4. "Don't Ever" – 2:52
  5. "Nightminds" – 3:13
  6. "Unbroken" (Higgins, Griffin) – 3:41
  7. "Any Day Now" – 3:51
  8. "Katie" – 3:35
  9. "The River" – 4:23
  10. "The Special Two" – 4:27
  11. "This Is How It Goes" – 3:28
  12. "The Sound of White" – 9:06 <small>(includes time for following track)</small>
  13. "They Weren't There" <small>(hidden track)</small>

Personnel

;Music

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Decade-end charts

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