In 2017, Alex the Astronaut’s “Not Worth Hiding” became an unofficial anthem for Australia’s same-sex marriage plebiscite. Nearly three years later, the self-acceptance track has been followed up by a debut album that delves much further into the Sydney singer-songwriter’s own story, and her observation of others’. Alex—born Alexandra Lynn—began releasing music while studying maths and physics in New York, and while her academic background often makes its way into her work (“So through the stars/Right past Jupiter, Saturn and Mars,” she sings on “Christmas in July”), not to mention her stage name, it’s when she zeroes in on people’s personal stories, much like countrywoman Courtney Barnett, that The Theory of Absolutely Nothing truly takes flight. “Banksia” is a touching ode to a young life lost that displays a keen Joni Mitchell-inspired eye for observation. “I Like to Dance”, the most affecting song on the album, is a gentle, percussion-free number about a relationship gradually souring where the story has a gut-punch of a twist. There are much brighter songs on offer too, such as the aptly named “Happy Song”, where Alex’s sing-along busker persona is at its finest. In fact, for an album in the folk storytelling tradition, The Theory of Absolutely Nothing certainly busts out a rousing chorus or a dose of “la-la-las” when it needs to.