Feel like seeing something that’s hilariously wrong? Well feast your eyes on the music video for “Got No Soul,” the latest single from The Harlots. In it we see one man’s search for Miss Right thwarted by his affections for a children’s rocking horse. Just your average love story, isn’t it?
The clip’s more than a little bizarre, but that only makes this song that much sweeter. I love the gritty vocals and swaggering bass line. Make sure you catch those offbeat lyrics too!
Those nostalgia tours just keep on coming. Gin Blossoms are the latest band to take us down memory lane with shows next February.
Amazingly this is the first time the American band famous for songs like “Hey Jealousy” and “Found Out About You” have every visited us. I suppose it’s better late than never, right? They’re out here to promote their most recent album No Chocolate Cake, but something tells me most music lovers will be there to hear the tracks from the 1996 smash Congratulations I’m Sorry.
Gin Blossoms should be in fine form when they arrive, as they’ve played at least 100 shows every year since 2002. Impressive! Tickets go on sale on October 26 for the following shows.
7 February 2013 – HiFi, Melbourne
8 February 2013 – HiFi, Brisbane
9 February 2013 – HiFi, Sydney
10 February 2013 – Capital, Perth
Image used with permission from Riot House Publicity
After taking some time out from the biz, Red Ink are back with gusto with their brand new single “Empty Town,” the first lifted from their new album The Colour Age.
It seems like the self-imposed hiatus was a smart move for the Melbourne band. They appear to have rediscovered their love of making music. There’s definitely passion and joy in this tune, one of many the band penned on reuniting in a secluded beach house. I appreciated Red Ink before, but this song really takes things up a notch.
It’s great to have you back lads!
Genre-bending Melbourne act The Tiger & Me are building anticipation for the release of their sophomore album The Drifter’s Dawn with this nifty video. It offers an insight into the way the album came together and a sneak peek of some of its tracks. If you’re desperate to get your hands on it, don’t worry. There’s only one week to go! The Drifter’s Dawn hits music stores on October 19. The Tiger & Me will play the following shows to support its release.
27 October 2012 – Revolt, Melbourne
1 November 2012 – Karova Lounge, Ballarat
2 November 2012 – The Barwon Club, Geelong
9 November 2012 – Braidwood Hotel, Braidwood
10 November 2012 – The Red Rattler, Sydney
11 November 2012 – Majors Creek Pub, Majors Creek
15 November 2012 – High Tea, Sydney (Acoustic)
25 November 2012 – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane
1 December 2-12 – The Wheatsheaf, Adelaide
Exciting Queensland folk-country duo Texas Tea will release their eagerly awaited third record Sad Summer Hits tomorrow. The retro fans will release the album, which features the current single “Lily,” in both CD and vinyl formats.
Sad Summer Hits was recorded with legendary producer Lachlan “Magoo” Goold in his beloved Applewood Studios, a converted church nestled in the Queensland countryside. The disc charts the journey of a band keen to develop their sound without completely letting go of the familiar. Benjamin P. Dougherty and Kate Jacobsen enlisted a rhythm section for the first time, and presented their usual dark themes with a little more light.
“All-in-all, I think we’ve been able to take the vintage county pop idea and conceptualise it a little further,” Kate explained. “With our tongues placed firmly in our cheeks, it’s a combination of retro country, blues and 50s pop, all with the typical Texas Tea sparkle dust. Although we take a lot of influence from American music, I think we have always been able to Australianise and contextualise our music.”
Texas Tea will play the following shows to celebrate the release of Sad Summer Hits.
18 October 2012 – Brisbane Hotel, Hobart
19 October 2012 – Old Bar, Melbourne
21 October 2012 – Grace Emily, Adelaide
26 October 2012 – The Zoo, Brisbane
27 October 2012 – The Loft, Gold Coast
28 October 2012 – Spotted Cow, Toowoomba (Afternoon Show)
3 November 2012 – The Newsagency, Sydney (BYO Show)
Image used with permission from Heapsaflash
Melbourne singer-songwriter Charles Baby has well and truly charmed me with “A Happy Affair (With a Terrible Consequence),” the first cut from his debut album The End of the Terror Lights.
The record is the follow-up to Charles’ acclaimed 2010 EP Has Quiet Choruses, and the result of a year holed up in abandoned school halls in the Victorian countryside. These aren’t the most conventional places to record an album, but Charles Baby isn’t a guy who likes to follow the crowd!
If you’re digging the quirky lyrics and banjo melodies of “A Happy Affair” as much as me, make sure you see Charles Baby launching the single at Carlton’s The John Curtin Bandroom on October 27.
Jacob Butler is taking advantage of the buzz he’s building abroad with a month long European promotional tour.
During his time in Europe, Jacob will play acoustic showcases in Germany, Sweden, and Poland. These appearances include an album release event at the Australian Embassy in Stockholm and a show in the Swedish capital’s Aussie Boomerang Bar on October 24. Jacob’s album Reason will hit Swedish record stores on November 15.
Jacob has also just signed a licensing deal with Richard Branson’s V2 label, which will see his debut album Reason released in Belgium, The Netherlands, and Luxembourg early next year.
Image source: Jacob Butler Facebook page
Melbourne band Lowlakes are giving us a taste of their forthcoming debut album with the release of their new single “Cold Company.” The band hasn’t reinvented the wheel here, but when do what they do so well, why go changing?
It seems their haunting songs have hit the right note for American audiences too, as the band has been invited to play New York’s acclaimed CMJ Music Festival and some showcases. But before they spread their wings, Lowlakes will launch the single for their hometown fans at the Ding Dong Lounge.
Here are all the places Aussie and American music lovers can see Lowlakes play this month.
13 October 2012 – Ding Dong Lounge, Melbourne
17 October 2012 – Parkside Lounge, New York City
20 October 2012 – The Delancey, New York City
22 October 2012 – Pianos, New York City
25 October 2012 – Silverlake Lounge, Los Angeles
Sydney band Cabins delves into the darker side of love with their retro-styled new single “In Blue,” the long-awaited follow-up to their 2010 mini-album Bright Victory.
The track reminds me of something Roy Orbison might have passed on, insisting that commercial radio would never warm to something so black. And so we have Cabins revelling in the eeriness while celebrating classic themes and sounds.
If you like what you hear, make sure you get down to Sydney’s Annandale Hotel on October 25. The band will preview new songs from their forthcoming album as well as some old favourites. And if you arrive before 9 pm, you’ll get in for free!
With his new EP Toe Jam hitting stores later this week, Joe Robinson is preparing to return home.
The guitar virtuoso from the tiny town of Temagog on New South Wales’ mid-north coast is now based in Nashville, but enjoys any opportunity to play for Aussie audiences.
Toe Jam hits stores on October 12. Tickets for the following festivals and headliner shows are on sale now.
27 October 2012 – The Vanguard, Sydney
28 October 2012 – Sydney Blues and Roots Festival, Windsor
10 & 11 November 2012 – Blues at Bridgetown, Bridgetown
16 November 2012 – The Glasshouse, Port Macquarie
22-25 November 2012 – Mullum Music Festival, Mullumbimby
1 December 2012 – 5 Church St, Bellingen
8 December 2012 – Toff In Town, Melbourne
13 December 2012 – The Street Theatre, Canberra
15 December 2012 – Festival of The Sun, Port Macquarie
Image source: Premier Artists