Category: Releases

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Ainslie Wills To Tour Debut Album

Ainslie Willis will celebrate the release of her highly anticipated debut album You Go Your Way, I’ll Go Mine with a national tour this April.

The 12-track collection is an eclectic mix taking us from the spiky pop of “Fighting Kind” to the epic swell of “Ocean,” and from the folkiness of new single “Weighing the Promises” to the soulful honesty of “Early Morning Light.” The songs were recorded in their rawest form in just ten days at a beach house on the Victorian Peninsula. Ainslie then added strings at the Northcote United Church, before giving the songs some extra polish in the converted studio of her best friend’s family home.

You Go Your Way, I’ll Go Mine will hit record stores everywhere on March 4. Ainslie will give fans a little time to become acquainted with the music before embarking on her biggest national tour to date. Here are all the places you can see her play!

13 April 2013 – The Golden Vine, Bendigo
17 April 2013 – The Front Bar, Canberra
18 April 2013 – FBi Social, Sydney
20 April 2013 – The Great Northern Hotel, Newcastle
24 April 2013 – The Northcote Social Club, Melbourne
26 April 2013 – The Grand Poobah, Hobart
3 May 2013 – The Hotel Metropolitan, Adelaide
11 May 2013 – Railway Friendly Bar, Byron Bay (FREE)
12 May 2013 – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Bill Parton Trio Release Stellar Single

The Bill Parton Trio have blown me away with the release of “Going Away,” their very first single from their first EP. This South Australian act has such a polished sound, I’m stunned to hear this is their debut!

It seems that polish comes from their extensive live experience. While they’ve only just stepped into the studio, they’ve notched up more than a thousand shows at some 250 venues. They’re South Australian festival favourites too after making appearances at Music in The Gardens, Cellar Door Sessions, A Day on the Grass, and the Whitmore Square Arts Fair.

Frontman William Parton says “’Going Away’ is all about forever being in stuck in an undesirable place but then making the necessary changes to break free to find a place where you’re more accepted and will have more success at life. The idea is that the changes are made no matter what it costs, no matter what anyone says and no matter that you can’t be found but comes at the ultimate price of having to leave everything and everyone including loved ones behind.”

“Going Away” is the first single from Bill Parton Trio’s debut EP. It’s available from iTunes and other major online digital musical retailers.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

The Basics Serve Up Leftovers

Before he was Gotye winning Grammys, Wally de Backer was one of The Basics. Along with his good mates Tim and Kris, Wally made a big impression with his stellar original songs. Now ten years on the Melbourne band is looking back at their legacy.

Late last year we saw the release of Ingredients, a “best of” if you will featuring songs from each album and tracks that fell in between. Today we get the final piece of the puzzle with the release of Leftovers. As its name suggests, these are the bits that didn’t make the albums. Available in digital and limited edition vinyl formats, the release features B-sides, demos, and alternate versions of the songs fans know and love. You might think that if they ended up on the cutting room floor the tracks are below par, but if the rocking raw lead single “So Hard for You” is any indication that’s far from the truth.

With Gotye impressing music lovers around the world and the other members busy with other musical endeavours, it’s nice to take a look back at where their musical journey began.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Percussion Book Raises Funds for Musical Charity

Birds of Tokyo, Django Django, Deftones, Cloud Control, My Morning Jacket, Amy Meredith, and a host of other local and international musicians have contributed to Percussion, a coffee table book which looks to raise awareness and funds for SoundSchool.

The artists told the book’s creators what their favourite percussion instrument is, and why. Their answers are accompanied by artworks from acclaimed illustrators, graphic artists, and photographers. They come together in this beautiful coffee table tome.

$5 from the sale of each book will benefit SoundSchool, an Australian-based charity which purchases musical instruments, teaching aids, and tuition for children in underprivileged areas around the world.

Percussion will be released around the world in hardcover and softcover formats this April, but you can secure your copy early through a limited pre-sale this week. To coincide with SLAM Day, you can buy one from midday tomorrow 23 February to midday on 26 February via Heath Media.

Image used with permission from Positive Feedback

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Fletcher Goes Solo with Upon Ayr

Fletcher, a founding member of Bluebottle Kiss and The Devoted Few, is striking out on his own with the release of his debut solo album Upon Ayr.

This album is a return to the storytelling so often forgotten in the modern day craft of music making. Its songs pay tribute to the literary legacy of Jack Kerouac, recall Polynesian whale myths, and recreate a 1920s synchronised swimming mermaid’s dream. In short, this isn’t a run of the mill, middle of the road record.

It was clearly a labour of love for Fletcher, who wrote Upon Ayr over two years on tour as part of Sarah Blasko’s band. She returns the favour contributes backing vocals on the album.

Upon Ayr will hit Australian record stores in March and those in the United Kingdom in April. Fletcher will support the local release with the following shows.

17 March 2013- The Workers Club, Melbourne
27 March 2013 – The Vanguard, Sydney

Image used with permission from Warner Music Australia

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Emma Dean Signs American Record Deal

Emma Dean seems on the path to international stardom after signing a record deal with American indie label Candyrat Records. The label is best known for its stable of instrumental guitarists, but more recently it’s begun to champion exceptional singer-songwriters.

The US label will release Emma’s forthcoming EP White, which should hit the market in March or April of this year. It will be one of three colourful digital EPs Emma will release this year. White will feature intimate ballads about new beginnings performed on a Wurlitzer. The following release, Red, will showcase theatrical and passionate songs focused around the heart. Finally there’s Black, the darkest of the bunch, sexy and jazz-inspired.

Emma and her long-time musical collaborator and co-producer Ben Stewart will move to New York next month to support the upcoming releases.

Image used with permission from Emma Dean

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Ben Lee Comes Home for Album Release

Ben Lee will return home this April so celebrate the launch of his brand new album Ayahuasca: Welcome to the Work.

As its unusual name suggests, this album is being touted as Ben’s most creative and honest yet. Ayahuasca is a South American vine known as the death vine. South America’s indigenous people used the vine to create the tea they drink as part of a ceremonial ritual. The tea is said to help the drinker see their soul’s contents clearly. And so with Ayahuasca: Welcome to the Work, Ben is exploring his soul and shining a light on the things he’s buried deep inside.

“It’s more devotional music than anything else, but not easy listening,” Ben explained. “It’s demanding, experimental music, just as ‘the work’ itself is demanding.”

Given that the album’s creation is all about healing and discovering a higher consciousness, Ben didn’t feel it was right that he benefit from his profits. And so he’ll donate half of the album’s artist royalties to the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies and the other half to the Amazon conservation team.

Ben will play the following shows to support Ayahuasca: Welcome to the Work’s April 23 release. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.

5 & 6 April 2013 – Byron Bay Community Centre, Byron Bay
11 April 2013 – Paddington United Church, Sydney

Image used with permission from Positive Feedback

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Dan Webb’s Monthly Song Impresses

Dan Webb has done it again with “Shadows of a Maniac,” the second track released as part of his 12 Songs, 12 Months project.

This song is so unique. It’s funky and soulful with a psychedelic twist that I didn’t see coming. The Bamboos’ Kylie Auldist, who shared vocal duties on Dan’s January release “Departure” is on back-up duties this time around. The track also features The Cat Empire’s hornsmiths Keiran Conrau and Ari Farrar, driving beats from drummer Peter Marin, and some mean bass licks from Joshua Jones.

You can download this song, and enjoy all the music to come this year, at Dan Webb’s website.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Call The Shots Release Fun Single

Brisbane quintet Call the Shots have served up a feel-good slice of power pop-punk with their brand new single “Alexis Texas.”

This fun track which takes a light-hearted look at unrequited love is our first taste of the band’s sophomore EP When Everything Goes Wrong. It sounds like everything is going right for these guys though. They recently made the top 10 of Dolly magazine’s hottest 100 bands and they scored the support slots for Nine Sons of Dan’s Brisbane gig at The Zoo on March 14.

If you like what you hear, it’s worth noting that Call the Shots are offering it as a free digital download via their Triple J Unearthed page.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Tame Impala and The Growl Tour North America

It’ll be a double-dose of Aussie talent when Perth’s The Growl joins fellow statesmen Tame Impala on their North American tour next week.

The bands are no strangers to one another after The Growl joined Tame Impala on their Aussie tour to launch Lonerism. They won plenty of new fans on that tour for their raw brand of bluesy rock, and they’re sure to do the same when they get in front of American audiences. The US shows are the perfect warm-up for the band, who will return home in April for the release of their debut LP What Would Christ Do?? I’m told that a national headlining tour isn’t too far away.

Until then it’s time for North America to discover these rocking Aussie acts. Here are all the places my US and Canadian readers can see them play!

19 February 2013 – Terminal 5, New York City
20 February 2013 – 9:30 Club, Washington D.C.
21 February 2013 – Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro
22 February 2013 – The Orange Peel, Asheville
23 February 2013 – The Georgia Theater, Athens
25 February 2013 – Fitzgerald’s, Houston
26 February 2013 – Stubb’s, Austin
27 February 2013 – Granada Theater, Dallas
28 February 2013 – Cain’s Ballroom, Tulsa
2 March 2013 – Headliner’s Music Hall, Louisville
3 March 2013 – Turner Hall Ballroom, Milwaulkee
4 March 2013 – First Avenue, Minneapolis
6 March 2013 – Vic Theater, Chicago
7 March 2013 – St. Andrews Hall, Detroit
8 March 2013 – Newport Music Hall, Columbus
9 March 2013 – Kool Haus, Toronto
11 March 2013 – Metropolis, Montreal
12 March 2013 – House of Blues, Boston

Image used with permission from Two Fish Out of Water