Sometimes you just hear a voice that cuts through. Melbourne singer-songwriter Christine Tarquinio has one of those voices. Her new single “Falling Free” doesn’t have the slick production of a mainstream pop hit, but the quality of that angelic voice really cuts through. The song is also first class. It’s pop music with real substance. There are notes of Natalie Imbruglia, Jewel, and Sarah McLachlan in there, but Christine is no imitator.
“I wrote this song just with an acoustic guitar and it was very introspective as we were in one of our many lockdowns,” Christine recalled. “I wanted to express how I was feeling at the time. The song was very easy to write and came together over a number of weeks.”
“There is nothing more satisfying than seeing a little seed of an idea I have for a song and seeing it bloom into its full potential along with my creative team, the magic just happens,” she added.
Gold Coast indie rockers The Vultures have blown me away with their awesome new single “Conversations.” This track has such a cool indie rock vibe with just a hint of disco sparkle. It’s fresh and fun, with such a great laidback groove. It might just be the last great summer anthem to drop this year. Can’t you just imagine sitting poolside, sipping cocktails, while this bad boy plays? While it reminds me of good times with friends, the lads from The Vultures actually penned this song in response to the isolation they felt during the 2020 Melbourne lockdowns.
“‘Conversations’ is about turning to dreams as a mode of communication at the emergence of a newly chaotic world, separated from our family, friends, and the outside,” they explained. The song is complemented by a dreamy new video clip which the band describes as “a sleek retro green screen throwback of trippy visuals, mirroring the concepts and vibe of the music.”
The Vultures will launch the single officially at hometown venue Mo’s Desert Clubhouse on March 17. It’ll be their first live show in more than six years, so you don’t want to miss it. Listen out for their debut album ESCOBAR dropping later this year.
Eliza & The Delusionals are kicking off an action-packed 2022 with a brand new single, “Give You Everything.” This song is everything I love about the band, earnest and emotive with a floaty, fresh feel that encourages you to press play time and time again. It hearkens back to music from so many female singer-songwriters I loved in the ‘90s. If you had Lisa Loeb and Michelle Branch on regular rotation back then, I think you’re going to love this.
Guitarist Kurt Skuse and frontwoman Eliza Klatt started writing the song in Los Angeles with acclaimed US songwriters Sarah Aarons (Zedd, The Rubens, Childish Gambino) and John Hill (Cage The Elephant, Lykke Li, Charli XCX). Some refinements at home make “Give You Everything” the incredible track you hear today.
“We were sitting around John’s studio talking with Sarah about how we both have had similar bitter experiences within the music industry with certain people taking advantage of our benevolence,” Kurt recalled. “It was nice to be able to open up to someone who could also relate to that situation which made the whole writing process feel really natural and organic. It’s a collective favourite for us on the album and it really shaped the rest of the record thematically and sonically.”
As I hinted to earlier, Eliza & The Delusionals are preparing for a busy few months. They’ll support The Vanns on their national tour before taking their own lap of the country as headliners. Then they’re off to the United States to play Bottlerock alongside artists like P!nk, Twenty One Pilots, and Metallica. Their highly anticipated debut album Now and Then also drops on May 20. Here are all the dates you need:
5 March 2022 – Forum, Melbourne (supporting The Vanns)
6 March 2022 – Torquay, Hotel Torquay (supporting The Vanns)
12 March 2022 – Altar, Hobart (supporting The Vanns early show SOLD OUT)
12 March 2022 – Altar, Hobart (supporting The Vanns late show SOLD OUT)
13 March 2022 – Forth Pub, Forth (supporting The Vanns)
18 March 2022 – Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle (supporting The Vanns)
19 March 2022 – Manning Bar, Sydney (supporting The Vanns)
25 March 2022 – Wollongong Uni, Wollongong (supporting The Vanns)
1 April 2022 – Kambri @ ANU, Canberra (supporting The Vanns)
9 April 2022 – The Leadbeater, Melbourne
17 April 2022 – The Brightside, Brisbane
22 April 2022 – OAF Gallery, Sydney (early show)
22 April 2022 – OAF Gallery, Sydney (late show SOLD OUT)
23 April 2022 – La La La’s, Wollongong
24 April 2022 – Huxley’s, Caringbah
29 May 2022 – Bottlerock Festival, Napa Valley
Image used with permission from Beehive PR; credit: Luke Henery
If Hump Day is hitting you hard, press play and crank up the volume on “Falling is Pretty Normal.” I can’t promise that FANGZ’s latest single will take away any of the frustrations of your workday, but this aggressive and ultra-catchy track might just make you forget about them for a little while. It’s bold and ballsy with stellar vocals from frontman Joshua Cottreau.
“‘Falling Is Pretty Normal’ was written just after I lost someone close to me,” Joshua explained. “I wasn’t coping at all, and I found myself spiralling without even realising. I would have these vivid dreams in which the departed would be there and it’d feel so real. In that moment I’d be happy. Then my alarm would sound, and the reality would hit me like a tonne of bricks. It’s about learning to deal with loss and knowing that the person maybe gone but the lessons they taught you still live on as long as you remember.”
The song comes from a dark place, but the music video, which pays homage to blink-182’s iconic clip for “What’s My Age Again?”, is pure joy. Keep your eyes peeled for the cameos!
FANGZ is celebrating the release of “Falling is Pretty Normal” with a 10-date tour of the Eastern states kicking off next month. Check them out at the following venues:
5 March 2022 – 4 On the 4loor, Orange
12 March 2022 – Hamilton Station, Newcastle
25 March 2022 – Crowbar, Sydney
26 March 2022 – The Basement, Canberra
1 April 2022 – The Baroque Room, Katoomba
2 April 2022 – Halloween Hysteria, Mansfield
22 April 2022 – Pelly Bar, Frankston
23 April 2022 – The Evelyn, Fitzroy
24 April 2022 – The Eastern, Ballarat
28 May 2022 – La La La’s, Wollongong
Image used with permission from Good Intent; credit: Rhys Bennett – @highvoltagephotography
Highline really impressed me last year with their single “Staying Sane.” They’re starting 2022 in a similar fashion with a cracking new release. “Enough For You and Me” just dropped today, and you’ll want to get your ears around it. With indie-rock and Brit-pop influences, it feels nostalgically familiar, yet so fresh at the same time.
“The song is about leaning on your friends to feel better about the mundane times in life,” Highline explained. “It’s both a celebration of friendship and the good things it can do for you as well as a reflection of when you’re not happy with the way things are going.”
Once again, the track sees Highline teaming up with Jack Nigro (Middle Kids, DMA’s, Skeggs) at The Grove Studios.
“Our time at the Grove with Jack Nigro during lockdown was really special,” they added. “We love going there and making music with Jack and his input throughout the recording process really helped mould EFYAM into something we’re truly proud of.”
Highline have a couple of shows with Archie coming up. Catch them at the Lansdowne in Sydney on March 16 or Transit Bar in Canberra on March 24.
After two years of lockdowns and event cancellations, most of us are feeling ready to get back to living the way we used to. I must admit, I’m not ready to throw my masks away just yet, but I’m starting to get a little hopeful that the concerts approaching may actually happen. Ben Ransom reflects the mood of so many at this stage of the pandemic with his new track “Livin’”.
“This song was born out of the compounding frustrations of being chained to a job, just to eke out a living … throw in the devastating effects that the couple of years has had on our industry and this song is what you get! An anthem for breaking free”, he explained. “It was a pivotal moment when I was reminded (again) that our lives are so short and that we need to make the most out of every single day. I want to live and celebrate everything the world has to offer … I have no desire to be stuck in a job I hate just to make ends meet, to then turn around at the end of it all and look back with regrets”.
Speaking of living, hopefully it’s not too long before Ben announces some shows. Surely with so many shows scrapping capacity limits, they can’t be too far away!
Australia has long been a fertile breeding ground for great rock acts. As I listened to “Slow,” the latest track from Perth band Tied Down, I realised they might be the latest group worthy of their title. As the name suggests, this song is a bit of a slow burner, but by the time the chorus kicked in, I was firmly on board.
“Slow is definitely the most personal and emotionally-charged song we’ve written as a band to date. It explores an adventure through addiction and coming out the other side of it, and the music is written in a way that reflects that, with some pretty heavy and emotional moments that really resolve in a positive, optimistic and opportunistic way,” Tied Down explained. “It’s a song that we feel will resonate with anyone who has experienced something similar and we hope that people can draw meaning from not only the lyrics, but the journey that the music takes them on as well.”
Tied Down have a couple of shows coming up in their home state. With borders opening up, hopefully it’s not too long before the rest of Australia gets to see them perform. Until then, you know what to do WA!
25 February 2022 – Indian Ocean Hotel, Scarborough (supporting Satisfaction Guaranteed)
11 March 2022 – Lynott’s Lounge, Perth (supporting Ezra Tide)
Image used with permission from Beehive PR; credit: Portia Gebauer @photosbyportia
British-born and Sydney-based, Ronny Lee Couling is one of those rare talents I’m glad to call our own. His new track “Home” is an uplifting folk track that takes its queues from artists like Mumford & Sons and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. You know those organic jangly energetic songs that make you think of road trips and good nights with friends? Full of heart and soul? It’s one of those. And it’s special.
Ronny says “I just want people to feel happy and not alone when they hear my music.” Mission accomplished. This is one of those songs that inspired me to listen to the artist’s back catalogue. It gives you a taste of what he’s all about, but there’s so much more to explore. There’s also more to come. Ronny’s new EP Weatherman will drop really soon.
Helen Shanahan lays her heart bare in the lyrics of her latest song, “Canvas.” The song paints a vivid picture of a woman in the wrong relationship. If you love classic female singer-songwriters like Joni Mitchell and Janis Ian, this will be right up your alley.
“The single was inspired by a theme from a songwriting group (I Heart Songwriting Club) I joined in 2018,” Helen said. “The theme was ‘lessons’, and it made me think about how I learnt to make myself small and essentially a doormat for a particular group of people. The song brought up lots of mixed emotions, as it unravelled how that relationship affected my adult life and how I had to ‘unlearn’ my feelings of low self-esteem and worth.”
The song’s themes are mirrored beautifully in the music video, which presents a young girl and eventually a young woman who’s learned to shrink herself to suit the people around her.
“The music video revolves around the concept of what it means ‘to be’ and how we become a summation of our own life experiences,” explained direct Jane Tiouowidjaja. “It’s what we learn over time but also what we decide to tolerate when we relate to those we love.”
“Canvas” is the title track of Helen’s forthcoming album, which drops on March 4. She’ll celebrate its release with a special local launch show at Morley’s Night Owl Studio on March 5.
Mid-NSW Coast outfit Galleri offers up some quiet reflection with their beautiful new single “I’m Good.” Its chilled acoustic vibes are perfect for a cruisy Friday, but it’s those introspective lyrics that really get me.
“I wrote this song as a reflection on trying to make sense of life and where our decisions take us,” explained frontman John Moore. “We all make a heap of mistakes through life, trying to make sense of it all and pushing to be a better person.”
John and the band booked out the Community Hall in Pacific Palms for the recording. The bass rig was isolated in the storeroom, the drums set up on stage, with baffles and guitar amps strung through the old hall. It’s an unconventional approach, but it works. The soon-to-be-released music video captures the unique recording session.
Galleri will drop their latest album, Easy, on February 25. They’re celebrating the single release with a show tonight at Kings Valley Egyptian Cuisine in Foster.
