When Ricki-Lee was unceremoniously booted from Australian Idol well before her time, it was called one of the great scandals of TV history. People still talk about how she was robbed. There’s no doubting her talent, yet somehow despite all that chatter her career has never quite taken off as the careers of some other former Idols have.
My theory is that she’s never released the right song. Her upbeat pop numbers have been fun but ultimately forgettable. But I think she’s on to a winner with “Not Too Late.” On her Facebook page, Ricki-Lee wrote that she poured her heart into the track, and it shows. It’s such a special song and hopefully signals a new, more soulful era of music from this talented Aussie.
After selling out their Melbourne EP launch and supporting big name acts like British India and Dappled Cities last year, Melbourne’s Neighbourhood Youth have generated plenty of buzz. They show us why with the release of new single “Lately.”
It’s a whirlwind of track clocking in at just over two minutes, but what the band achieves in a short space of time is mesmerising. It rocks hard with a frenetic energy that should have you punching your fists by the time the chorus rolls around.
Melbournites are in luck with a couple of hometown shows announced for the coming weeks. Catch them at Old Bar tomorrow, September 17, and Yah Yah’s on October 7.
Image used with permission from Habit Music Company
Female rock voices don’t come much stronger than Sarah McLeod’s. Even when she’s releasing ballads like her new single “Wild Hearts,” there’s a power to her vocals that’s undeniable.
This song has much more than powerhouse vocals on its side though. It also demonstrates Sarah’s knack for simple but powerful storytelling through her lyrics. The understated guitar lets you take in those words and the special way Sarah delivers them.
“Wild Hearts” comes from Sarah’s recently released, self-produced album Rocky’s Diner, her first solo effort in 12 years. As you can imagine, after such a long wait fans are keen to see Sarah doing her thing. So she’s extended her national tour with many more dates. Here are all the places you can see her play near the end of the year. Tickets to the new shows, the ones from November 5 onwards, go on sale through Oztix on September 21.
5 October 2017 – Sol Bar, Sunshine Coast
6 October 2017 – Spotted Cow, Toowoomba
7 October 2017 – Miami Shark Bar, Gold Coast
8 October 2017 – Byron Bay Brewery, Byron Bay
12 October 2017 – 48 Watt, Newcastle
13 October 2017 – The Baroque Room, Katoomba
15 October 2017 – Miranda Hotel, Miranda
25 October 2017 – Pelly Bar, Frankston
26 October 2017 – Sooki Lounge, Belgrave
27 October 2017 – Karova Lounge, Ballarat
3 November 2017 – Waratah Hotel, Hobart
4 November 2017 – Club 54, Launceston
5 November 2017 – Jive, Adelaide
29 November 2017 – The Curtin, Melbourne
30 November 2017 – The Basement, Canberra
2 December 2017 – The Foundry, Brisbane
7 December 2017 – The Hen House @ Badlands Bar, Perth
8 December 2017 – The Odd Fellow, Fremantle
9 December 2017 – Prince of Wales, Bunbury
15 December 2017 – Heritage Hotel, Bulli
16 December 2017 – The Lansdowne, Sydney
I must admit, I hadn’t heard of Canadian singer Lindi Ortega until a press release publicising her upcoming Aussie tour hit my inbox. However, after listening to her new EP ‘Til the Goin’ Gets Gone, her name isn’t one that I’d forget in a hurry.
She has such a wonderful textured tone and a classic country-folk feel to her music which makes it instantly accessible. She also surrounds herself with top-notch musicians like slide guitar guru James “Champagne” Robertson, who will join her on her Australian tour.
The EP features some stellar originals as well as this awesome cover of Townes Van Zandt’s “Waiting ‘Round to Die.”
Lindi Ortega plays the following headline shows and festivals during her time in Oz.
16-19 November 2017 – Mullum Music Festival, Mullumbimby
19 November 2017 – Camelot Lounge, Sydney
21 November 2017 – Coogee Diggers, Coogee
23 November 2017 – Northcote Social Club, Northcote
24 November 2017 – Caravan Music Club, Melbourne
24-26 November 2017 – Queenscliff Music Festival, Queenscliff
Summer can’t be too far away when bands like Sydney’s Tigertown are releasing shimmery new singles like “Warriors.” It’s such a feel-good track, upbeat and irresistibly catchy, pure pop in the best possible way.
Tigertown is currently wowing crowds in North America, where the band is supporting VÉRITÉ. Hopefully it won’t be too long before we see them back on home soil. If you’re Stateside, catch Tigertown at the following gigs.
9 September 2017 – Soda Bar, San Diego
12 September 2017 – Valley Bar, Phoenix
15 September 2017 – Stubb’s Jr., Austin
16 September 2017 – Three Links, Dallas
17 September 2017 – White Oak Music Hall, Houston
19 September 2017 – Vinyl, Atlanta
20 September 2017 – Local 506, Chapel Hill
21 September 2017 – Rock & Roll Hotel, Washington
22 September 2017 – Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn
3 November 2017 – Petit Campus, Montréal
4 November 2017 – The Garrison, Toronto
6 November 2017 – Pike Room, Detroit
7 November 2017 – Beachland Tavern, Cleveland
9 November 2017 – Canopy Club, Urbana
10 November 2017 – 7th St Entry, Minneapolis
11 November 2017 – Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines
12 November 2017 – Minibar, Kansas City
14 November 2017 – Paper Tiger, San Antonio
Image used with permission from Inertia Music
Dramatic, dark, and haunting are three words that came to mind as I listened to MANE’s new single “What If the Love Dies.” The track is so compelling as is that special voice of hers. The mind-bending video clip is also worthy of some attention.
“We played on a ‘love is blind’ narrative quite literally,” Paige Renee Court, the woman behind MANE, explained. “Between the performance shots of the band, the story of two people evidently in love spans over three completely different eras in time … but there is a constant sense of distance between them.”
After wowing crowds in the United Kingdom and Europe, Adelaide’s MANE is set to impress with a string of shows to launch her single on home soil. Catch her at the following places.
19 October 2017 – Gasometer Upstairs, Melbourne
27 October 2017 – Rocket Bar, Adelaide
1 November 2017 – Rad Bar, Wollongong
2 November 2017 – Brighton Up Bar, Sydney
Kita Alexander has just dropped the video for “Hotel,” the title track of her sophomore EP released earlier this year.
It’s a beautiful clip with dreamy footage shot on location in Byron Bay the perfect foil for Kita’s laidback synth-pop smash. It also captures the emotional connection of two sisters, fittingly considering “Hotel” is a song dedicated to Kita’s late sister Natassja Claire.
“There was no doubt in my mind that I wanted a sister love-story line to play out in my video for Hotel. I took this idea to one of my best friends who is also an amazing creative director. She knew exactly how to visually explore the relationship I had with my sister, perfectly. These movies I have in my mind of my sister and I together were never filmed in real life, so to be able to re-create the memories and be able to live them whenever I watch the video, is really special to me. Thank you to everyone who supported the process,” she said. “And thank you to my sister for living life to its fullest and always having fun no matter where or when, appropriate or inappropriate.”
It’s really the perfect marriage of song and videos. Amazing work from Kita.
Queensland’s Karl S. Williams sings the blues like it’s supposed to be sung, with a swampy, rootsy grit that instantly draws you in. With his East Coast tour kicking off tonight, there seemed no better time than the present to show you his new video for single “Blood to Give.”
“When I started working on the video for ‘Blood To Give’, I knew that I wanted to convey something about being caught up in a destructive machine and seeking a way out of that while feeling uncertain whether indeed you have the capacity to escape something so omnipresent,” Karl explained.
“As I worked on the clip, saddeningly, the world began to be reflected more and more therein. The US/North Korea situation began to develop further, people elsewhere were waving nazi banners, xenophobia and exclusive policy here at home, death and terror ruling the news. The message of the clip felt increasingly urgent and (I hope) relevant.”
The clip was a real labour of love for Karl, who created the clip himself by animating his own drawings.
Karl’s no stranger to the stage after wowing crowds at Bluesfest, Woodford Folk Festival, Dark Mofo, and last weekend’s Wintermoon Spring Festival. Catch him at the following East Coast shows.
7 September 2017 – Leadbelly, Newtown
8 September 2017 – The Edwards, Newcastle
9 September 2017 – Heritage Hotel, Bulli
10 September 2017 – Brass Monkey, Cronulla
14 September 2017 – Bearded Lady, Brisbane
15 September 2017 – Soundlounge, Gold Coast
16 September 2017 – The Northern, Byron Bay
22 September 2017 – Northcote Social Club, Northcote
23 September 2017 – Barwon Club, Geelong
30 September 2017 – Caloundra Music Festival, Caloundra
1 October 2017 – Wildwood Music Festival, Port Macquarie
6 October 2017 – Music On The Hill, Red Hill
8 October 2017 – The Taproom, Castlemaine
21 October 2017 – Kyneton Music Festival, Kyneton
Image used with permission from Habit Music Company
Melbourne songstress Ariela Jacobs seems so sweet and wholesome, I’d never have imagined her breaking the rules. Yet she snuck into a local pool to bring us this stunning acoustic live performance of her brand new single “Say So.”
The song has me even more excited about her second EP, also called Say So, which will be released in the near future. Before then, she’s got two big shows at Bigsound to think about. Brisbane, you can catch her tonight at the Empire Hotel and tomorrow at Laruche.
Stand Atlantic has dropped brand new single “Sidewinder,” just in time to remind us that the EP of the same name isn’t too far away.
This is another gloriously gutsy slice of pop-punk from the Sydney outfit. Frontwoman Bonnie Fraser says the track “was written as a reminder that if you love someone, it’s important to acknowledge and accept differences between each other. Never compromise who you are just to try and change something you can’t.”
Stand Atlantic will release the Sidewinder EP on September 15. Until then, crank the title track up!
Image used with permission from Paris is Patient
