Brisbane’s June Low have just dropped their new single “The Letter,” the title track from their forthcoming EP. It’s a beautiful song with poetic lyrics and slide guitar, which wins me over every time. If you love Americana, you’ll eat this song up.
If you want to hear more, make sure you get yourself to The Junk Bar tomorrow night, March 22, for the official EP launch. Melbourne gets its chance to see June Low at Merri Creek Tavern on April 20.
“Hard Luck,” by Western Australian singer-songwriter Scott Riley, is the sort of song we don’t hear enough in the modern world. Honest, authentic, sincere storytelling without bells and whistles. Scott wrote the track about the adversities he faced growing up on a farm and the drive he felt to save up enough money to buy that same property. It’s a proper Australian story told beautifully by this exciting musician.
It might be his first single, but Scott is no overnight success story. He’s been writing and performing for the last 17 years, so this is long overdue.
Scott has a full album underway, so look forward to hearing much more from this talented Western Australian.
Image used with permission from the A&R Department
Thando continues her winning run with “Gag Order,” a stunning, soulful piece of social commentary. In this track the Zimbabwe-born and Melbourn-based Thando artist shares her unique perspectives on cultural assimilation and ostracism.
“I come in giving a nod to the current race relations in the media at the moment,” she explained. “It creates a powerful statement about how perceived ‘sameness’ (the result of assimilation) comes undone when it really matters, so what’s the point of doing it [assimilating] anyway?”
Listen out for a special guest appearance from local MC, Francoistunes.
“Gag Order” comes from Thando’s forthcoming EP Life in Colour, which is slated for an October release. That’s some time to wait, but before then we’ll see Thando at several festivals and her own headlining show. Catch her at the following events.
29 March 2019 – By The Meadow, Bambra
12 April 2019 – Sooki Lounge, Belgrave
21-22 April 2019 – Byron Bay Bluesfest, Byron Bay Byron Bay
26-28 April 2019 – Bendigo Autumn Music Festival, Bendigo
Image used with permission from Heapsaflash
Morgan Bain has floored me with his latest single “Blood.” It’s such a powerful, poetic track, a slow-burner with stunning lyrics and complex, powerful instrumentation. Morgan conceived the song when he was making the three-week car trip from his home city of Perth to his new home in Melbourne.
“On that drive I was contemplating a lot of things to do with my childhood, and instead of writing really angry songs, which I’ve done many times, I’m now taking a slightly philosophical approach,” he says.
The clip is a thing of beauty too. Director Annelise Hickey said she worked with Morgan to “create something that contrasted against the heavy lyrics, emotive chords and construct the clip to feel a little unconventional and strange. This video is all about Morgan being used as a lifeless prop to create new shapes and forms by the characters around him (almost like artworks). I wanted to use ordinary locations with interesting color palettes & shapes and try to transform the landscapes into something strange (using camera placement / framing and the movements from the characters).”
With the right sounds and visuals, “Blood” is such an exciting release.
Image used with permission from Sony Music Australia
British-born, Sydney-based muso Ross Henry pushes the boundaries with his experimental electro-pop single “Places People.” The song certainly takes some risks with melody and sonic expression, but Ross’ haunting voice anchors it beautifully.
“Over time we can begin to solidify, become trapped, incapacitated, stuck in our roles. At the peak of the toughest parts of life it’s helpful to remember how malleable it all is,” Ross explained of the single’s inspiration. “When we wear ourselves loosely, it gives us room to work with the infinite beauty and simultaneous suffering on the journey. It also gives us space to connect with anyone behind it all. Occasionally I need a reminder of this. I’d love to think this track could serve to help others too”.
Ross is currently in residency every Thursday night at Newtown’s 1989 Bar. Catch him on the 21st or 28th to hear more from his forthcoming EP.
Image use with permission from Good Intent
Things happen, and sometimes people need to sell the tickets they’ve purchased for a gig on to someone else. However, we all know that many of the people selling tickets aren’t honest. How do you tell the fakes from the genuine ticket sellers? Tixel is making things easier with their new website Ticket Sheriff.
Simply enter the username of the ticket seller you intend purchasing from into Ticket Sheriff to see whether he or she has been busted doing dodgy deals in the past. You can also use Ticket Sheriff to report ticket scammers.
This is a real passion project for the Tixel team, whose founders Zac Leigh and Jason Webb were duped into buying counterfeit Tame Impala tickets back in 2015. When the show sold out, they thought they’d found a fairly honest bloke selling some tickets via Gumtree. Upon arrival, those $400 tickets wouldn’t scan and they realised they’d been scammed. Determined they wanted to protect others from a similar fate, they launched Tixel, a legitimate ticket resale site. In 2018, the site sold zero fake tickets, ensuring no music lovers were left out of pocket. That same year the company partnered with leading events like Beyond the Valley, FOMO, and Rhythm and Vines.
Tixel are a 100% Australian made company doing good for music fans. Now with the launch of Ticket Sheriff, they’re taking even greater steps towards stamping out scammers once and for all. Spread the word!
There’s just no slowing down Alex Lahey. She’s been touring relentlessly here and abroad, yet she’s somehow found time to record a brand new album. “Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself” is the upbeat first single from her forthcoming LP, The Best of Luck Club.
“I wrote this song for my partner who was on tour and was feeling the fatigue and stresses of the road, as we all do,” she explained. “It doesn’t matter how capable or strong or resilient you may be, we all have bad days, and that’s OK. There’s nothing wrong with feeling tired after a hard day’s work and sometimes I have to remind myself of that too.”
The Best of Luck Club drops on May 17. She’ll take its songs on the road this June.
6 June 2019 – The Governor Hindmarsh, Adelaide
7 June 2019 – Rock Rover, Fremantle
13 June 2019 – The Tivoli, Brisbane
14 June 2019 – The Basement, Canberra
15 June 2019 – Metro Theatre, Sydney
22 June 2019 – Forum, Melbourne
Karise Eden enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame when she took home The Voice crown in 2012. She was just 19 then, although I imagine such exposure would be difficult at any age. She released the obligatory winner’s journey album, which went straight to number one, but then she seemed to disappear from the spotlight. There was little fanfare on the release of her first album of originals Things I’ve Done two years later. It peaked at number 65. It’s taken five more years for Karise to release another album. She was in Newcastle last week to promote that release, Born to Fight.
Local singer-songwriter Megan Core warmed up the crowd, gushing to us how she’d admired Karise since she was a teen and was so thrilled to support her. If she had any nerves surrounding the honour, they didn’t show. It’s brave to play so many originals as a newcomer, but Megan seized the opportunity to introduce us to her songs. Personally I loved her folky ditties. With just an acoustic guitar as accompaniment, I found myself really taking in her lyrics. I’ll jump at the chance to see her again. What a talent.
Karise’s set was a similarly low-key affair. Her band was small, just a keyboardist and a guitarist, but she’s not one who needs a lot of support. The stripped back instrumentation put her voice front and centre. And what a voice it is. It’s what got me and so many other Australians excited when Karise was on The Voice. After recent weight loss, Karise thinks its stronger than ever. Having witnessed it myself, I’m not about to argue with her. Countless times I found myself with goosebumps. It’s just that good.
This concert was really a showcase of the work from her new album Born to Fight. I’m such a fan of that release that I was thrilled to hear so many of my favourite new songs. My parents hadn’t heard the new album, but they didn’t feel slighted by her song selections in the least. In fact, Mum has asked me to pick her up a copy next time I’m shopping! When you can not just get people interested in your new material, but make them want to spend money on it, you know you’re on the right track. There was the occasional track from the first album and some choice covers. “Landslide” was just as beautiful as it was on The Voice. She’s long been compared to Amy Winehouse, and her cover of one of the late British singer’s tracks shows she’s every bit as good. Her take on “Hallelujah” was a breathtaking closer.
The songs only tell half the story of any concert experience though. When we first met Karise she seemed uncomfortable with the glare of the spotlight, a nervous teenager. The years have seen Karise blossom into a confident woman. She was relaxed, funny, and open. There was a great natural charm about her that brought the audience on side instantly.
It’s just a shame there wasn’t more of us. My mum remarked that she should have sold out the venue, because she’s every bit as good as singers she’s compared to like Amy Winehouse and Janis Joplin. In fact, mum said she should be playing much bigger venues. I don’t disagree. However, I love an intimate gig. What a thrill to witness a world-class performer in a place so small. If there’s any justice, Australia will remember why they fell in love with Karise and start turning up in their droves to see her. Until then, I’ll enjoy the intimacy that comes with small gigs like this.
There are a couple of dates left on Karise’s Born to Fight tour. If you can, make sure you go see her. She’s incredible.
23 March 2019 – York Theatre @ Seymour Centre, Sydney
24 March 2019 – Canberra Theatre Centre, Canberra
31 March 2019 – The Gov, Adelaide
Image source: Stephen Katulka
Canberra singer-songwriter MAXO should get your heart soaring with his new single “Light It Up.” It’s a uplifting song which MAXO says it “about leaving the 9-5 jobs, chasing my dreams, and bringing everyone along for the ride. To break their shackles. To chase their dreams. To feel ALIVE!”
I’ve written about MAXO a few times and I think he’s going from strength to strength. With one accomplished pop-rock song after the next, I can’t wait to hear his next release.
Taking their cues from Depeche Mode and Nine Inch Nails, Melbourne act Leipzig Lab have released a hard-hitting single “Unloved.”
This is actually the band’s fifth single but their first released in six months. The hiatus seems to have done that good, with the band refining their sound and creating something which is bold and unforgettable.
“We write all of our songs over the internet,” explained one half of the duo, Keiran Bahlmann. “We both have home studios and a shared drive. We take turns with coming up with parts and recordings, these automatically arrive in each other’s studios. It’s the beauty of making music in this age, we can work and rework a song until we know it’s the best it can be before we even get to rehearse it.”
It’s an unconventional approach to the creative process, but when it turns out music this strong, who am I to question it?
Image used with permission from The A&R Department