Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Henry Wagons Touring New Single Around North America

I’ve long been a fan of Henry Wagons’ slightly unhinged style of Americana folk. He’s served up another winner with his latest song “Head Or Heart.”

“Nashville is a town full of some of the finest in music and booze. A musician’s paradise! It’s the perfect storm for getting in a real mess. ‘Head or Heart’ is a song about that time of the night when it becomes difficult to decide between your rational mind, or what’s below the belt. The head or the heart,” Henry explained in a press release.

The clip has got just the right sort of spontaneous feel to suit the song. It sees Henry on a music-making frenzy, shaking the foundations of a fully stocked garage along with the band that helped him put together his recently released solo album After What I Did Last Night.

Henry Wagons is currently touring around North America. He’s set to announce some Aussie dates soon.

16 & 17 July 2016 – Vancouver Folk Festival, Vancouver
21 July 2016 – The Flying Steamshovel, Rossland
23 July 2016 – Vinomania Secret Wine Party, Edmonton
24 July 2016 – Interstellar Rodeo, Edmonton
25 July 2016 – Secret Show, Edmonton
26 July 2016 – Ironwood, Calgary
29 July 2016 – Live From the Divide, Bozeman
30 July 2016 – Red Ants Pants Festival, White Sulphur Springs
3 August 2016 – Music City Roots, Nashville
5 August 2016 – Hill Country Live DC, Washington
6 August 2016 – Hill Country Live NYC, New York City
11 August 2016 – Dakota Tavern, Toronto
12 August 2016 – Pearl Company, Hamilton
14 August 2016 – Interstellar Rodeo, Winnipeg

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

The Bon Scotts Shine a Light on Society with “Main Street”

After taking much of 2015 off and almost disbanding, The Bon Scotts are back with a cracking new single “Main Street.”

It’s a politically charged look at the racism that so often masquerades as patriotism these days, and the way society needs conversations, understanding, and empathy rather than anger and ignorance. It asks the poignant question “Can either side be part of the solution when they often seem to be the root cause of the problem?” The video was shot by the band in their hometown of Coburg at a race rally this May.

This is the first song to come from the band’s upcoming new album When I’m Lonely I Still Think Of You, which should drop next March.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Lucy Roleff’s “This Paradise” Drops Today

With her debut album This Paradise in stores today, it seemed the perfect time to share Lucy Roleff’s new single “Aspen” with you.

This is such a beautiful song, delicate and haunting. I’ve heard it classified as chamber folk, which is a pretty apt descriptor if you ask me. There’s something almost spiritual about it.

If you love this song, and you want to hear more, make sure you get This Paradise, which is available on CD, vinyl, and for digital download from today. Lucy will launch the album at The Gasometer in Collingwood on July 28.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

“Firetrain” is Your Feelgood Friday Song

With a weekend looming, most of us are probably feeling pretty good about life. “Firetrain,” the latest single from Adelaide muso Todd Sibbin is the perfect accompaniment to those good vibes. With its hand claps and bold trumpets, this optimistic number is a real winner.

Todd describes the single as “being about putting out psychological fires, both the ones you create yourself, and the ones others create for you.”

“Firetrain” is just one of the excellent songs on Todd Sibbin’s new album The Bottled Ship Got Freedom, which is available now.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Runaway Weekend Poised for Greatness

With a loyal fan base and plenty of buzz, Runaway Weekend could well be the next big thing. When they released the video for “Déjà Vu,” the title track from their debut EP, recently it garnered 20,000 views in just a couple of days.

I love the way this band plays with light and shade. The song is so epic and dramatic in places, but delicately restrained in others. I’m doubly impressed that Runaway Weekend have written, produced, and recorded this song and the others on their EP themselves. It’s got such a professional sound that we don’t normally see from acts just starting to play with production.

“We really hope that people can find something of themselves in our music and if they do, hopefully they can also lock themselves away in it to escape from reality for a bit, like we do with our favourite bands,” the guys from Runaway Weekend explained.

“At the end of the day we’re just some teenagers from Adelaide who want to affect people, we want to make people feel something, be that utter happiness or realisation. Through our music we want to touch people, like we’ve been touched by artists and if we can do half as good a job as the artists we admire, we’d be totally complete.”

Runaway Weekend are currently touring their EP. You can catch them at Wrangler in Melbourne on the 16th of July and Producer’s Bar in Adelaide on July 18.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Burn Antares Go Their Own Way With “Young Gun”

With the release of their latest single “Young Gun,” Sydney quartet Burn Antares continue to show they’re like no one else on the modern musical landscape.

There’s a sweetness in frontwoman Grace Farriss’s vocals which is beautifully tempered by the song’s big crunchy chords. It’s a throwback to the heady heyday of glam and psychedelic rock, but it somehow manages to sound fresh rather than dated.

“We typically spend countless hours creating our songs, being very clinical and harsh with ourselves but with Young Gun, it was quite different. We went at it with open minds and experimented a lot more with sounds in the studio and generally had a bit more fun with it,” Grace explained in a press release. “I think the end result is a great reflection of the process and the vibe was captured perfectly by our producer Tony [Buchen].”

Is “Young Gun” the cure for what ails you this Thursday morning?

Image used with permission from Rare Finds

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Robbie Miller Takes New Direction with “Road”

Robbie Miller could sing the phone book and I’d probably still listen. Thankfully though he’s being a little more ambitious with his new single “Road.”

It’s a slightly new sound for Robbie, with electronic elements building on the acoustic folk he’s famous for. It’s not such a dramatic departure that it should lose him any fans though.

There’s talk than a new EP isn’t too far off, which is a blessing if like me you can’t get enough of this incredible singer. Robbie is also set to hit the road supporting Dustin Tebbutt. Make sure you arrive early enough for his set at the following shows.

4 August 2016 – Byron Theatre, Broken Head
5 August 2016 – Foundry, Fortitude Valley
6 August 2016 – Solbar, Maroochydore
11 August 2016 – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne
12 August 2016 – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne (SOLD OUT)
13 August 2016 – Workers Club, Geelong
18 August 2016 – Newtown Social Club, Newtown
19 August 2016 – Newtown Social Club, Newtown (SOLD OUT)
20 August 2016 – Transit Bar, Canberra
26 August 2016 – Jack Rabbit Slims, Northbridge
27 August 2016 – Jive, Adelaide

Image used with permission from Mucho Bravado

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

Jones the Cat Tour Paste on Smile EP

It seems like Australians have a lot to be angry about, because I think punk music is the strongest it’s been in this country for a really long time. The latest punk act to cross my path is Jones the Cat, a four-piece out of Newcastle who are currently touring their new EP Paste On Smile.

These guys formed at the Newcastle Conservatorium of Music in 2013, and they’ve been relentlessly gigging and recording ever since. The EP features the lead single “I Don’t Want to Die Here (Anymore),” an introspective take on gentrification and outgrowing a city that this girl from Newie gets all too well.

These are the remaining dates for the Paste On Smile EP tour.

21 July 2016 – Captain Cook Hotel, Sydney
22 July 2016 – Crown & Anchor Hotel, Adelaide
23 July 2016 – Whole Lotta Love, Melbourne
5 August 2016 – The Lass O’Gowrie, Newcastle

Image used with permission from Done Music Publicity

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

“One For Sorry, Two For Joy” – Brightly

The very best albums, in my opinion, are the ones where artists lay their souls bare. Where they strip back all the artifice and leave themselves exposed and vulnerable. It’s rare to hear music that’s as raw as all that, but that’s just what we get on One For Sorry, Two For Joy, the stunning new album from London-based Aussie Brightly.

Brightly recorded the songs in an isolated cabin in Iceland during a harsh winter. I liked thinking about that background as I listened to the music, because the ice and snow seems so perfectly suited to these tracks. They have such a lush sound, with synths that wrap around Brightly haunting voice.

However rich the music is though, it never steals focus from the lyrics which are the true centrepiece of this album. I enjoyed listening to each song after reading the information about them Brightly penned for ToneDeaf last month. I found learning the background of each number made the listening experience that much more powerful.

“Rugby” contains some of the rawest, most honest lyrics I’ve ever heard, delivered in the way that only someone who’s lived the story can. The title track “One For Sorrow, Two For Joy (Beginnings & Endings)” is like a sucker punch. This poignant number deals with the death of a close friend after a music festival. Brightly originally wrote the song 10 years ago and has been tweaking it ever since to make sure it sounds just right. “Bury Us In Fruit Jars” was another song that really floored me. It tells the story of an arson attack at a gay bar in Los Angeles in 1973 and is especially powerful in the wake of the Orlando shooting at Pulse. “Oceans,” one of the lighter numbers on the album, is truly uplifting.

This album has so much heart. Its themes of death and loss are dealt with so thoughtfully. It’s intimate and vulnerable and everything the best albums should be.

One For Sorry, Two for Joy is available for digital download now. If you’re in London, you can catch Brightly launching it at The Social on July 15. Hopefully it won’t be too long before he’s back on home soil and we get some local shows.

Posted on by Lauren Katulka

The Melbourne Guitar Show Returns in August

After a big first show last year, the Melbourne Guitar Show is heading back to Caulfield Racecourse on August 6 and 7.

Presented by Triple M and Australian Musician, the event will feature an amazing array of electric and acoustic guitars, effects pedals, amps, and so much more. In addition you can catch information seminars, demos, and live performances by some of Australia’s most exciting guitarists including Kevin Borich, Phil Manning, Daniel Champagne, Dean Ray, and heaps more. In addition to solo performances, there promises to be a Melbourne Guitar Show SuperJam where, according to AMA chief executive Rob Walker, “You never know who’s going to get up to play! It could easily be one of those rare ‘were you at the Melbourne Guitar Show when…’ moments.”

Last year’s event attracted 5,000 guitar lovers, and organisers hope 2016 will be even better.

“It had such a great vibe – a really positive event. The exhibitors, the artists and the patrons were all enthusiastic about an incredibly friendly and well attended show,” Rob Walker recalled. “Last year, we had just over 50 exhibitors, including 20 local manufacturers and luthiers. This year we’ll have 70 exhibitors with more stands, and more great products.”

Whether you love your guitars mellow or cranked up to 11, you’re going to find it at the Melbourne Guitar Show. Tickets are on sale now from TryBooking.

Image source: brunoronner @ Flickr