The Music (Sydney) Issue #184 by TheMusic.com.au

12 1 2 2.0 .04. .0 04. 4.1 17 7 Mus Mu siic / A Arrts ts / Lif ifes styl tty ylle e / Cul ultu ultu ure re

Is Is Iss ss sue ue

184

Syd Sy dn ney ey / Frre e ee e / In Inco nc co orrp por ora orat attin i ng

2017 “THE REAL DEFINITION OF AN INDEPENDENT MUSIC FESTIVAL.”

RELEASE CHRIS SHIFLETT

TOUR NAHKO & MEDICINE FOR THE PEOPLE

RELEASE LITTLE DRAGON

2 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

ALL BLUESFEST TOURING ARTISTS ALSO APPEAR AT

BLUESFEST

VISIT BLUESFEST.COM.AU

THE WED BASEMENT APR

tickets & info from 02 6685 8310 or go to www.bluesfesttouring.com.au

METRO WED THEATRE APR

GRAMMY WINNER

“One of the hottest axemen.” ROLLING STONE

ENMORE WED THEATRE APR

OXFORD ARTS FACTORY WED 12 APRIL

THE MANNING THU BAR APR

“It’s as good-hearted as all get-out.” NEW YORK TIMES ‘ PUT YO UR RECOR DS ON ’ ‘ I S THI S LOVE’ ‘ L I KE A S TA R’ 2 TI M E GRAMMY WIN N E R

THE SUN BASEMENT APR

METRO T H E AT R E S U N A P R I L 16

2017 GRAMMY TM NOMINEES

OXFORD ART MON FACTORY APR

THE HIT OF BLUESFEST 2016 !!

Classic Stax hits:

TRY A LITTLE TENDERNESS HOLD ON I’M COMING’ GREEN ONIONS TIME IS TIGHT and many more

NEWTOWN MON SOCIAL CLUB APR

NEWTOWN WED SOCIAL CLUB APR

THE WED METRO APR

THE THU METRO APR

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 3

4 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 5

Search for ‘The Music App’ on

THE MUSIC AND BARBECUE FESTIVAL

The DElta RigGs THE tOMMYhAWKS THE FUMES BULLHORN new VENusianS DAVId ORR DUSTY BOOts Royal ChAnt T I C K E T S AT W W W. M E AT S T O C K . C O M . au

6 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

BASEMENT

WED 12TH 8PM BASEMENT

THU 13TH 8PM LEVEL ONE

THU 13TH 10PM BASEMENT

FRI 14TH 5PM LEVEL ONE

FRI 14TH 5PM

“HOSTILE LITTLE FACE”

BASEMENT

SAT 15TH 2PM

IN INDIE ROCK SHOW CELEBRATING AFTER ANGER LP RELEASE, SUPPORTED “COSMIC FLANDERS”, “GASPER SANZ” AND MANY SPECIAL GUESTS

UNHOLY THURSDAY EXTRAVAGANZA

WITH “LORD SWORD”, “OFFENSIVE BEHEMOTH”, “YES, I’M LEAVING”, “DURRY”

LEVEL ONE

SAT 15TH 10PM

MIX AND MASH PARTY

RNB/HIP HOP/POP FEAT: DERRICK, SAHARA, JACK ERRINGTON, CAYLENE G, MADDIE SEDDON WITH JAMES NORCOTT “MUD ANGEL” PRESENTS

HARD ROCK SHOW

BULLRUSH ENTERTAINMENT PRESENTS:

TWISTED FEST 2017

FEAT: “JOHNNY DEVILSEED AND OLD MAN RUBES”, “FIRECHILD”, “VODVILE”, “HALCYON REIGN”, “THE DEFIANT FEW”, “DEAD TILL DAWN”, “PYREFLY”, “THE RAVENS”, “OF GRAVE CONCERN”, “DURRY”, “GUARDIAN”, “NECROSTALGIA” DEEPSPACE SYDNEY AND ESF RECORDS PRESENTS:

OBSESSION FEAT: HARMONIC RUSH (IRAN) WITH LIQUID SUNSHINE, RAPTOR, ZAC SLADE, PENUMBRA, DJ FINGERZZZ IN THE NIGHT OF PSYCHEDELIC BLISS

BASEMENT

FLYING ALONGSIDE “WARTT GUNN”, “WATCHMORE”, “WIVES OF SULTAN” AND SPECIAL GUESTS

SUN 16TH 3PM

DJ TIKELZ IN ASSOCIATION WITH WIRADJURI PLATINUM MIXERS PRESENTS

“DADA ONO” PRESENTS

MINI FESTIVAL AT VALVE

SUPPORTED BY “JOSH SHIPTON AND THE BLUE EYED RAVENS”, “FABELS”, “SPINDLES”, “MELANCHOLY FLOWERS”, “ARGON ROOM” AND MANY SPECIAL GUESTS

LIT FRIDAYS

CLUB NIGHT FEAT DJ’S TIKELZ, I SIGHT, BAWLINN, C-LO, STAN, DJ T-ROCK, SUPREME MC

COMING UP

Thu 20 April: 8pm Basement: “Attack Of The Humans” presents 420 night of Alt Rock/Folk/Ska supported by “Operation Ibis”, “The S Bends”; Fri 21st April: 8pm Basement: “Megan & The Vegans” in the night of Indie Rock supported by “Just Breathe”, “South Scope”, “Modern Minds”, “The Phazes”; 10pm Level One: GHS23 presents: Neurotronic II, night of Neuro DnB brought by DCQ (Cz), GHS23 (Cz), Ncrypt (Au), Trireme (Au), Wiit (Cz); Sat 22th April: 8pm Basement: Bloodshed At The Valve feat: “The Plague” EP Launch supported by “Burial Chamber”, “Reaver”, “Forakt”; 10pm Level One: Strange And Deranged Clubnight, Sydney’s Newest Alternative Clubnight with extensive Dj cast spinning rock/ metal/alternative favourites; Sun 23 April: 5pm Basement: “Kopi Luwak” presents Indie Music at The Valve supported by “Luke Aaron”, “Katie +Jack”, “Grace Brown & Bro’s”

42 KING ST NEWTOWN

WED 12th

WHITE TREE BAND FREE ENTRY

THU 13th

DIESEL

+ FIONA BOYES

W W W. TH E L E A D B E L LY. C O M . A U

WED 19th

ED WELLS

+ SPECIAL GUESTS

THU 20th

THE MAE TRIO + SPECIAL GUESTS

FRI 14th – 16th

FRI 21st

FOR EASTER

PRES BY PETER NORTHCOTE

CLOSED

ROCK CHICKS

FREE ENTRY AFTER 11PM EVERY THURS, FRI, SAT

SAT 22nd

NIGHTCAP

BAR AND KITCHEN OPEN TILL LATE

FELIX RIEBL (THE CAT EMPIRE)

COMING UP... BUSBY MAROU, DIESEL, UNDERGROUND LOVERS - NEW SHOW JUST ANNOUNCED, DIREWOLF, VIRNA SANZONE + PHIL STACK, FRANK SULTANA, TAASHA COATES (THE AUDREYS) HITMEN, GEMMA RAE (U.K), THE PIGS, BLACK EYED SUSANS, THE TURNER BROWN BAND, BILL CHAMBERS, WILLIAM CRIGHTON, TIMBERWOLF, MICK THOMAS, JEFF DUFF, CROOKED FIDDLE BAND, THE RADIATORS AND MORE ...

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 7

Lifestyle Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture

Living With A Grin

In support of the 20th anniversary deluxe edition of their debut album, Guide To Better Living, rockers Grinspoon have announced an epic 27-date tour that will see them play across the country from June to September.

Where and when? For more gig details go to theMusic.com.au

Grinspoon

Ros Return Icelandic post-rock legends Sigur Ros will perform two headline shows as part of their upcoming Australian sojourn for Splendour In The Grass this July. Don’t miss their career spanning set.

32 The number of minutes between Splendour In The Grass tickets going on sale and a Facebook post from the organisers saying that the event had sold out.

Moonlight Cinema Stalwart Irish pop-rockers Two Door Cinema Club have joined the Splendour In The Grass sideshow fray. The trio are giving us three headline dates across both coasts this July.

8 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Two Door Cinema Club

Dustin Tebbutt & Lisa Mitchell

e / Cultu Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture

Credits

Publisher Street Press Australia Pty Ltd

Rageaholic

Kate Ceberano on the rage couch

Group Managing Editor Andrew Mast

Turning 30 on 17 Apr, rage are putting on a multi-platform celebration through April. Keep an eye out for Rage 30 Magazine: Collector’s Edition, Rage30: Stories From The Red Couch hosted by Kate Ceberano for TV, and Rage ‘Til You Puke on ABC radio.

National Editor – Magazines Mark Neilsen Arts & Culture Editor Maxim Boon

Gig Guide Justine Lynch gigs@themusic.com.au Contributing Editor Bryget Chrisfield

Editorial Assistants Brynn Davies, Sam Wall

Sigur Ros

Hip Hop To It

Contributors Anthony Carew, Ben Nicol, Brendan Crabb, Carley Hall, Chris Familton, Daniel Cribb, Chris Maric, Christopher H James, Cyclone, Daniel Cribb, Dave Drayton, Dylan Stewart, Guido Farnell, Guy Davis, James d’Apice, Liz Guiffre, Mac McNaughton, Mark Hebblewhite, Matt MacMaster, Matt O’Neill, Melissa Borg, Mitch Knox, Neil Griffiths, Mick Radojkovic, Rip Nicholson, Rod Whitfield, Ross Clelland, Sam Baran, Samantha Jonscher, Sara Tamim, Sarah Petchell, Shaun Colnan, Steve Bell, Tanya Bonnie Rae, Tim Finney, Uppy Chatterjee

Sampa The Great & REMI

Melbourne’s REMI and Sydney’s Sampa The Great are co-headlining the Fire Sign tour. The artists and frequent collaborators will keep you on your feet when they tour in June and July.

Photographers Angela Padovan, Cole Bennetts, Clare Hawley, Jared Leibowitz, Josh Groom, Kane Hibberd, Pete Dovgan, Peter Sharp, Rohan Anderson, Simone Fisher Advertising Dept Georgina Pengelly, Brad Edwards sales@themusic.com.au Art Dept Ben Nicol, Felicity Case-Mejia, Alex Foreman Admin & Accounts Ajaz Durrani, Meg Burnham, Emma Clarke accounts@themusic.com.au Distro distro@themusic.com.au Subscriptions store@themusic.com.au Contact Us PO Box 2440 Strawberry Hills NSW 2012 Suite 42, 89-97 Jones St Ultimo Phone (02) 9331 7077 info@themusic.com.au www.themusic.com.au

— Sydney

Lemon Grass

Calling Near And Far Aussie talents Lisa Mitchell and Dustin Tebbutt are bringing something totally new as they team up for the Distant Call tour. The duo are excited to perform music from both of their new albums for audiences through June and July.

The Lemon Twigs

Ascendant Long Island duo The Lemon Twigs are riding their current momentum all the way Down Under for this year’s Splendour In The Grass festival, and the band have just announced a pair of headline dates to complement that journey this July. THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 9

Music / Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture

Vivid Dreams

So Bad It’s Good

Vivid have made a slew of new announcements. The full line-ups of the Repressed Records 15th anniversary party and The Avalanches block party in June have been announced. Boy George is also returning for another DJ set.

Marrickville block party Bad Friday is this week and as a bonus, joining The Jezabels, DMA’S, Scabz and the rest are A Band. Made up of performers on the line-up, A Band is recreating the communal celebration of The Band’s final show.

Boy George

Winston Surfshirt

Surfshirt Riding The Wave Headlining their first national tour, frontman Winston Surfshirt and his band are continuing to ride the wave of success from their first single Be About You. Catch their funk, soul, dream-pop mixture as they tour in June.

I Wanna Dance

What’s Paul McCartney’s favourite fruit? Banana-na na-na na-naa

Sydney Film Festival returns for its 64th annual event this June and organisers have lifted the veil on nearly 30 of the event’s more-than200-strong list of movies including eagerly awaited documentary Whitney: Can I Be Me.

na-na na-naa, hey Jude Whitney: Can I Be Me

@thepunningman 10 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

The Jezabels

Arts / Li Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture

Frontlash

Guitar Prodigy

James Norbert Ivanyi and his band of players are celebrating the release of their latest EP Denalavis with a national tour in August. They’ll be joined by progressive-metal group Dyssidia.

Let Them Eat The Cake

Loving the new Horrorshow video for Eat The Cake, written by and featuring Aunty Donna.

James Norbert Ivanyi

Wheatus

MTV Movie And TV Awards

Have gone gender neutral in the acting category for their awards. Let’s see if any of the biggies follow suit.

Midnight Oil

Middle-Aged Dirtbag A night of pop punk and rock nostalgia is in store with Hoobastank, Wheatus, Alien Ant Farm, Lit and CKY’s Sing It Loud! tour. Break out your wallet chain as they play Australia in September and October.

Lashes

We love how they still do small warm up shows – and we thought Selina’s was first cab off the rank, but they snuck in a set at Marrickville Bowlo over the weekend.

Horrorshow And Aunty Donna. Pic by Cole Bennetts

Backlash RIP John Clarke

Vale to the master satirist. His two handers with Bryan Dawe are comedy genius.

Tool

Stop being so damn cryptic! Just tell us when you’re releasing the new album, don’t tease with social posts that may or may not allude to such a thing.

Splendour On Tour Don’t worry if you missed out on Splendour tickets, there are sideshows aplenty announced from Catfish & The Bottlemen, Banks, Bishop Briggs, George Ezra, Haim, Lany, Queens Of The Stone Age, Tove Lo and more.

Venue Ups And Downs

The roller coaster ride that is Sydney’s venues continues – while live music stalwart The Basement gets an extension to lockouts, we’ve now lost The Newsagency in Marrickville.

Catfish & The Bottlemen

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 11

Bluesfest

From Patti Smith’s final Australian shows to the shock cancellations of Neil Young and Barry Gibb, Bluesfest 2017 has been an exciting and bumpy ride. Speaking to Neil Griffiths, director Peter Noble isn’t afraid to admit this year is one of its best yet.

hile the likes of Santana, Buddy Guy, Neil Finn and The Doobie Brothers are names to be boasted on the Bluesfest line-up, it is the female talent heading to Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm that have truly won over music fans. Names such as Patti Smith (performing her debut 1975 LP, Horses), Mary J Blige, Courtney Barnett, Kasey Chambers and Rickie Lee Jones are just a few confirmed. “I personally think it’s the greatest line-up we’ve ever had of women talent,” Bluesfest Director Peter Noble says. “I don’t think there’s ever been a festival in Australia that’s ever done anything near it. “I’m just loving the fact that we’ve got great artists like Gallant selling out shows... I managed to see Billy Bragg and Joe Henry recently in Glasgow at Celtic Connections, sold out concert there and went, like, ‘Wow, the audience is going to love this.’” As far as locking in Patti Smith for Bluesfest 2017 goes, Noble says it’s simply a triumph for the festival. “It’s great for us to be able to book the most desirable artists in the world, to still be an independent company, to not be owned by any multinational or even to be desiring that, currently, and to be booking the type of acts that any company would like to have. “These are [Smith’s] final shows in Australia, according to her. And she personally wanted Courtney Barnett to be on and Courtney wasn’t due to do any shows in Australia this year.” Noble claims that from what he was told, Barnett granted Smith’s request to appear at Bluesfest as the US godmother of punk has long been an idol of hers.

Courtney Barnett

12 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

“It’s one of those things that happens every now and again where you get a match made in heaven.” While Bluesfest has been an immense success on the Australian festival circuit for many years now, it is also an event that is recognised globally. The festival, established in 1990, has been nominated seven times at the prestigious Pollstar Awards, while the last five years running has seen it feature in the International Music Festival Of The Year category. Though they are yet to pull out a win, again missing out this year to Glastonbury Festival, Noble says just to be included is an honour. “We got beaten by Glastonbury again, but the point is that Glastonbury sells out in a minute and has 170,000-person capacity,” he explains. “The other events we were up against have 70, 80, 90-000person capacities. We’re a 25,000. We’re still getting nominated every year as well as for Best Music Event. For me... it’s a pretty special feeling.” One of the reasons Bluesfest has continued to evolve and attract fans is no doubt the diverse acts it continues to take on. While this year’s line-up also includes revered rapper Nas, many people were curious to see fellow hip hop heavyweight Kendrick Lamar on the 2016 bill, given its expected focus of blues, jazz and rock. The move was a brilliant one though, as Lamar performed to a packed-out crowd on the first night of the four-day festival. “I’m not afraid to go out and do that,” Noble said of recruiting Lamar last year. “We are a creative music festival. If you want to be on Bluesfest, be that. It doesn’t matter how old you are, how young you are, we’ll take people from different areas of music. If you want to hear great music and discover artists, as well as incredible artists in their field, that’s who we are. “We don’t rely on a presents from a major radio station with large listenerships. It’s almost like we are the real definition of an independent music festival. And we like that.” The 2017 Bluesfest hasn’t come without hiccups, though. Two juggernaut headliner acts in Neil Young and Barry Gibb both abruptly cancelled within weeks of each other late last year. While Gibb cited a change in “international commitments” as the reason behind his cancellation, Young is still yet to publicly comment on why he pulled out — and Noble says he is yet to be given a reason either. “Everybody knows Neil Young cancelled. Nobody knows why he cancelled,

FIRST TIME’S THE BEST Patti Smith

NAS

Peter Noble

I want them at Bluesfest, I really do. I’ve been talking to them for years about it... because he didn’t go out and talk to his fans and tell them why he made that decision,” he says. Though the 2017 Bluesfest is just around the corner, work is already underway for the 2018 spectacle, and Noble says he has already put in offers to a bunch of acts. One band fans could perhaps keep an eye on for 2018 is the returning Midnight Oil. Noble teases that frontman Peter Garrett promised the band would play Bluesfest as their first gig back. “You never can trust a politician,” Noble laughs. Touching on the iconic Aussie band’s return Noble says, “Good on them. Australia needs artists who represent what great music is about. Using the arts for what it is — a vehicle for change. “A lot of people want to use the arts as some sort of ego gratification or things that are not about being creative. When you see something like Midnight Oil coming back, I think it’s just a great shot in the arm for the Australian music industry that one of our great bands is happening again. “I want them at Bluesfest, I really do. I’ve been talking to them for years about it... I’m sure we’ll talk about next year, we don’t have much room left [for this year].”

While Bluesfest Director Peter Noble nails it when he says the festival books “the most desirable acts in the world”, the line-up is a mixture of familiar faces and those playing the first time. You can see the energy of some past performers pictured left, but here are some who are performing at the festival for the first time and why you should check them out:

PATTI SMITH

Vintage Trouble @ Bluesfest. Pic: Peter Sharp

St Paul & The Broken Bones @ Bluesfest. Pic: Peter Sharp

Of course Smith’s performing her seminal album Horses with her band, but she will back it up with an acoustic set the following day. And according to Smith, this is her last Australian tour, so you’d better see her while you can.

NAS Kendrick Lamar owned Bluesfest last year and the festival has pulled another hip hop royalty stunner by nabbing Nas. Not only that, his is an exclusive one-off performance with New Orelans brass band The Soul Rebels.

GREGORY PORTER When & Where: 13 — 17 Apr, Bluesfest, Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

Cover Pics: Vintage Trouble pic by Peter Sharp; Bluesfest crowd pics by Tao Jones and Natalie Grono

He’s the hipster’s jazz vocalist, but he’s bound to appeal to a wider section of the Bluesfest audience, returning to Australia after a praised short run of shows at packed smaller venues at the end of last year. Plus he has two Grammys behind him for Best Jazz Vocal Album, so you know he’s got the track record behind him.

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 13

Bluesfest

Back On Tracks UK singer-songwriter Billy Bragg’s muse has recently been directed at musical history and locomotives, but he tells Steve Bell that a return to the political well is imminent.

hen UK singer-songwriter Billy Bragg invests his mind into a project there are no half measures, and no telling where his thought processes will

take him. He recently embarked on a quest to write a book about a transformative period in English music and ended up taking a detour which led to Shine A Light, the project with US artist Joe Henry that found them riding the rails through the American heartland while recording a collection of classic railway-themed blues, folk, and country songs.

If we’d recorded it in a studio we might as well have called it ‘Bill And Joe Like Trains’.

“For the last couple of years I’ve been working on a book about the period in our cultural history when British pop music went from being jazz-based to guitar-led, and that all hinged on Lonnie Donegan having a hit with Rock Island Line in January 1956,” Bragg explains. “Donegan was the first British artist to get into the charts playing a guitar, which in turn then kicked off the whole skiffle explosion which then leads to The Beatles and the rest of British music in the 1960s. Everything basically has its roots in skiffle, right up to bands like Mott The Hoople and Dr Feelgood. So while writing that book and attempting to put skiffle into its proper cultural context, it dawned on me that the majority of the material of that time was made up of railroad songs.”

14 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Having enticed long-time friend Henry into the project, the pair decided that simply recording a record of train-themed songs wouldn’t suffice, instead approaching the project like a field recording. The two troubadours boarded an LA-bound train in Chicago and for the next four days recorded a variety of old standards while the train paused for passengers at various stops, sometimes working track-side and sometimes in train station waiting rooms, always with an eye on the soon-todepart train, lest they be left behind. “If we’d recorded it in a studio we might as well have called it Bill And Joe Like Trains,” Bragg laughs. “It had to be conducted like we did so we could try and discover what the railway means to America in a modern construct, and it allowed us to meet a lot of people and hear their stories. They actually try and make it so that you sit with different people each night in the dining cart, so you hear a lot of stories about why people have ended up on the train: it’s a great way of meeting people and getting some different perspectives. “It’s strange though because in America only a certain type of person catches the train long-distance: either they’re not wealthy enough to fly or they have some sort of condition or they don’t want to show their ID to catch a plane. Or, they’re two musician blokes trying to unravel some mystery from another time,” Bragg chuckles. “But it was great fun despite the unique logistical hurdles it threw up at us, such as how not only are you trying to get a good take, you’re trying to get it before the train leaves. There is a certain amount of adrenaline involved in that, which keeps you on your toes.” Fortunately for those Bragg fans pining for the fiery leftist polemic he brought to his early work when landing on the scene in the ‘80s, this current period of political upheaval — which manifested in the UK firstly with the Brexit debacle, exacerbated by both Trump’s victory in the US Presidential race and the general rise of the altright — has got him itching to return to the fray. “It’s too much, it’s all encompassing, you can’t get away from it anywhere in the media at the moment,” he bemoans. “The alt-right is trying to block anything exhibiting empathy from being aired in public, it’s better for them to divide and keep fair-minded people apart. I’ve finally realised recently that it’s time for me to stop posting rants about the disaster we’re facing on social media and to start writing songs about it.”

When & Where: 15 & 17 Apr, Bluesfest, Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm; 19 Apr, Sydney Opera House

ORLD FAMOU EW S TH

SHOWCASE

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 15

Music

Outlaw Country The Sweet Creeps & Outlaws tour is about to swagger into a venue near you. We asked Henry Wagons, Ruby Boots and Jonny Fritz a few questions about what to expect from this rollicking Americana revue. Ruby Boots

What’s the biggest difference between Sweet Creeps & Outlaws and your garden variety tour? Henry Wagons: I believe no one on this bill is capable of putting on a garden variety performance, even if they tried. The garden that emerges from these performances will need some serious weed whacking! Ruby Boots: There’s a little bit of collaboration happening between us all, which is exciting for us and the audience. Jonny Fritz: I’ll have Josh Hedley as my wingman this time.

Henry Wagons

Jonny Fritz: Yup, I’ll be playing a lot from my new record along with some “classics”.

Can we expect to see some joint performances this tour? Henry Wagons: Yes. I love hanging out with these guys, both on and off a raised platform. Ruby Boots: Yes, absolutely! Jonny Fritz: No, I’m not much for collaborating. But rest assured that we will do our thing and we do it very well. Aside from that, I don’t think so.

What is it about Americana that drew you in? Henry Wagons: I’m still not 100% sure what Americana is, even though I host a radio show that centres around it on Double J... and that’s kinda what I love about the genre. Ruby Boots: It’s a place where myself as an artist can be whoever I want to be. There’s no real “box”, it’s just all about real, authentic music. Jonny Fritz: I’m not really an Americana guy. I was raised on country and Paul Simon. They’re both very different. I love Lucinda Williams but I would love her in any language or form.

So which are you, a creep or an outlaw? Henry Wagons: A little from column A, a little from column B. Ruby Boots: Definitely a creep, because I’ve never been caught for anything that I shouldn’t have been doing. Jonny Fritz: Definitely not an outlaw. I’ve been adamant from the start to stay away from the outlaw thing. My most recent record is called Sweet Creep so I guess I’m a creep, but a sweet one.

Are you planning on showing off some new

Jonny Fritz

tunes this time ‘round? Or hitting us with the classics? Henry Wagons: I have been doing a fair bit of writing on the road lately, exorcising some demons. I’ll be bringing out a new tune or two for sure. Ruby Boots: I will definitely be playing new songs off the new album that I have just finished recording over in Dallas! 16 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

When & Where: 13 Apr, Porteno; 14 Apr, Newtown Social Club

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 17

Music

VA L E J O H N

High Times

CLARKE

Acclaimed and iconic political satirist John Clarke has died suddenly, aged 68. For more than three decades the writer and performer, alongside comedy partner Bryan Dawe, gave Australia an incisive and searingly funny commentary on the political status quo. ABC Managing Director Michelle Guthrie said of Clarke’s unexpected passing, “We have lost a giant presence on our screens... Australian audiences have relied on John Clarke for always getting to the heart of how many Australians felt about the politics of the day and tearing down the hypocrisy and at times absurdity of element of our national debate.” Tributes to the great, late comedy legend have flooded twitter, including messages of condolence from PM Malcolm Turnbull and comedian and presenter of The Weekly Charlie Pickering.

18 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Because Little Dragon buddied up with James Ford while touring as part of 2011’s Parklife line-up, Yukimi Nagano tells Bryget Chrisfield that working with the producer on her band’s latest album “felt easy”.

hen asked what she thinks James Ford, who produced Little Dragon’s latest Season High set, brought to Little Dragon’s sound, Yukimi Nagano ponders, “Um, I’d say he sharpened it up. You know, most of the sounds were all there and most of the songs - but I think [for Little Dragon] sometimes it’s a bit of a process sort of finishing things up, just because we all kind of have really strong wills in the band and, you know, everyone kind of has, sometimes, a different vision. And that can be really a bit of a headache when you’re just trying to be fair, and so it was really nice to have someone come in from outside and sort of have a bit of perspective, and not have the history that we have with each other; just be, like, you know, ‘How about we try this?’ And, yeah! It just became easy; it felt easy so, yeah! I’d say that he sort of put it all in focus.” Little Dragon first met Ford when they toured our country together as part of the 2011 Parklife line-up (Ford with Simian Mobile Disco). “You meet all the artists at the airport in the morning and checking in and you sort of buddy-up with different people,” Nagano reveals of touring festival life. “We

were fans of [Ford] and his projects, and we shared that love for electronic music so, yeah! When he came up as someone to sort of work with for this record it felt so natural, because we’d met him before and liked him already and, you know, we knew he had similar taste, so... He came over to Gothenburg and stayed with us for a while and we worked together.” Providing an example of how Little Dragon tend to struggle when it comes to finishing their songs, Nagano chuckles, “I think we have one song that Hakan [Wirenstrand, keyboards]’s worked with for, like, seven years or something and it’s never come out on an album, but he keeps working on it and, yeah, it might just be one of those songs that never comes out. But, definitely, you just have to sometimes sort of just make a decision and just be like, ‘Okay, is it done or not, you know?’ Because otherwise we could go on forever.” Their self-titled first album dropped in 2007 and when asked whether Little Dragon were ambitious from the get-go, Nagano opines, “I don’t think we had that confidence, really - in the beginning, with our music - but we definitely talked a lot about music, um, we talked a lot about shows we went to - and listened a lot to music - and kinda wrote music, and we were happy if our friends liked it... You know, the idea of actually releasing our music on a record was just too big of a dream to even, like, dare believe at that time in the beginning.”

What: Season High (Because/Warner)

EAO PRESENTS

L I V E O N

T H E

L A W N Ja pa n e s e Wa ll p a p e r

A l i B a r t e r | G r e t t a R ay P lus m o r e t o b e a n n o un c ed

Saturday 27th May Bar on the HilL, NEWCASTLE T iX - O z t ix . c o m . a u

BREACH OF SILENCE

APR 15

APR 14

C O M I N G U P AT T H E B A L D FA C E D S TA G

CLAIM THE THRONE

APR 22

MIDSNARE

THE GO SET

APR 28

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EARLY SHOW

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THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 19

Bluesfest

Bobby & Joan Joan Osborne has been welcomed into some eclectic musical worlds in her time. She tells Martin Jones about singing Dylan, singing with Dylan and the need to musically keep on keeping on.

“I

have actually had the chance to sing with Dylan a couple of times,” Joan Osborne reveals when we begin talking about her current project Joan Osborne Sings The Songs Of Bob Dylan. “Once we were in the studio singing together and we were actually on the same microphone... and because, I guess he just has this restless intelligence, we did the song four different times and each time was a completely different way - different phrasing. And I was right there on the mic with him trying to follow his phrasing. It was very challenging.... I think that restlessness is part of why he’s so great. He must be easily bored and always searching for something different.” As much could be said for Osborne, who has refused to adhere to one musical style over her 25-year career. From her unexpected breakthrough debut, Relish, and its monster hit One Of Us, Osborne’s performances and recordings have embraced pop, blues, soul and more, leading her to join forces with the likes of Dylan, Patti Smith, Taj Mahal, Mavis Staples and members of The Grateful Dead. “Yeah, I’ve been really fortune to have been welcomed into so many different musical worlds,” says Osborne. “I don’t know if it’s been a commercially smart

20 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

thing to do to not stick with one area, but for me I just love so many different kinds of music. I couldn’t be just doing one thing. There are people who do that who I respect enormously... people like Alison Krauss, who stick to one lane and do it incredibly well. But I’ve never felt like I had the temperament for that.” It’s easy to see why Osborne would be so attracted to a musical chameleon like Dylan. “It’s been fun, it’s been intense,” Osborne says of recording and touring Dylan’s songs. “I’ve been telling people, and it’s true, it’s like what an actor would feel like when they’re doing Shakespeare. The stuff is so rich, there’s so much there and the well is so deep. Songs that were written 50 years ago feel like they’re talking about what we’re all going through right this minute.” For her upcoming Bluesfest debut, Osborne’s focus will be a little bit broader. Performing as a trio with Kevin Bents and co-writer/co-producer Jack Petruzzelli, Osborne will not, as some misleading publicity has suggested, be presenting a classic soul revue. “We will do some of the Dylan material,” she reveals. “We’re going to bring some of it because we’re just so in it right now that this is part of what we’re doing. But we also want to do some of the stuff from the records of my songs and things that people will want to hear because we’ve not had a chance to come down there and perform my own songs at all. When Relish was such a big hit and One Of Us was such a big hit, we tried to make it down there but I can’t even remember why, something happened and it fell apart.”

When & Where: 16 Apr, The Basement, 13 & 17 Apr, Bluesfest, Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

Father Of The Ride Slightly Stoopid have matured from punk rock surfers into domesticated markers of culture, lead singer Miles Doughty tells Rip Nicholson.

one are the days when the So-Cal boys of Slightly Stoopid toiled in the sand and skated their days away. Off-tour, the guys tend to go their separate ways these days, home to family. Co-founded by instrumentalists Kyle McDonald and Miles Doughty in 1994, the folk-rock and reggae-tinged funk seven-piece have amassed a catalogue of eight studio and four live albums and played the world over. The journey has matured the band, and Doughty, somewhat, “From being a 25-yearold maniac running around the bars and having that F-the-world attitude. You gain more perspective of life, which comes out in the music,” admits Doughty, phoning from home and awaiting his kids’ arrival from school. “I’m domesticated when I’m off the road, man. I’m house-broken. “That’s not to say we don’t still get crazy, don’t get me wrong,” he laughs, revealing plans for the sunny Californians during downtime while touring Australia. “If we have days off we’re gonna try to surf and chill and probably hit up a couple of clubs.” Representing a lifestyle of boards and breaks, Slightly Stoopid have always had a broad cultural significance, showing up in just as many surf and skate mags as they have music interviews. Doughty, however, places Sublime at the head of the surf rock trend. “We have that allure of Southern California surf rock culture — growing up on the beach surfing and we all shared that element of skating,” considers Doughty. “Sublime really launched that kind of culture, changing the sound from grunge to that Southern California vibe. God, it’s been over 20 years really and I think that says a

Bluesfest

Bear Hug Portland collective Nahko & Medicine For The People seek to incite change through their feel-good music, and bandleader Nahko Bear tells Steve Bell that they’re just getting started.

lot of how that culture has reached across the world... and it all started from Sublime bridging that gap.” On their last studio album Meanwhile... Back At The Lab (2015) they bridged another gap with the heavy alt-rock standout Fuck You. Though features on the LP were minimal, Mickey Avalon’s running mate Beardo (aka Jeramy Gritter) strapped up for the track. “We wanted to put something heavy on the record and we knew that he would be perfect on it,” says Doughty. “It was great to have that moment of punk rock and have Beardo on there. He’s a phenomenal guitar player. He’s a cool artist, he has some crazy lyrics.” With a long history playing huge sets, Doughty divulges the touring band’s love for reviving their recordings at live gigs before taking over Bluesfest 2017. “Everything in the studio is so perfect, where live sound you can leave open to breathe and do different things, from solos to different parts,” he explains. “That’s what I love about the live show is that it’s always open for a different interpretation,” he says. “A lot of times you can take an old song and just rework it a little bit and give it new life in the real world.”

or nearly ten years now, Portlandbased world music collective Nahko & Medicine For The People have been conducting an ambitious quest to change the world for the better using the dual weapons of music and community. Their 2016 release Hoka took this journey to the next level, with its intensely personal lyrics coalescing into a strong message about forgiveness and responding to adversity. “I keep thinking about how music obviously lasts beyond your time, and it’s definitely a great chapter of a time for us that was sort of the marking of us coming together as a band,” reflects frontman Nahko Bear. “We were able to refocus our time, because we hadn’t really been able to work together on that level before, so it really shaped us in a good way, and set us up for a really powerful year of composing and next level activism and bringing some really important messages and inquiries and challenges to our community through the music.” As anyone who has experienced Nahko and the gang in the flesh will attest, they find the best place to build such community is at their live show. “It’s a place where you can create a safe environment to have discussions and dialogue through music and through just speaking to people and having this inclusive response happen, whether

it’s through them singing back with you or just getting an overall energy playing with them,” Bear enthuses. “It’s an inclusive effort and I love going to shows like that, and I love being able to create a show that’s so eccentric and focussed on the listener and their willingness to transform with you and to go to those places and take a look at that through music and through moving their bodies with each other and just having this experience — an experience where they can walk away having learned something.” Bear is a firm believer in music’s redemptive and healing properties, and seeks actual change rather than mere lip service. “When evolving the message it always has to pertain to yourself first — as a writer and even in your special connection the work of the self is so critical to the work that you put out in the world,” he proffers. “There’s no question or not whether I’ve made a difference, it continues to be a revolving experience — it’s social work at the end of the day. “I need to see real results on a social level, and as I’m getting results from nature and nature responds to me in very unique and trippy ways, I fully recognise the power that music has to transform lives and to speak a language that is universal but not commonly used anymore for social and political change, too. It’s fun — I’m having a blast, bro.”

When & Where: 13 Apr, Metro Theatre; 15 & 17 Apr, Bluesfest, Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

When & Where: 13 Apr, Manning Bar; 15 & 16 Apr, Bluesfest, Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 21

Eat / Drink Eat/Drink

LOOKS GOOD ENOUGH TO E AT One of the most surprising developments in our increasingly digital-dependent society is the role social media is playing in the food industry. Culinary stylists, food photographers and artisan bakers are now amongst the world’s most important influencers. Here are four of our favourite foodie Instagram accounts for you to drool over.

Julie Lee @Julieskitchen Patti Page (@BakedIdeas) The humble sugar cookie has become the canvas du jour for any self-respecting food artist, and Patti Page is one of the best in the biz when it comes to decorating these creatively brilliant biscuits. Her moreish masterpieces not only look delicious, but also tell whimsical stories, as do her stunning cake designs. If you don’t want to take our word for it, her more than 124,000 followers can back us up.

Marcus Nilsson @pissinginthepunchbowl Sweden-born New York-based photographer Marcus Nilsson started his career as a sous chef before following his bliss into food photography. His indie hipster-chic snaps offer beautifully crafted images of everyday eats, with occasional forays into more elaborately styled shoots, channelling an Old Dutch Masters vibe. 22 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Famous for her stunningly composed photos and food collages (which can also be purchased as prints), Julie Lee’s breathtaking images truly elevate top-notch food to new artistic heights. Her sumptuous photos revel in vivid colours and vibrant textures, while also charting Lee’s world travels as she seeks out the prettiest plates from around the world. Prepare for some severe food envy.

Edd Kimber @Theboywhobakes Since winning the first season of The Great British Bake Off, Edd Kimber has become an internationally recognised food writer and stylist, with a massively successful podcast, Stir The Pot, to boot! His utterly delicious Insta-feed includes links to recipes so his more than 116,000 followers can reproduce his nom-worthy bakes at home.

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THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 23

Music

Songwriting & Fighting Perfecting a new songwriting style landed punk rockerturned-country star Chris Shiflett in some hot water. The Foo Fighters guitarist tells Daniel Cribb a couple of stories about his new album.

aving just crossed the Portland state line in preparation for a headline tour, Chris Shiflett’s itching to showcase material from his third solo record, West Coast Town. Although he released All Hats And No Cattle in 2013 - a collection of honky-tonk covers - it’s not been since his self-titled debut with backing band The Dead Peasants seven years ago that the Foo Fighters guitarist has dished up an LP of originals. “I don’t know if this matters to anyone else on earth, but it mattered to me - it was important to me that I made a record that I was really proud of,” Shiflett begins. “Listening to your own music, for me, is a little like listening to your voice on an answering machine.

That is the trouble you get in writing songs that deal with specific stories

I had never really been comfortable writing like that,” he admits. “It took me a few years to get in a space where I felt comfortable doing that - this batch of songs, it was important to me that they were less vague rock’n’roll lyrics and more specific storytelling.” It was a successful creative exercise that also got him in a little bit of hot water. “Right before I left home for this trip, I finally got the actual CDs. I took one out and unwrapped it and was looking at the artwork... I left it on my desk at home,” Shiflett explains. “I get a text from my wife today and she says, ‘Yeah, I was just reading the lyric book, couldn’t help but notice these songs are all about us getting in fights and then a bunch of songs that clearly aren’t about me.’” he laughs. “And then she says, ‘Room 102?’ So that is the trouble you get in writing songs that deal with specific stories.” It’s the art of framing a situation in a certain light so it can be interpreted in a number different way - a friendship that blew up 20 years ago can become a break-up song. The album’s title track, West Coast Town, has a wide range of possible influences; if you’re familiar with Shiflett’s work with SoCal punks No Use For A Name and Me First & The Gimme Gimmes, that’d be your first port of call for interpreting the song’s lyrics. “Of course I love punk rock and I love rock’n’roll, but I’m also a 45year-old man and think a little bit different; I’m a dad now, I have a 13-year-old son... your outlook changes. I love the music, but I have no desire to live the lifestyle I lived when I was 25 now,” he tells. That’s not to say you won’t see Shiflett playing in punk bands again - he even jammed with Rise Against during Foo Fighters’ 2015 Aussie tour. Gushing over time off in Byron Bay and Perth during the same trip, Shiflett says he’d love to tour West Coast Town around Australia in the near future - not as soon as some might have hoped, though, with the guitarist shutting down Foos tour rumours that had been circulating online. “I actually got asked by a journalist down in Australia a couple of weeks ago what our plans were, if we have any plans to tour Australia,” he says. “What I said was, ‘I don’t know anything, you’ll probably know before me.’ And what they printed was, ‘Foo Fighters Guitar Player Confirms Australian Tour.’ It was crazy - they literally printed the exac exact opposite of what I said, which was pretty funny.”

What: West Coast Town (SideOneDummy Records/ Cooking Vinyl Australia) “You always have these little things that bug you. And this one, I just really wanted to make a record that I didn’t feel like that about any of it. And I think I came a lot closer than I have in the past.” Having grown up with punk music and getting his start in that scene before joining Foo Fighters and eventually developing a love for country (he now hosts country podcast Walking The Floor), Shiflett’s able to draw on a diverse range of songwriting techniques, but there was always one aspect of the craft that had escaped him until West Coast Town. “Country tends to be specific and tells stories, and 24 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

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THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 25

Indie Indie

Roland Tings

Ash Grunwald

Rock Chicks

EP Focus

Single Focus

Have You Been To:

Answered by: Rohan Newman

Single title? Hammer

EP Title? Each Moment A Cut Diamond

What’s the song about? Hammer is essentially about the working class and it’s inspired by old field holler blues songs.

Answered by: Peter Northcote - Director of Peter Northcote Presents, MD & everything else.

How many releases do you have now? This is my second EP. I did an album in 2015. So three. Was anything in particular inspiring you during the making? This album was written in my studio in Brunswick across the course of about two years. A lot of the tracks were put together for live performance. What’s your favourite song on it? Slow Centre. We’ll like this EP if we like...: Dancing with your eyes closed. When and where is your launch/next gig? My EP tour is happening all around Australia through April! Website link for more info? rolandtingsworld.com

How long did it take to write/record? I recorded the song live in one take. I’d already been playing it for a year, so it was a fairly quick process. Is this track from a forthcoming release/ existing release? Hammer is the first single from my brand-new, as yet untitled album. What was inspiring you during the song’s writing and recording? An old folk story called The Legend Of John Henry was a massive inspiration for Hammer, along with old work songs and classic blues music. We’ll like this song if we like... Good, authentic blues music. Do you play it differently live? The aim of Hammer was to record something to tape that would capture the feeling of hearing it live; so I play it the same in both settings. When and where is your launch/next gig? 15 Apr, Newtown Social Club. Website link for more info? ashgrunwald.com

Why should punters visit you? Do you like rock?&#133; and chicks? All-girl band (with me. My hair is pretty long now) playing all the chicky stuff from Stevie Nicks, Pat Benatar, Chrissie Hynde, Blondie and all the rest. What’s the history of the event? It’s a new show of mine. I’m always thinking. I have a bunch of shows that I do including Led Zep, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath (hows the colour pallet?!). Any advice for first timers who want to visit the event? You’ll LOVE songs from the ‘70s to now and love chicks and can dance. You’ll also love Leadbelly, Newtown and Brass Monkey, Cronulla. Who’s performing this time around? Virginia Lillye (Lillye), Tina Garufi (Urban Stone), Chris E Thomas (herself), Wendy Anggerani (keys), Ali Foster (drums), Bobby Poulton (bass). Do you have any plans for the event in the future? This is the maiden voyage, but we have plans for more later in the year. Small venues, intimate shows first. When and where for your next event? 21 Apr, Leadbelly; 22 Apr, Brass Monkey Website link for more info? facebook.com/ peternorthcote

26 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

In Focus B a d Fri d ay Pic: Josh Groom

Proving itself to be a mainstay across the Easter long weekend, Bad Friday is back for its eighth instalment. Get ready for an old school block party at Railway Parade in Marrickville with performances from the likes of The Jezabels, DMA’S, Royal Headache, Sampa The Great, Flowertruck and more. With most things closed on Good Friday 14 Apr, this could be the best way to kick off your Easter long weekend. Pic: Will Blackburn (Flowertruck), Johnny Took (DMA’S), Charles Rushforth (Flowertruck).

Music

When Celeb Endorsements Go Bad!

Oh Kendall… The socialite, model and professional pouter from the KardashianJenner dynasty has drawn the ire of, well, anyone with half a brain, since her seriously misjudged appearance in a recent Pepsi ad. The commercial seemed to suggest that the very real and incredibly troubling oppression of various minorities in America could be smoothed over with a cold can of Pepsi. No need for the pepper spray and unprovoked shootings Mr Policeman, here’s some sugary refreshment instead. But poor ol’ Kendall isn’t the first celeb to make a Pepsi endorsement misfire. In 1989 Madonna became the face of the soft drink on a one-year contract, which included Pepsi licencing her latest song, Like A Prayer. What the beverage giant didn’t realise was that the music video for the song, in which Madonna witnesses a rape before gyrating in front of a burning cross, wouldn’t project the family friendly ethos they wanted. A Catholic Church driven boycott ensued and the Madonna ad was pulled after a month. In 2002, another Pepsi boycott blew up when the company made rapper Ludacris its latest spokesperson. Fox News anchor Bill O’Reilly attacked the rap star’s “immoral” lyrics and branded him a bad influence on youths. The 30-second commercial was also pulled off air after just a few weeks.

28 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Moon Unit

The Big Moon are still navigating the traps of rockstardom. Juliette Jackson tells Anthony Carew about growing up in a musicless family and discovering The White Stripes. aking their debut LP, Love In The 4th Dimension, London quartet The Big Moon wanted it to be “energetic and live and exciting,” says singer/guitarist Juliette Jackson. “Because that’s what we’ve been doing, most nights, for the past two and a half years: playing these songs, loud and fast. It’s our first album, it’s joyful, it’s wild, there’s no sad songs on it. I like to think of it as one of those jars that you open up and a snake pops out. It’s colourful, it’s surprising, and it hits you in the eye.” Jackson grew up in suburban London as the middle of five siblings — “I’m definitely the quiet one, and definitely the weirdest one” — in a family that was hardly musical. “My parents only owned two CDs: Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield, and an ABBA album, the one with the helicopter on the front [Arrival],” Jackson remembers. Her own first musical interests were “a lot of shit that was big in the UK that you’ve hopefully never heard of: Steps, the Vengaboys, A1, Boyzone.” And, when she took a 200question career aptitude test in school, the verdict was grim. “At the end, it said I should be a wigmaker,” Jackson laughs. Everything changed when, at 14, Jackson tagged along with a friend to see White Stripes play the Brixton Academy. “I’d

never seen anything like it, never heard anything so loud. I remember thinking: ‘I have to learn how to play guitar!’” After plunking away — “I was rubbish at it for years; it’s harder than it looks, and I’m pretty lazy” — she finally threw in on rock’n’roll upon moving “into London proper” at 18. “Everyone always told me ‘you should go to university, you need a back-up plan’,” she recounts. “But I always thought university was the back-up plan. You’re only young once.” For years, Jackson played in forgettable outfits on bass or rhythm guitar, enjoying the social aspect, but feeling frustrated by both “dealing with egos” and the lack of creativity. Finally, in 2014, she set out to write her own songs. Two of her first were The Road and Sucker, future Big Moon singles. After recruiting the rest of her bandmates — guitarist Soph Nathan, bassist Celia Archer, drummer Fern Ford — they cut some demos and posted Eureka Moment online in 2015, “thinking nothing would happen.” Instead, they were suddenly next-bigthings, fielding record label interest and growing buzz despite never having played a gig. Not wanting “to play [their] first-ever shows in London in front of a load of record label stooges”, they set up some secret shows. Since then, The Big Moon have played endlessly, finding their identity on stage. “It feels like the four of you against the world: you’re facing one way, but everyone else is facing the other way,” Jackson offers. “I always feel very silly on stage; there’s something in me that always wants to ruin the rockstar vibe. I want to show that we’re not better than anyone else, we’re just all here being doofuses together.”

What: Love In The 4th Dimension (Fiction/Caroline)

Cool For Summer Focus

Be Cool Cool For Summer Festival is your chance to see your favourite digital hit makers in the flesh. We spoke to a few of the artists who’re stepping offline and onto the stage.

In Stereo

What’s your preferred platform? In Stereo, Jakob Delgado: Instagram is my preferred but I use all the platforms. Instagram is where we have most of our fans connected. Tom Jay Williams: Definitely Facey. The majority of my fans are there and we have this cool constant conversation going on. I also like Snapchat because of the dope filters (who doesn’t like the puppy filter?!). Marcelo: Instagram. I love that it allows you to be creative and show off your personality in an artistic way. So yes, Instagram.

Tom Jay Williams: Back in the day I was all about Myspace because it was a great way to share my music with people. I remember when Facebook was for ‘old people’ lol. Marcelo: Pretty much as soon as I realised it’s how the industry circulates these days. The digital realm is a must-have for the music industry now.

What kind of effect has it had on your trajectory? Jakob Delgado: It’s been awesome, it has allowed our fans to get to know us and also allows us to keep in contact with fans. Tom Jay Williams: It’s been amazing, as it gives me instant access to my fans and lets me have an actual conversation with them. It’s cool as an artist to be able to share my music so easily. Marcelo: Huge effects. Even to how easily I can communicate with my fans and they with each other. They form this kind of community that they feel they belong to. It kinda drives the whole project.

Marcelo

material into the digital realm? Jakob Delgado: About two years ago, because it is so easy to reach as many people as we can and to stay connected with friends and fans.

artists looking to make a name for themselves online? Jakob Delgado: Just be true to yourself. Be who you are and always work at your craft. Tom Jay Williams: Be real, be yourself, people will follow you for you. Also, keep updating, you do need to make sure you constantly create and upload interesting content — it helps having a point of difference. Marcelo: Don’t give up. If you post one video and it doesn’t get many likes or views don’t let that discourage you, keep posting. If you’re patient, you’ll get where you want.

performances? Or have you mainly been in the digital world up until this point?

find if we looked up your handle?

When did you start pushing your

What tips can you give aspiring

How often do you do live

What would kind of stuff would we

Jakob Delgado: Stuff about my day to day life as well as heaps of promotional stuff for the band. Tom Jay Williams: Loads of selfies (lol) and music stuff. I’ve recently moved to Sydney and started my YouTube channel so nowadays a lot more videos as well :). Marcelo: You’d find one-minute covers, vlogs, tweets about avocados (I really like avocados) and lots of colourful photos of me and my friends doing random stuff.

Tom Jay Williams

Have you noticed many changes in digital mediums since? Jakob Delgado: Yes, especially the use of musical.ly. Tom Jay Williams: There are so many platforms now, it keeps me busy constantly updating each account but it’s not a chore for me because I love talking to my audience there. Marcelo: Countless changes. The biggest is how kids communicate to each other on the internet. I’m 19 and have no idea what half the lingo they use these days is.

Jakob Delgado: We do as many live performances as we can, we love to perform live. Last year we played 38 live shows. Tom Jay Williams: I actually started my career playing live doing cover songs in pubs — a bit like Bon Jovi (lol I wish!). Marcelo: I’ve been on about 13 tours since march 2015. So I’m playing fairly often. It’s my favourite part of the job, so i want to be doing as frequently as possible.

Which of the other acts are you most excited to see on the bill? Jakob Delgado: All of them. This year there are so many exciting acts. Tom Jay Williams: I’m super excited to see Wes [Stromberg], I am a big Emblem3 fan :). Marcelo: William Singe. I’ve always thought he has an amazing voice. He’s just a phenomenal musician.

When & Where: 15 Apr, Sydney Olympic Park THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 29

OPINION Opinion

The Heavy Shit

Moderately Highbrow

Marijka Gooding

Visual Art Wank

Since finally watched the Academy Award-winning Moonlight, written and directed by Barry Jenkins and And Theatre based on Tarell Alvin McCraney’s unpublished semiautobiographical play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, Foyers With I’ve had adaptations on the brain. Another film I’ve enjoyed recently (despite a Dave Drayton misleading lack of baseball following the cinematic trailer) Fences, is another incredibly successful stage-tofilm script adaptation. These are, admittedly, the kinds of adaptations we most regularly see (it’s not often, for instance, that a film is adapted after the fact for the stage) though they did prime me for a less conventional adaptation that I belatedly discovered this week. It is worth noting, too, that such adaptations are often dealing with themes that retain a pressing relevance. While I’m even later to the party at Cordite Poetry for Marijka Gooding’s graphic novella adaptation of Michael Farrell’s poem TV (a month behind Moonlight is forgivable, close on five years for this comic perhaps less so), I am astounded at its currency: a man wrestling with a crocodile like Lee De Paauw, a big taco to match Tamworth’s recently installed big Big Mac, and a storm forecast for Wednesday with people lining up to taste the lightning.

O G F l ava s

Nelly Furtado

Urban And R&B News With Cyclone

uch of the excitement surrounding the 2017 Glastonbury announcement centred on a throwback act far down the bill - Shaggy. The reggae superstar will be joined by a resurgent late ‘90s fave in Craig David - who, post-Kaytranada hook-up, dropped 2016’s Following My Intuition. And, re-rewind, there’s growing 2000s nostalgia in popdom. Trey Songz, long inexplicably overlooked for Chris Brown, has just

30 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

returned with Tremaine The Album - as varied as his classic Chapter V. The party 1x1 samples Crystal Waters’ ‘90s house Gypsy Woman (She’s Homeless). This month, Tinie Tempah’s Youth will finally materialise - its first single Not Letting Go now two years old. Among the Brit MC’s guests is Aussie Guy Sebastian (So Close with the grime Bugzy Malone). Yet the most intriguing comeback is that of Nelly Furtado - who went from boho to urban-pop star. She unleashed the Timbaland-produced blockbuster Loose in 2006 - months before Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveSounds. Furtado blew up with the single Promiscuous. The poetic All Good Things (Must Come To An End) was a co-write with Coldplay’s Chris Martin - his coolest achievement. Until Drake, Furtado was Canada’s biggest urban-pop act. Alas, she lost momentum. The Spirit Indestructible - with Rodney Jerkins’ input floundered in 2012. But, then, last year Furtado cameoed on Dev Hynes’ Freetown Sound - very hipster. Now indie, Furtado has aired The Ride - recalling Goldfrapp, Santigold and Solange. This time she worked with indietype John Congleton (recent credits include Goldfrapp and Future Islands). Cold Hard Truth is synth-pop with hip hop beats. Pipe Dreams, the lead single, is organladen avant-soul. And Sticks And Stones is the potential crossover hit.

OPINION Opinion

Metal And Hard

This Saturday, 15 Apr, the longestRock running music With Chris Maric television program in the world will turn 30. Rage has been delivering music to generations of fans across the nation since 1987! Its influence is profound and its legacy lives on. Heavy Shit distinctly remembers, as a high school kid, ringing up the rage hotline on a Friday afternoon to hear the pre-recorded voice of a lady rattling off the songs that would be played that night and the following night. Saturday between 2am and 3am has always been ‘metal hour’ for the most part so Heavy Shit would anxiously wade through all the clips to hurriedly write down the times that all the new clips would be played, getting extra excited if they did something like a Sepultura triple play! Now you can just log on to the ABC website and scroll down the list for yourself, but where’s the fun in that? The proof of just how important this show is comes from the looks on bands’ faces when they are asked to do a guest programming slot. Especially for Australian bands, programming rage is an absolutely bucket list achievement. Heavy Shit has been witness to countless guests programming over the years, which are actually a lot more complex to put together than you think. The timing has to fit both the band and the rage crew for a start! Once everything is confirmed, the band is then sent the infamous Red Book, which, back in the day, was an actual twoinch thick A4 behemoth of a thing that listed every single clip in the endless rage library. Now it’s a PDF you email to the band. Again, where is the fun in that? So, the band is tasked to select 40 songs to play back on the night and highlight those they want to specifically talk about on camera. Easy? Hardly. The book has thousands and thousands of clips to pick from and Heavy Shit saw plenty of bands agonising over what to keep and what to ditch. Shortlists were never short. Often a first round would total a couple of hundred videos and then, song by song, the bands would painfully remove tracks until that final 40 was reached. This was made harder when a band had five members in it. Come filming day, you’d hope the band had their stories to tell about the fave clips and, for the most part, all the shoots Heavy Shit sat in on went fine. Some bands don’t muck around at all and are in and out in literally 20

minutes. Shoot all the links, say some IDs ‘this is band X and you’re watching raaaaage’ and then leave. Others would muck around for hours, often delaying the rest of their day’s promo as a result. Heavy Shit particularly remembers three shoots ‘cause they were totally awesome: the 2004 taping that Metallica did featuring Lars and Rob, Tenacious D circa 2002 and the mighty Judas Priest during the last Soundwave. They were total pros about it and hearing them tell those stories about Sabbath or whoever was amazing. Guest programming aside, yes we have the digital age at our fingertips and watching a video at any time you want is just a few clicks away, but rage is where many bands get their first public exposure - video the visual medium - and, for that, the debt the music industry owes the show is immense. Happy Birthday, raaaaaage.

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Album / E Album/EP Reviews

Album OF THE Week

Spit Syndicate One Good Shirt Had Us All Fly Inertia

★★★★

Four albums in, the question we must ask ourselves as Spit Syndicate listeners is: “What does this new record have that we haven’t seen or heard before?” It’s a stern test. Luckily, our hosts nail it with this accomplished, innovative and mature slice of Australian rap. Mum, aptly named, is the album’s biggest gamble: an admirable, sweet, brutally direct love letter to our duo’s mothers. Know Better bangs. It stands alongside Hold On Me as a sign of the growing confidence Nick Lupi and Jimmy Nice have making hypnotic dance records with a couple rap verses thrown on top. Not In My Name is an eloquent war cry in the name of informed resistance. Often, familiarity breeds contempt. The triumph of this record is that Nick Lupi and Jimmy Nice have confronted their legacy and arrived with a product that shines as bright as its predecessors. Here Nice brags, “No one else on my wave, I’m Kelly Slater”, perhaps a spiritual successor to his near ten-year-old claim that he and his partner were winners “like a Pat Cash backhand slice.” This sense of nostalgia (the title itself is a throwback) mixed with an increasingly genre-bending aesthetic makes this genuinely new and exciting. James d’Apice

Bleeding Knees Club

Slumberjack

Chew The Gum

Independent

Fracture

★★

Inertia

★★★½ Bleeding Knees Club sound like the type of band who wear ripped jeans and don’t know what hairdressers look like. The four-piece specialise in songs that involve a few chords, catchy riffs and killer hooks. In other words, their approach is simple and dumb - and a whole lot of fun. The band are at their best when they pair a basic musical idea with a clearly defined emotion. When they do, it’s pop-punk at its best. Songs like the title track and Sick Feeling double down on this method, as the screeching guitars drip with distain. You can hear the sneer in Alex Wall’s voice as he sings, the vowel sounds stretched out into glorious new permutations. Sun House is a similarly focused effort, matching surf-rock

32 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

with sentimental lyrics about starry-eyed dreamers and hot summer nights, complete with a saccharine glockenspiel melody. However, the band run into uneasy waters when they stray too far from simplicity. Cyber Doom struggles beneath the weight of its scattered imagery and, as a result, sounds less like the contrarian statement they might have intended it to be and more like a vague whinge about technology. Nonetheless, judging by this EP there’s no sense that this band will run out of steam, or targets to direct their energy towards, any time soon. Roshan Clerke

For all their talk about writing music that isn’t just built around drops, Perth electronic music producers Morgan Then and Fletcher Ehlers have written another collection of songs that are full of the same tired tropes we’ve grown familiar with. While their music may contain some interesting melodic components, largely thanks to Then’s background in classical music, the nature of the aforementioned drops still seems largely incongruous with regards to what’s happening with the songwriting. As a result, the dynamics of the songs feel overbalanced, as intrusive blasts of synths and bass displace any sense of coherence. The problem with gimmicks like these is that we know they’re coming. This genre found its popularity through its extreme novelty, but the surprise quickly

dwindled. Using abrasive electronic sounds to embellish songs about fading, fracturing, dissolving, or falling apart in any sense has grown stale and predictable. It’s then only the interlude track that starts to feel like some type of coherent emotional statement. Even then, its ending is incomplete, as it runs into the beginning of Fracture. The pair invite a guest vocalists on tracks like this one and Take Me, courting the triple j crowd with indie favourites. It’s a formula that’s proven to work, but it’s certainly not exciting. Roshan Clerke

EP Reviews Album/EP Reviews

Oscar Dowling

Chris Shiflett

Little Hurricane

Little Dragon

Free And Easy

West Coast Town

Season High

Spunk

SideOneDummy/Cooking Vinyl

Same Sun Same Moon

Because/Warner

Mascot Records

★★★★

★★★½

★★★

Oscar Dowling kept busy after previous band New Gum Sarn ended in 2015. The dark and brooding Free And Easy is the upshot of his spare time; amazingly, the Kiwi’s debut solo longplayer. There’s echoes of The Drones, Mark Lanegan and Rowland S Howard, though there’s also a draw completely individual. Opener The Life is intoxicatingly evil, and by the time instrumental closer Motorway comes, we’re still under Dowling’s spell. Debut records don’t come much more consistent or assured than this.

Chris Shiflett is a busy man, dividing himself between Foo Fighters duties, hosting his Walking The Floor podcast and working on his solo career. He’s increasingly immersed himself in country music and this, his third solo album, is his finest yet. He pulled together a master team including producer Dave Cobb (Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell), recorded it in RCA Studio A, Nashville and the result is a carefree blend of vintage electric country rock’n’roll, a ragged punk edge and contemporary Americana. The guitars are a real highlight, as is Shiflett’s voice which finds a sweet spot between honky tonk and country-rock. This swings, shuffles and rocks in equal and impressive measures, from start to finish.

San Diegan outfit Little Hurricane’s self-described “dirty blues” is here for its third release. The opening title track and Bad Business dish the dirt solidly to begin, as does Isn’t It Great and March Of The Living. However, there’s something particularly appealing about OTL and its kinda sister track later on Slingshot. Both are distant in just the right way, letting the play between singer/performers Anthony “Tone” Catalano and Celeste “CC” Spina draw the listener in. Mt Senorita is also well worth the time — on the sleazier end of the scale, but catchy as.

Swedish electronic outfit Little Dragon approach making music with a sense of playfulness, bouncing between genres without ever landing in one category. Season High is the group’s fifth album, and continues their trend of experimenting with sounds and styles. The record was co-produced with James Ford from Simian Mobile Disco, and in its best moments the band members sound like children in a music shop. The synth medley on The Pop Life, the wild guitar solo on Celebrate, and the wide-eyed lyrics of Strobe Light all attest to this sense of exploration and fun. This might be a scattered collection of songs, but it’s not without its charms.

Evan Young

Liz Giuffre

Roshan Clerke

Chris Familton

More Reviews Online K.Flay Every Where Is Some Where

theMusic.com.au

Julie Byrne Not Even Happiness

Listen to our This Week’s Releases playlist on

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 33

Live Re Live Reviews

Rhiannon Giddens @ Factory Theatre. Pic: Munya Chawora

Boo Seeka, Glades, Dean Lewis Manning Bar 7 Apr

Perched shyly at the edge of the stage behind a keyboard and microphone, Dean Lewis entertained us with a selection of sweet, heartfelt ballads. His UK twang shines through his vocals, but it just makes him more endearing. Waves was the song the audience knew, and its simplistic delivery gave it new life.

Blondie @ ICC. Pic: Angela Padovan

Boo Seeka @ Manning Bar. Pic: Josh Groom

34 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Cyndi Lauper @ ICC. Pic: Angela Padovan

Their set was high-energy and the duo did a great job of entertaining, as well as performing. Sydney electronic trio Glades have quickly risen to fame with atmospheric single Drive, which aired tonight; but it’s their sleek backbeats, solemn melodies and Katrina Wykes’ yearning vocals that elevate them above the rest. Admittedly, the sound wasn’t really on their side, with the bass and vocals sounding blown out at times, but it didn’t stop us dancing. The main event, Boo Seeka, didn’t disappoint. Having not performed on our shores for a while, the appetite for their return was felt, both by the audience and the band. Their set was high-energy and the duo did a great job of entertaining, as well as performing. Being back in their hometown, the duo chose to try out some new tracks, which were markedly different to mellow older tracks like Fool and Oh My (which also got a spin).

The beats were more hardhitting, emitting a bit of a trance vibe, rather than an electro hiphop beat. They covered Mo’s Pilgrim, but it had a weird kind of country twang to it that this reviewer just couldn’t get past. But that aside, much to the duo’s surprise, Kingdom Leader was overtaken by a crowd singalong, becoming the highlight of the set. An encore was called for and received in the form of one of their earlier tunes, Deception Bay. Mass singalongs and dancing ensued, capping off their set with just the right vibe. Melissa Borg

Cyndi Lauper, Blondie ICC Sydney Theatre 4 Apr The names on the bill put this night on a slightly higher plain than the usual string of retro acts wringing the last drops of their career. Unlike many of those nostalgia-fests, you weren’t just waiting for that one song. Sure, you wanted Heart Of Glass and Cyndi Lauper’s treatise on the need for girls to enjoy themselves - but each of these have a bunch of other real hits, not just the follow-up single that reached #34 in Portugal. Then there’s the delivery, and what constitutes a legitimate b(r)and line-up. While you could argue that Debbie Harry’s odd mix of old Hollywood glamour and punk sass is Blondie, having creative and life partner Chris Stein - his Warhol-shaded wraithlike presence occasionally energised by what seems like an electrical surge - and the outstanding big beat of original drummer Clem Burke added more truth. The opening charge of One Way Or Another and Call Me was new wave incarnate, and you could even forgive the oftento-be-dreaded “Here’s a track from our new album...”, as their

eviews Live Reviews

status means they get pretty good songs from Johnny Marr, Blood Orange and Charli XCX to be going on with. The 71-yearold Harry can still conjure her pugnacious charisma, even if she now mostly speaks the lyrics rather than sings them. Although, when things got a bit ragged in Rapture there’s just a touch of Nanna-gettinglost-on-the-way-to-the-shops vulnerability about her, but it didn’t matter much as the crowd were singing their version of the words anyway. Throw in a run at Beastie Boys’ Fight For Your Right to up the New York quotient even more, then a howling Atomic, and a final Dreaming - and no memories were really ruined. If Blondie are The Bowery and black leather jackets, this instalment of Cyndi Lauper is Broadway with some old Nashville, delivered via that familiar Queens nasal drawl. So it’s Wanda Jackson’s Funnel Of Love and Patsy Cline’s Walkin’ After Midnight and I Fall To Pieces (on rotating podium, no less) from her recent Detour album, where her rockabilly roots showed. For all her beautifully corny/ ironic interactions with the more flamboyantly enthusiastic of her congregation - “Yes, I love you too, but I don’t know you, and you really don’t know me...” - you often forget she is a helluva songwriter and singer. The Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough was more than, and Money Changes Everything was huge: she skipped, danced, rolled on the floor... and didn’t miss a note. She even messed with the big set pieces. Calling out “an old friend who happens to be here”, who happened to be Boy George, makes an extended and reggae-fied Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. The event finally got the audience out of their seats - albeit with many trying to capture the moment in their iDevice.

Good Enough was more than, and Money Changes Everything was huge: she skipped, danced, rolled on the floor... and didn’t miss a note.

She still had the showstopping closer up her sleeve. True Colors is the hymn to difference and diversity that America probably really needs. Lauper delivered it solo and plaintive, stopping to raise a fist in solidarity with whomever for whatever, and got the pin-drop silence gesture she deserved. Cyndi Lauper is old school showbiz, and consummate at it. Ross Clelland

Rhiannon Giddens, Eric Avery Factory Theatre 8 Apr It’s been a year since Rhiannon Giddens and Eric Avery graced Factory Theatre’s stage to make a Bluesfest Sydney pit stop. Like last year, Avery warmed the room with a mixture of musical traditions - a jam where somehow violin, didj, double bass and acoustic guitar melded seamlessly. Avery still wonderfully defies classification. Soon after, Rhiannon Giddens and her super-tight band took the stage. She seemed a little subdued in her body language at first, although there was nothing lacking in her sound - from Dylan’s Spanish Mary to her own heartbreaking

new track At The Purchaser’s Option. Songs of strong women and civil rights struggles were more than done justice - they were brought to life and danced through the room with a determined voice and energy. In between folk songs, led by her banjo and voice, Giddens and co sawed away with traditional twosteps and “fiddle tunes” - strings from her bow literally coming away as she played, rising up above her like a musical halo. Her now-signature version of She’s Got You damn near made for a mid-set standing ovation, before Birmingham Sunday, another track from this year’s Freedom Highway, tore at our heartstrings. The song recounts

Songs of strong women and civil rights were more than done justice, they were brought to life.

More Reviews Online theMusic.com.au/ music/live-reviews

Alter Bridge @ Enmore Theatre Iluka @ RAD Bar Rickie Lee Jones @ The Basement Grun @ Factory Floor

the KKK firebombing of an Alabama Baptist church and the four young girls that were killed as a result. Giddens made a point of naming the girls who lost their lives - Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Carol Denise McNair. “We need to know more about these events so we can make them stop,” she said. It wasn’t until towards the end, in between sips from a mug, that Giddens confessed, “I’m fighting some serious steroids and tonsillitis - don’t think we’re jerks if we don’t play an encore.” As if the set hadn’t already been impressive enough. Liz Giuffre

THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 35

Comedy / G The Guide

Wed 12

Marcus Whale

SOSUEME feat. DJ Will Clarke + Mossy + Chao + Sonhander: Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach

Gregory Porter + Karen Lee Andrews: Enmore Theatre, Newtown

Horrorshow

Jake Shimabukuro: Factory Theatre, Marrickville Coltrane Project: Foundry 616, Sydney

The Music Presents Roy Ayers: 12 Apr The Basement Gregory Porter: 12 Apr Enmore Theatre

Hammerhead: LazyBones Lounge, Marrickville The White Tree Band: Leadbelly (formerly The Vanguard), Newtown

Laura Mvula: 12 Apr Metro Theatre

Larger Than Lions: Marble Bar, Sydney

Bluesfest: 13 – 17 Apr, Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

Musos Club Jam: Marrickville Golf Club, Marrickville

Bad Friday: 14 Apr, Railway Parade Marrickville

Laura Mvula + Marcus Whale: Metro Theatre, Sydney

The Lumineers: 17 & 18 Apr Sydney Opera House

Trevor Hall + Iluka: Newtown Social Club, Newtown

Gallant: 18 Apr Metro Theatre

Comedy Night with Mick Meredith + Mickey D + Madeleine Culp: Oatley Hotel, Oatley

The Record Company: 19 Apr Newtown Social Club The Gum Ball: 21 - 23 Apr, Dashville At The Dakota: 29 Apr Captain Cook Hotel The Cactus Channel & Sam Cromack: 6 May Hudson Ballroom Jeff Lang: 13 May Hotel Gearin Katoomba; 18 May Lizottes Newcastle; 19 May Hardys Bay Club; 27 May The Basement; 16 Jun State Theatre Canberra

John Chesher + Pete Scully + Chris Brookes + Gavin Fitzgerald + Paul McGowan: Old Fitzroy Hotel, Woolloomooloo Mark Travers: Orient Hotel, The Rocks Vintage Trouble + Hamish Anderson: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst

Karen Lee Andrews

Whale Songs Local producer is Marcus Whale is supporting Brit soul luminary Laura Mvula on the artist’s Bluesfest sideshows, one of which is at Metro Theatre this Wednesday.

The Mandarin Band: Rock Lily, Pyrmont Christa Hughes: Spiegeltent, Wollongong An Evening of Stories & Songs with Jimmy Barnes: State Theatre, Sydney Roy Ayers: The Basement, Sydney

The Vanns + Archy Punker + The Owls + Trapdoor: Uni Bar, Wollongong

Thu 13 Anthony Charlton: Australian Arms Hotel, Penrith

Bello Winter Music Festival: 6 - 9 Jul Bellingen

Cath & Him: Balgowlah RSL, Seaforth

The Lemon Twigs: 22 Jul Oxford Art Factory Sigur Ros: 25 Jul Hodern Pavilion

Murphy’s Law Karen Lee Andrews (formerly known as Ms Murphy) is opening for Gregory Porter at Enmore Theatre on Wednesday. The double Grammy-winning jazz singer is Down Under for Bluesfest.

Beach Ballin’ feat. DJ Levins + Captain Franco + Mowgli May + Tulett + more: Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach In Store with The Smith Street Band: Beatdisc Records, Parramatta Gauci + Nick Nuisance & The Delinquents + The Uplifting Bell Ends + Dives + Wawawow: Botany View Hotel, Newtown Just The Two of Us: Songs of Bill Withers with Marcus Corowa: Brass Monkey, Cronulla Blues Brothers with Soul Covers: Bull & Bush, Baulkham Hills

Songs On Stage feat. Russell Neal + Merilyn Steele + L J Phillips + Pauline Sparkle + more: Paddington RSL, Paddington

36 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

The World Famous Comedy Store Showcase: Comedy Store, Moore Park

Elijah Ray: The Rhythm Hut, Gosford

Orsome Welles: 30 Jun Factory Theatre; 1 Jul The Basement

Two Door Cinema Club: 21 Jul Hodern Pavilion

The Next Step: Civic Theatre, Newcastle

Hostile Little Face + Cosmic Flanders + Gasper Sanz: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo

Horrorshow: 16 Jun ANU Bar Canberra; 17 Jun Enmore Theatre; 7 Jul University Of Wollongong; 8 Jul Bar On The Hill, Newcastle

Luca Brasi: 1 Jul Metro Theatre

Her + Jayda G: Civic Hotel (Underground), Sydney

British India + The Hard Aches: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle West Barrio Latin Soul: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville

Soul.Tonight feat. The Soul Hop Crew: Play Bar, Surry Hills

Zulya & The Children of The Underground: Camelot Lounge (Django Bar), Marrickville

Speakeasy + Sleepwell + Postmentalist + Elk Locker: Rad Bar, Wollongong

Scumdrops + Hotdad + Balko: Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington

Claim The Throne

Carve It Up The east coast Easter Carvery tour is coming to Bald Faced Stag on Saturday. Drop your chocolate and catch sets from Claim The Throne, Darker Half, Bane Of Isildur, Lethal Vendetta and Flaming Wrekage.

Midnight Oil: Coogee Bay Hotel (Selina’s), Coogee National Folk Festival feat. Jarlath Henderson + Katey Brookes + Mel Parsons + Melisandre + Dubmarine + Kutcha Edwards + 19-Twenty + Les Poules a Colin + Zulya & The Children of The Underground + Martha Tilston + Sparrow Folk + The Bean Project + more: Exhibition Park, Mitchell Royalston + Etherwood + Keeno: Factory Theatre, Marrickville

Gigs / Live The Guide

Santana + The Doobie Brothers: Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney Olympic Park

Shanti Fire: Venue 505, Surry Hills

Bad Friday feat. DMA’S + The Jezabels + Royal Headache + Sampa The Great + Shining Bird + Green Buzzard + Bec Sandridge + Flowertruck + Scabz + more: Railway Parade, Marrickville

Retro Thursdays with Boogie Nights: Rock Lily, Pyrmont

Raised As Wolves + Elk Locker: Vic On The Park, Marrickville

Glenn Cunningham + DJ Kitsch 78 + Soul Nights: Rock Lily, Pyrmont

Chris Harland Blues Band: Smiths Alternative, Canberra

Stephanie Lea: Wentworthville Leagues Club (Wenty Lounge), Wentworthville

Republic of Anzakistan with Heath Franklin’s Chopper: Spiegeltent, Wollongong

Dear Seattle + Grouse + Stumps: Rad Bar, Wollongong

Ash Grunwald

Hammer Time With the launch of his new single Hammer, Ash Grunwald is getting back on the road. He will bring his beloved roots and blues melodies to Newtown Social Club on Saturday.

Natalie Dietz: Foundry 616, Sydney Bernie Segedin: Garry Owen Hotel, Rozelle Toot: Gasoline Pony, Marrickville The Spindrift Saga + Dis-Connect + New Regulars + Southern End: Hamilton Station Hotel, Islington Charli + Chris Brookes: Harbour View Hotel, Dawes Point

Addicted to the Nightlife feat. Paul Capsis: Spiegeltent, Wollongong

Mashd n Kutcher: The Argyle House, Newcastle AM//PM feat. Our Past Days + Between You & Me + Rumours + Whatever Forever: The Burdekin, Darlinghurst DJ Will Clarke: The Grand Hotel, Wollongong DJ Treble n Bass + DJ Frenzie + DJ Sam Wall: The Newport, Newport Melancholy Flowers + Annais Paris + Worsley: The Record Crate, Glebe Furnace & Fundamentals: The Soda Factory, Surry Hills

Loco Motives

Boo Seeka + Dean Lewis: Transit Bar, Canberra City

Diesel, Aussie master of Americana and all its country, R&B and blues goodness, is heading to Leadbelly on Thursday night. Head down to catch a living legend wih support from Fiona Boyes.

Boys Noize: King Street Hotel, Newcastle West The Fallen Angels: LazyBones Lounge, Marrickville

Slightly Stoopid + Manalion: Manning Bar, Camperdown Cavan Te & The Fuss: Marble Bar, Sydney Nahko & Medicine For The People + Luka Lesson: Metro Theatre, Sydney Uncle Axle: Miranda Hotel, Miranda Crawl File - Australian Crawl Show: Narrabeen Sands, Narrabeen

Royalston

Royal Treatment The Med School brand has turned ten and they’ve been celebrating all over Europe. Now it’s our turn and Royalston, Keeno and Etherwood are bringing their beats to Factory Theatre on Thursday.

Cosmo’s Midnight + Muto: Newtown Social Club, Newtown Green Buzzard + Sun Sap + Sonhander + Chao: North Wollongong Hotel, North Wollongong Paul Winn: Orient Hotel, The Rocks Chris Gillespie + Bonniesongs + Naomi Nash: Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham Sweet Creeps & Outlaws feat. Henry Wagons + Jonny Fritz + Ruby Boots: Porteno (Gran Salon), Surry Hills Odd Mob + Akouo: Proud Mary’s, Erina

Diesel

Achtung Baby - U2 Experience: Towradgi Beach Hotel, Towradgi

Wild Honey + Creo: Hotel Steyne (Moonshine Bar), Manly

K.P.: Manly Leagues Club (Menzies Lounge), Brookvale

Hails From Infinity: The

The Island LIVE - Easter Encore feat. Cut Snake + Indian Summer + Willaris K + Luen: Sydney Harbour, Sydney

Bill Chambers: Heritage Hotel, Bulli

Diesel + Fiona Boyes: Leadbelly (formerly The Vanguard), Newtown

Lord Sword + Offensive Behemoth + Yes, I’m Leaving + Durry: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo

Bluesfest 2017 feat. Patti Smith + Mavis Staples + Courtney Barnett + Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue + Snarky Puppy + St Paul & The Broken Bones + Corinne Bailey Rae + Andrew Bird + Rhiannon Giddens + Gallant + Mud Morganfield + Devon Allman + Blind Boy Paxton + Trevor Hall + Dumpstaphunk + The Mountain Goats + The Suffers + Nikki Hill + The California Honeydrops + Joan Osborne + Davy Knowles + Melody Angel + Irish Mythen + The Strumbellas + more: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Tyagarah

Fri 14

Basement, Belconnen

A Breach Of Silence: Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt

DJ MK-1 + DJ JR Dynamite + DJ Diola + Natalie Slade: The Newport, Newport

Fergus Bailey + more: Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington

Spy V Spy + Urban Guerillas: Toongabbie Sports & Bowling Club, Toongabbie

The World Famous Comedy Store Showcase: Comedy Store, Moore Park

Bluesfest 2017 feat. Mary J Blige + Patti Smith Band Acoustic + The Lumineers + Jimmy Buffett + Bonnie Raitt + Mavis Staples + Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue + Rickie Lee Jones + Gregory Porter + Snarky Puppy + Michael Kiwanuka + Rhiannon Giddens + Gallant + Roy Ayers + Eric Gales + Mud Morganfield + Devon Allman + Max Jury + Blind Boy Paxton + Dumpstaphunk + The Mountain Goats + The Suffers + Nikki Hill + The California Honeydrops + Joan Osborne + Davy Knowles + Melody Angel + The Strumbellas + more: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Tyagarah

Bryan Adams Tribute Show: Goulburn Worker’s Club, Goulburn Joe Echo: Jacksons on George, Sydney DJ Sam Wall: Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly Sweet Creeps & Outlaws feat. Henry Wagons + Johnny Fritz + Ruby Boots: Newtown Social Club, Newtown Reckless + Adam Gorecki: Orient Hotel, The Rocks Hermitude + The Funk Hunters + Kolombo + OKA + Audiomatic + Boogs + Doctor Werewolf + Hemingway + Electrypnose + Go Freek + Grouch + Hedflux + K+Lab + Lane 8 + Noir + NYXEN + Pspiralife + Rinkadink + Ruback + Safire + SLYNK + Terrafractyl + The Upbeats + Truth + DJ Will Clarke + Zeke Beats + Al Royale + more: Rabbits Eat Lettuce Festival, Kippenduff Space Boys + Shaun Oakley & The Boys + Custom Sluts + BC Kang: Rad Bar, Wollongong

Wartt Gunn + Watchmore + Wives of Sultan: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo LIT Fridays with DJ Tikelz + Various DJs: Valve Bar (Level One), Ultimo

Sat 15 Claim the Throne + Darker Half + Bane Of Isildur + Lethal Vendetta + Flaming Wrekage: Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt Yours House Party with Various DJs: Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach Matinee Show with The Next Step: Big Top Sydney, Milsons Point THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 37

Comedy / G The Guide

The Next Step: Big Top Sydney, Milsons Point

The Preatures: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle West

Hamish Anderson

A Breach Of Silence: Born2Rock Studios, West Gosford

Mark Wood: Hamilton Station Hotel, Islington

Ciaran Gribbin: Brass Monkey, Cronulla

Touch Bass Festival feat. Jauz + Snails + Slushii + LDRU + Luude: Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park

Rackett + Julia Why? + Coffin: Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst

V-Tribe: Hotel Steyne (Moonshine Bar), Manly

Army of Bones: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle West

Greg Poppleton: Illawarra Master Builders Club (The Basement), Wollongong

Monsieur Camembert: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville

One World: Kauri Foreshore Hotel, Glebe

Fiona Boyes: Camelot Lounge (Django Bar), Marrickville

Paul Mbenna & The Okapi Guitar Band: LazyBones Lounge, Marrickville

Good Dance feat. Forest Hall + Real Milk + Plantface: Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington Swingshift - Cold Chisel Show: Caringbah Hotel, Caringbah Kolombo: Chinese Laundry, Sydney The World Famous Comedy Store Showcase: Comedy Store, Moore Park The Mighty Quim: Coogee Diggers, Coogee

Cut Snake + Fear Of Dawn + DJ Two Much + DJ Oliver Jennings: Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly

Ham’ Jam Melbourne-born golden boy Hamish Anderson is heading back from his LA home to jam it out with US soul sensations Vintage Trouble. Head to Oxford Art Factory nice and early this Wednesday to see him do his thing.

Captain Bob’s Station House Seven: Corrimal Hotel, Corrimal The Next Step: Luna Park, Milsons Point

(Sports Centre), Sydney Olympic Park

DJ Oh? + DJ Cam Adams: Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly

Andrew Bird: Sydney Opera House (Concert Hall), Sydney

Soul Empire: Marble Bar, Sydney

Prestige Inc.: The Beach Hotel, Merewether

Dash Berlin: Marquee, Pyrmont

Josephs Coat + Sleepytown + Michael Misa: The Gaelic Club, Surry Hills

Boys Noize: Metro Theatre, Sydney Odd Mob: Miranda Hotel (Carmens), Miranda The White Tree Band

Thicket Grooves Eight of Sydney’s most talented muso putting their own spin on the classics funk, rock and pop? Sounds like the The White Tree Band. They’ll be performing at Leadbelly on Wednesday.

Ash Grunwald: Newtown Social Club, Newtown Kickstar: Oatley Hotel, Oatley Paul Winn + Jimmy Bear: Orient Hotel, The Rocks Roland Tings + Fishing + Venus II: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst Greg Poppleton: Penrith RSL, Penrith Born Jovi: Pioneer Tavern, Penrith Bombs Away: Port Macquarie Hotel, Port Macquarie LO’99 + Wongo: Proud Mary’s, Erina

Dash Berlin: Enmore Theatre, Newtown The Cure ‘Wish’ 25 Year Anniversary with The Exploding Boys + The Hummingbirds: Factory Theatre, Marrickville Brazil & Beyond feat. Anna Salleh: Foundry 616, Sydney Josh Needs: Glebe Markets, Glebe Stormcellar: Hawkesbury Hotel, Windsor Madness + Caravana Sun: Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park Butterfingers + Sarah Connor + Rapaport: Hudson Ballroom, Sydney Lincoln Le Fevre & The Insiders: Lass O’Gowrie, Wickham

38 • THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017

Pals feat. Jake Walker + Ivy: Rad Bar, Wollongong Matt Jones Duo + DJ D-Flat + V-Tribe: Rock Lily, Pyrmont Santana + Tash Sultana: Royal Theatre, Canberra Datson & Hughes: Smiths Alternative, Canberra Emma Pask: Spiegeltent, Wollongong Jethro Tull by Ian Anderson: State Theatre, Sydney Cool For Summer feat. Lindsey Stirling + William Singe + Dan & Phil + Nash Grier & Friends + Tyde Levi + Mashd n Kutcher + In Stereo + more: Sydney Olympic Park

DJ Treble n Bass + The OG’s + DJ Mike Dotch + Dan Trakell: The Newport, Newport Helena Pop + Sketch Method + Capes: The Phoenix, Canberra Blues Bombers: The Stag & Hunter Hotel, Mayfield Bluesfest 2017 feat. Doobie Brothers + Buddy Guy + Sir Rosevelt + Billy Bragg + Rickie Lee Jones + Gregory Porter + Slightly Stoopid + St Paul & The Broken Bones + Corinne Bailey Rae + Beth Hart + Roy Ayers + Max Jury + Nahko & Medicine For The People + Turin Brakes + Blind Boy Paxton + Trevor Hall + Jake Shimabukuro + The Record Company + Nikki Hill + The California Honeydrops + Jeff Lang + Joan Osborne + Davy Knowles + Melody Angel + Irish Mythen + more: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Tyagarah Twisted Fest 2017 feat. Johnny Devilseed + Old Man Rubes + Firechild + Vodville + Halcyon Reign + The Defiant Few + Dead Till Dawn + Pyrefly + The Ravens + Durry + Guardian + Necrostalgia + more: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo Obsession feat. Harmonic Rush + Liquid Sunshine + Raptor + more: Valve Bar (Level One), Ultimo Holiday Inn + Peter Fonda: Vic On The Park, Marrickville

Sun 16 Matinee Show with The Next Step: Big Top Sydney, Milsons Point

Fatman Scoop + DJ Bluey: Marquee, Pyrmont Corinne Bailey Rae + Bouy: Metro Theatre, Sydney Donny Benet + Klue + Tees + Rydeen: North Wollongong Hotel, North Wollongong Elevate + James Brennan: Orient Hotel, The Rocks A Breach Of Silence + Portraits + Trojans + Lycanthrope + The Prototypes: Rad Bar, Wollongong Kennyon Brown + Donnell Lewis + DJ Noiz: Rock Lily, Pyrmont Tim Rogers: Spiegeltent, Wollongong Joan Osborne + Danielle Deckard: The Basement, Sydney VDubs: The Beach Hotel, Merewether Courtyard Live with Tash Sultana + Mansionair + Crooked Colours + Kuren + Moonbase (FKA Moonbase Commander) + Amastro + Nocturnal Tapes + more: The Ivy, Sydney

Will Clarke

Clarkey Oh Sosueme, you never let’s us down. This time around the regular Wednesday night event is bringing Will Clarke (Dirty Bird), Mossy and Chao X Sonhander to Beach Road Hotel for some mid-week relief.

Gigs / Live The Guide

DJ Frenzie + Animal Ventura + DJ Cool Hand Luke + Dom Kirk: The Newport, Newport

Back To Funk feat. DJ Meem: Vic On The Park, Marrickville

Dr Farquhar + Sound of Koko: Towradgi Beach Hotel (Sports Bar), Towradgi

Mon 17

Bluesfest 2017 feat. Santana + Zac Brown Band + Buddy Guy + Madness + Mavis

James Muller David Theak Organ Transplant: Foundry 616, Sydney

A Breach Of Silence

Bluesfest 2017 feat. Zac Brown Band + Mavis Staples + Billy Bragg & Joe Henry + Neil Finn + Miles Electric Band + St Paul & The Broken Bones + Beth Hart + Laura Mvula + Booker T Presents The Stax Records Revue + Devon Allman + Nahko & Medicine For The People + Blind Boy Paxton + Dumpstaphunk + The Record Company + Tony Joe White + The Suffers + The California Honeydrops + Jeff Lang + Ray Beadle + Lloyd Spiegel + Glenn Cardier + Melody Angel + Vintage Trouble + Nic Cester + Playing For Change + Ellis Hall + Vasti Jackson + Remi + The Wilson Pickers + Round Mountain Girls + Australian Ukulele Show + Ivy + more: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Tyagarah

Tue 18 The Mae Trio: Brass Monkey, Cronulla Songs On Stage feat. Russell Neal + Pauline Sparkle + more: Gladstone Hotel, Dulwich Hill

Wild Honey

Sweet Sydney sweet hearts Wild Honey have been hinting at dropping their debut LP sometime this year. If that’s just not soon enough you can catch them live playing Moonshine Bar at Hotel Steyne on Thursday.

V-Tribe Steve Hunter Band: LazyBones Lounge (Level Two), Marrickville Gallant + Ruel: Metro Theatre, Sydney

Silent But Deadly Brissy powercore quintet A Breach Of Silence are back on the scene and out on the road with their third LP Secrets. Get to Bald Faced Stag on Friday night for the unique modern metalcore/powermetal hybrid.

Staples + Jethro Tull + Slightly Stoopid + Laura Mvula + Michael Kiwanuka + Rhiannon Giddens + Eric Gales + Booker T Presents The Stax Records Revue + Experience Jimi Hendrix + Mud Morganfield + Devon Allman + Max Jury + Turin Brakes + Jake Shimabukuro + Dumpstaphunk + The Record Company + The Suffers + Nikki Hill + The California Honeydrops + Irish Mythen + more: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Tyagarah

Dada Ono + Spindles + Nic Cassey: LazyBones Lounge, Marrickville

Mid Afternoon Show with Dada Ono + Josh Shipton & The Blue Eyed Ravens + Fabels + Spindles + Melancholy Flowers + more: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo

The Lumineers: Sydney Opera House (Concert Hall), Sydney

Nikki Hill + Frank Sultana: Newtown Social Club, Newtown Marty R + Steve Twitchin: Orient Hotel, The Rocks

Gretta Ray + Xavier Dunn: Newtown Social Club, Newtown Co-Pilot: Orient Hotel, The Rocks The Lumineers: Sydney Opera House (Concert Hall), Sydney

Flying V

Dan Baird & Homemade Sin: The Basement, Sydney

If you have a hankering for big reggae sounds V-Tribe are bring Big Love to Moonshine Bar at Hotel Steyne. Head down this Sunday night to catch the funky ten-piece outfit in action.

The Strumbellas + Winterbourne: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst

DJ Graham Mandroules + Billsbry + DJ Cool Hand Luke + The Fuss feat. Rob Edwards: The Newport, Newport

M AD CDs

Songs On Stage feat. Stuart Jammin + Jenny Hume: Kellys on King, Newtown James Englund + Simone + Rita B + more: LazyBones Lounge (Level One), Marrickville

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THE MUSIC • 12TH APRIL 2017 • 39