The Jungle Giants - She's a Riot

Filmed in one shot, in one room, in one day, the brand new clip from The Jungle Giants plays with the notion of space, position and continuity. Without the help of post production or editing, all the changes you see happened in real time. Members of Team Bobbysix are no strangers to making one-shot, one room, lots-of-people videos, so we were keen to share this fine piece of work with you.

In celebration of their band new single and EP, The Jungle Giants will be hitting the road with Sydney duo, Toucan throughout August.

Tickets are on sale now.
FRI 10 AUG - NORTHCOTE SOCIAL CLUB, MELBOURNE
SAT 11 AUG - JIVE, ADELAIDE
FRI 17 AUG - ELSEWHERE, GOLD COAST
SAT 18 AUG - THE ZOO, BRISBANE
WED 22 AUG - BEACH ROAD HOTEL, BONDI
THU 23 AUG - TRANSIT BAR, CANBERRA
FRI 24 AUG - CAMBRIDGE HOTEL SIDE BAR, NEWCASTLE
SAT 25 AUG - GOODGOD, SYDNEY

She's A Riot is released through Create/Control on Friday, July 27.

Opossom interview...

Kody Nielson, scuzz-pop tearaway of The Mint Chicks, has gone in a completely new direction under the name Opossom. He is set to take his new album, Electric Hawaii, on tour with Jinja Safari and White Arrows. Carol Bowditch found out more: 

What prompted your decision to start making music on your own?
I've always made music on my own, but I guess it's just the first opportunity I've had
to actually release something of my own.

Are you enjoying the freedom of having sole creative control?
Yeah, I am. I get to take more risks, and try things out.

Can you talk us a little though the creative processes that went into writing and
recording Electric Hawaii? Did you do things very differently this time round?
The main difference was just not having to run ideas by anyone else. It made
everything a bit more experimental and playful.

What are you most looking forward to about your upcoming Australian tour and what should we expect from your live show?
It's always cool playing to new audiences and you should expect a three-piece psych band, playing melodic music with dynamics.

Tell us a little about the name Opossom...
I work at night so I feel nocturnal sometimes. I find it interesting that in New Zealand
people kill possums. They're considered pests here, and sometimes that's how the
country makes me feel. I decided to spell it Opossom, because I wanted to use a
word that didn't exist.

How was your tour with Bic Runga, and who - in an ideal world - would you
like to do a tour with in the future?
The tour was nice. I'd love to play with the Flaming Lips or Danny Brown.

Tell us something we night be surprised to learn about you...
I'm Batman.

THE BLIND DATE TOUR: Jinja Safari, Opossom, White Arrows
Wed 8 Aug: Perth – Astor Theatre - www.bocsticketing.com.au 
Thurs 9 Aug: Adelaide – Uni Bar (Licensed All Ages) - www.moshtix.com.au
Fri 10 Aug: Melbourne – The Hi-Fi - www.hifi.com.au - www.moshtix.com.au
Sat 11 Aug: Melbourne – The Hi-Fi (Under 18s) www.hifi.com.au 
Wed 15 Aug: Canberra – ANU Bar - www.ticketek.com.au
Thu 16 Aug: Newcastle – Bar On the Hill - www.bigtix.com.au
Fri 17 Aug: Sydney – Metro (Licensed All Ages) - www.metrotheatre.com.au 
Sat 18 Aug: Brisbane – The Hi-Fi - www.hifi.com.au

Interview by Carol Bowditch

Ned Collette interview

Carol Bowditch talks to Melbourne-born, Berlin-based musician Ned Collette about his upcoming album and Australian tour: 

Your sound seems to take influence from different genres. Do you have an especially eclectic music taste? 
Sure, I guess. I mean I listen to all sorts of stuff from all over the shop really. Different times and places. And though it might seem eclectic it's somehow all tied together in my mind by some indefinable thread. Goodness, or honesty, or risk, or something that makes me feel like the artist/composer is really putting themselves on the line. I guess the one thing I'm not really good at is knowing about new music - stuff that is coming out now. It seems to take at least five years or so for something to filter through to me. I keep realising things I think are new are ten years old already.

In what ways do you think this album differs from the 2009 long-player that Ned Collette + Wirewalker released? Were these differences planned or did they occur organically?
It's a lot more sonically diverse, mostly because it began as stuff I was recording on my own and was then developed with Joe in any direction we felt like taking it, rather than from one session based around the band recording some songs on our usual instruments. So it's not as rock, it's not really as heavily guitar based, though the lyrics and themes have continued in a direction I can't seem to avoid. In that sense it was really organic but the album certainly wasn't planned as a Wirewalker album until quite far into the process.

You created the new album after expatriating to Berlin. Was it an easy relocation? There are some dark themes within the album that suggest that there might have been some difficulties.
It was remarkably easy really. Berlin is a a wonderful city that is very easy to become familiar with. Sure there were difficulties, but no more than usual in a comfortable, first world, white middle-class kinda scenario. I find personal difficulties always get projected on to the background of one's environment though, and I really like writing from that point of view, as if the city or the space around you is somehow an accomplice or at least a witness to your experiences.

You recently toured the UK and Europe. How was it? Any particular favourite gigs/cities?
We haven't toured here properly since 2010, but I've played a fair bit here and there solo since then. It's good. People listen like crazy in Europe - the rooms are silent. They like to let you know exactly what they think afterwards too, which is sometimes interesting, but often gets in the way of the first drink… I played one at the Swiss Cultural Institute in Rome last year which was very beautiful but not
a great crowd - a bunch of Swiss artists and scientists wanting to get off their faces and dance to a horrible Parisian cover band. Other than that, the closing party of a warehouse party institution with the Wirewalker in Freiburg, the regular gigs to a very faithful but also varied crowd I do in a small place here, playing with Kurt Vile last year…

Are you excited about your upcoming tour of Australia?
Yes, very excited. The band played one show of this material when I was back in Melbourne mixing it in October and it was by far the best gig we've ever done. Easily. Even though James and Ben weren't involved in making the record, they understood and fitted their respective things effortlessly into the songs. It was really very enjoyable.

After the tour, what do you have planned for the remainder of 2012?
Well, the album is coming out worldwide in August through Fire Records, so I'll be back here and hopefully busy with that, and with trying to find a way to get the whole band touring a bit more over here again. I'm also going to spend a couple of weeks on a Greek island with a bunch of friends at the end of summer, which has been taking up a fair portion of my consciousness ever since we made that
decision.

Tell us something that we might be surprised to learn about you...
I genuinely think George Michael's 'Faith' is one of the best albums ever made.

Ned Collette + Wirewalker Australian Tour 2012

June 14 - Brisbane, Blackbear Lodge
Tickets: www.mobileindustries.oztix.com.au

June 15 - Sydney, Fbi Social
Tickets: www.mobileindustries.oztix.com.au

June 16 - Adelaide, Metro
Tickets: www.mobileindustries.oztix.com.au

June 21 - Canberra, Front Gallery (Ned solo)
Tickets: www.mobileindustries.oztix.com.au

June 23 - Melbourne, Northcote Social Club
plus Inevitable OrbitTickets: www.northcotesocialclub.com

Interview by Carol Bowditch. Visit Ned's site here: www.nedcollette.com

This Epic Tour - featuring Kingswood, Money For Rope and Damn Terran

Combining forces to create a three headed assault machine that would compel Godzilla to retreat to the depths of Tokyo Bay with his head hung in shame, Melbourne bands Kingswood, Money For Rope and Damn Terran emerge from the primordial ooze to take their rock largesse to the good people of Australia.

Yeah Go Die, Kingswood’s debut single of inimitable sludgy goodness is currently getting plenty of spins on national radio and with their recently unleashed EP Change Of Heart promising to continue the momentum, the band have an appetite whet for destruction. The same is true at camp Money For Rope, their latest single Ten Times has seared its mark on listeners around the country, laying a path for devastation when their self-titled full length emerges later this year. Completing the triumvirate, Rebels, the first single from Damn Terran’s upcoming album has further seen them etch their name on the hearts of fans around the country.

Already proven entities in their hometown, the Kingswood, Money For Rope and Damn Terran juggernaut will rain fire in these not-to-be-missed shows. Get in early to assure your seats ringside.

Dates:
28/06/2012 – Thursday, The Workers Club, Fitzroy, VIC
29/06/2012- Friday, The Workers Club, Fitzroy, VIC
30/06/2012 – Saturday, Jive Bar, Adelaide, SA
5/07/2012 – Thursday, The Great Northern Hotel, Newcastle, NSW
6/07/2012 – Friday, Lansdowne Hotel, Sydney, NSW
7/07/2012 – Saturday, Yours & Ours, Wollongong, NSW
12/07/2012 – Thursday, Oh Hello, Brisbane, QLD
13/07/2012 – Friday, The Beach Hotel, Byron Bay, NSW
14/07/2012 – Saturday, Hard Rock Cafe, Gold Coast, QLD

Missy Higgins returns with single, album and Australian tour

We know what you're thinking. You're thinking, what the hell happened to Aussie songstress Missy Higgins? Well, Missy privately decided to quit music, despite selling over a million copies of her first two albums, gaining multiple ARIA Awards and gold certification in the U.S. for her song Where I Stood. However, after a five year absence, she finally returns with a brand new single Unashamed Desire and the announcement of ‘The Ol’ Razzle Dazzle Tour’ for June and July. This will be Missy’s first national tour in since 2007. 

The story of the journey that brought her back to music - including her battle with writer's block - forms the backbone of her new album The Ol’ Razzle Dazzle which will land in June.

Unashamed Desire was directed by the award winning Natasha Pincus. You'll know Pincus as the director of the clip for Gotye's Somebody That I Used To Know, and the connections continue as Missy recently joined Gotye on stage in San Francisco to perform Kimbra’s vocal part on that song. The pair also teamed up again for a sold out show in Los Angeles the following night.

We checked out Missy's exclusive performance in Bondi last week, where she debuted songs from her forthcoming record. You can finally do the same at the following venues. Tickets went on general sale this morning, so get busy:

Fri June 1:  Adelaide, Her Majesty's Theatre www.bass.net.au / 131 246
Sat June 2:  Perth, Astor Theatre www.bocsticketing.com.au / 08 9484 1133 / 1800 193 300
Wed June 6:  Brisbane, The Tivoli www.ticketek.com.au / 132 849
Fri June 8:  Sydney, York Theatre, Seymour Centre http://sydney.edu.au/seymour / 02 9351 7940
Mon June 11: Wollongong, Illawarra Performing Arts Centre: www.merrigong.com.au / 02 4224 5999
Wed June 13:  Newcastle,  Newcastle  City Hall www.ticketek.com.au / 132 849
Thu June 14:  Canberra, Canberra Theatre www.canberratheatrecentre.com.au  / 02 6275 2700
Fri June 15:  Geelong, Geelong Performing Arts Centre www.gpac.org.au / 03 5225 1200
Sat June 16:  Melbourne, Her Majesty's Theatre www.ticketek.com.au / 132 849
Fri July 27:  Mackay, Mackay Entertainment Centre www.mackaytix.com.au / 07 4961 9777
Sat July 28:  Rockhampton, The Pilbeam Theatre www.pilbeamtheatre.com.au / 07 4927 4111
Sun July 29:  Splendour In The Grass, Bryon Bay moshtix.com.au / 1300 GET TIX (438 849) from 9am AEST Friday 27 April

Georgia Fair to tour with Lisa Mitchell

Simple Man is taken from Georgia Fair’s critically acclaimed debut album All Through Winter and was recorded in the snow-covered mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. The video was directed by Shane McLafferty (Stevie Nicks, Mick Jagger) and filmed in Los Angeles including the same location as the film Drive. Check it out above.

Since the release of their album, Georgia Fair have been busy touring across Australia; most recently with The Panics and Busby Marou, and are now announced as special guests on the Lisa Mitchell ‘Heavenly Sounds’ tour. Following in the footsteps of Seeker Lover Keeper, Lisa Mitchell has announced the Heavenly Sounds tour to launch her new single Spiritus, she will be joined on stage by her band, choir and as she states, “The darling men of Georgia Fair will be kicking off the evening with their floating harmonies! What an incredible tour we have to look forward to."

Tickets for the Heavenly Sounds tour are on sale now. Here are the dates:
Monday June 4th - Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle, NSW
Thursday June 7th - St Stephen's Uniting Church, Sydney, NSW
Friday June 8th - St John's Cathedral, Brisbane, QLD
Wednesday June 13th - St Michael's Church, Melbourne, VIC
Thursday June 14th - Flinders Street Baptist Church, Adelaide, SA
Friday June 15th - St Joseph’s Church, Subiaco Perth WA

This Must Be The Place ticket giveaway!

Okay, so any movie which has David Byrne in it and features a fair amount of Will Oldham on the soundtrack was always gonna appeal to us. Add to that Sean Penn as a perplexingly funny goth rocker and the ever-wonderful Frances McDormand as Penn's wife, and you have yourself quite the film.

The story is thus: Penn plays Cheyenne, a bored, retired, eye-linered, wealthy American former celeb living in Dublin. He's a complex character, bumbling around town with friends and living in an enormous mansion. When he learns of the death of his father - who he has been estranged from for over 30 years - he returns to America to embark on a road trip that will change him forever. His quest is driven by the revelation that his father was humiliated in Auschwitz at the hands of an SS officer, who may still be alive and living in America. Cheyenne's search takes him across the heartland of a country now foreign to him, encountering some great people as he is reawakened to the possibility of reconciliation and self-discovery.

At first, Penn's character is hard to get a handle on, but soon, his bumbling confusion combined with some cracking one-liners make him genuinely appealing and his journey across The States is intriguing and shot beautifully. This really is a stunning film to look at - an absolute feast for the eyes. While some of the sub-plots serve to confuse, This Must Be The Place is entertaining and at times touching, sad and laugh-out-loud funny.

The good news for you (if you live in Australia) is that Bobbysix.com has teamed up with our mates at Hopscotch Films and have a couple of double passes to give away. All you have to do is send your name and address to info@bobbysix.com with the subject "This must be the place to score a double pass" by April 4th and we'll select the winners at random. The pass is valid at selected cinemas in Sydney, Perth, Brisvegas, Radelaide and Melbs and the film is rated M. 

Smirnoff Presents the DFA Records Stage at Future Music Festival

As they have done in previous years, Smirnoff are getting inventive at Future Music Festival. This year, they are bringing a slice of New York nightlife to the festival by hosting James Murphy’s DFA Records on their very own stage.

Aussie festival-goers will be as good as transported to the heart of New York City with an all-encompassing nightlife experience that will see DFA leading-light Murphy and Pat Mahoney, his partner in the legendary LCD Soundsystem, on headline duties.

DFA Records have always been on the cutting edge of music, having released genre-defining stuff by some ace acts, many of which will be in full effect on the Smirnoff stage at Future Music Festival, including: Hercules & Love Affair, Holy Ghost! Juan MacLean, Benoit & Sergio and Horse Meat Disco.

To the side of the stage, aspiring DJs will be given the chance to experience how it looks to be a headline performer. To capture the moment, their photo will be taken at the ‘Superstar DJ’ booth, against a real crowd backdrop. Photos will be uploaded to the SmirnoffAustralia Facebook page:

The Future Music Festival 2012 takes place on the following dates: 
Brisbane - Saturday March 3, DOOMBEN RACECOURSE
Perth – Sunday March 4, (Labour Day Long Weekend), ARENA JOONDALUP
Sydney – Saturday March 10, RANDWICK RACECOURSE
Melbourne – Sunday March 11 (Labour Day Long Weekend), FLEMINGTON RACECOURSE
Adelaide – Monday March 12 (Adelaide Cup Long Weekend) ELLIS PARK

Tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster (136 100 or: www.ticketmaster.com.au)

Wolf & Cub release double A-side single and announce launch shows

Two years since the release of their acclaimed second album Science and Sorcery, Adelaide's Wolf & Cub are back with a double A-side single featuring the tracks See The Light and All Through The Night, available now, exclusively through iTunes and Bandcamp. Because we are nice to you, you can stream the little blighters here on Bobbysix.com too. Just at the bottom of this post, in fact.

Produced, recorded and mixed by studio wunderkind Burke Reid (Gareth Liddiard, Jack Ladder, Dan Kelly) at Big Jesus Burger in Sydney, both See The Light and All Through The Night offer documented aural proof of an evolving band. See The Light is primarily driven by a snaky bass line, the reverb rich vocals deliver a subtle but persuasive hook tempered by chiming delayed guitars. Meanwhile, All Through The Night is dreamy pop floating on a fragile falsetto vocal, with amphetamine bass pulse, broad sonic guitar brush strokes and sparse drumming.

See The Light//All Through The Night Single Launch Shows:
Fri – 9 Mar - Arcade Lane - Adelaide (Moshtix: 1300 438 849 www.moshtix.com.au)
Sat – 24 Mar - The Espy – Melbourne (www.espy.com.au)
Thu – 5 Apr - GoodGod - Sydney (Moshtix: 1300 438 849, www.moshtix.com.au)
 

Mark Lanegan Band announce Australian tour

While Mark Lanegan is no stranger to Australia - having recently toured in support of his projects with Isobel Campbell and his 2010 solo dates - this April the Mark Lanegan Band will play their first Aussie tour in eight years, following the release of their acclaimed new album Blues Funeral.

Produced by Alain Johannes, Blues Funeral is the band’s first offering since 2004’s Bubblegum. Alongside Lanegan’s trademark gravel and grit vocals, known to envelop listeners and mesmerise audiences the world over, Blues Funeral features appearances from his former cohorts Greg Dulli of The Gutter Twins and Josh Homme of Queens Of The Stone Age.

MARK LANEGAN BAND TOUR DATES:
Wednesday 18 April - Powerstation, Auckland
Tickets on sale 9am Monday 20 February via Ticketmaster 0800 111 999 or www.ticketmaster.co.nz Friday 20 April - The Hi Fi, Sydney
Tickets on sale 9am Monday 20 February via The Hi Fi 1300 843 443 or www.thehifi.com.au 
Saturday 21 April - The Tivoli, Brisbane
Tickets on sale 9am Monday 20 February via Ticketek 132 849 or www.ticketek.com.au 
Tuesday 24 April - The Gov, Adelaide
Tickets on sale 9am Monday 20 February via Moshtix 1300 438 849 or www.moshtix.com.au or VenueTix 08 8225 8888 or www.venuetix.com.au
Thursday 26 April - Forum Theatre, Melbourne
Tickets on sale 9am Monday 20 February via Ticketmaster 136 100 or www.ticketmaster.com.au

Geoffrey O'Connor interview

Geoffrey O’Connor - known for his work in Melbourne band Crayon Fields - plays this year’s St Jerome's Laneway Festival as a solo artist. Heidi Pett chatted to him about his various name changes, duelling synthesisers and a dream collaboration with Elton John before he loses his marbles:

You’ve previously released solo work under ‘Sly Hats’ - what sparked the decision to use your real name this time?
Sly Hats was a name I just came up with on the spot when I got my first gig. I gradually grew to regret it more and more. I just never really liked the name and I couldn’t see myself releasing albums as Sly Hats, so I thought I’d curtail that and use the name that my mother gave me.

It’s a very personal album in terms of lyrics, did this have something to do with your decision to use your birth name? I guess I’m asking because it might be expected that people distance themselves from the more personal aspects of their own life in their work whereas you’ve gone in the opposite direction.
For this record I actually wanted to make it quite personal. All the songs are based on both experience and observation, which I guess is still all experience. Just something I’m familiar with, really.

Do you find it difficult offering up these things that you’ve created? Knowing they’ve come from somewhere close to you? 
Not at all. In drawing from personal experience I admit certain things and exaggerate other things to make out that I’m a bit of a better guy. There’s still a strong resemblance between the way the stories are told in the songs and what actually happened. I guess with songcraft and that kind of licence you can make yourself out to be better than you actually were in the situations. Little bit of fantasy and exaggeration.

Do you differ in your approach when writing your solo work as opposed to what you’ve done with Crayon Fields? 
I guess with my solo work I’m able to chop and change things a little more. It’s a lot easier for me to rework a song when I’m doing it all by myself. When I’m working with the band I feel like I’m wasting everybody’s time. There’s different levels of preparation involved, different ways of approaching songs. I don’t have to be wary of other people as much when I’m writing for myself.

The latest album does feature a lot of collaborations, though, so how did that work?
I’d bring the songs fully formed. Usually I’d sing their parts first and ask if they wanted to sing the duets. There were a couple of times where somebody asked me if I wanted extra vocals on my records. It worked out really well cause I get a nice variety of different voices and instruments.

How do you set up your collaborations? 
I’ve never approached someone. Never made the cold call. Usually they’re friends because I really like their music and their voice. Not that that’s the way I choose my friends! But that’s often how I get to know people.

Of course. Now, your latest album has been described as having a synthy, power-ballady vibe. Was that a deliberate nod to the eighties? 
It wasn’t a deliberate reference, but I can definitely see where the comparisons come from. I did consciously set out to make a record that sounds very synthetic, which I guess is always going to evoke the eighties a bit. Although, I feel like in 50 years time when synthetic instruments become more familiar to people it will just be seen as another instrument. You know folk musicians use acoustic guitars and it doesn’t really evoke a certain period anymore whereas it might have 30, 40 years ago. It wasn’t a conscious thing, you know? I’m not going to be making a music video where I’m of surrounded by people doing aerobics or anything like that.

I was going to ask about your videos, actually. You’ve collected a fair bit of praise for your previous videos, are you working on some for your solo work? 
I’m making a trilogy of videos, they’re all sort of thematically linked. They’re just fun to make. A little bit morbid but vaguely humorous as well, I hope.

What can we expect from your set at Laneway? 
I’m bringing my band along, which is two synthesisers and this kind of laser machine which kind of acts like a drummer. And duelling synthesisers, which I really enjoy; they kind of flank me on stage.

It sounds like a military operation! 
It is, yeah. *laughs* You should see the rehearsals.

So you’re quite precise in the way that you approach your music? 
Yeah, I like to be thorough in that way, I don’t like to leave things to chance.

Speaking of leaving things up to chance, Laneway is certainly a large production. How do you feel about playing in that sort of environment? 
To be honest part of what appeals to me about playing festivals is the freedom you have to miss bands as much as see bands you really like. There’s something really comforting and satisfying about drinking backstage while you can hear them playing faintly in the background and knowing you might see them next week. It’s a bit perverse really!

I guess when you’ve got any number of opportunities to see them play, you lose the urgency. Is there anybody you’re particularly looking forward to seeing? Making ‘friends’ with on the basis of their musical talents? 
I doubt I’d hang out with them, I never approach my idols! It’s not that I’m shy or anything it’s just not something I’m comfortable doing. I’d feel like the really corny guy.

If, in a parallel universe that was totally socially acceptable, who would you like to work with? 
I’d love to collaborate with Elton John to be honest. *laughs* That would do it for me. While he’s still got half a brain it’d be great. Him and Stevie Nicks, I think that would be a great balance.

If the idea of duelling synthesisers appeals to you, then get yourself along to the St Jerome's Laneway Festival where you can catch Geoffrey O’Connor alongside the likes of Feist, The Drums, Laura Marling and Yuck. For the full lineup and for news on ticket availability, visit lanewayfestival.com.au

Interview by Heidi Pett. 

Husky interview

After a string of festival gigs over the past few months, Melbourne band Husky are closing out their Summer playing the national St Jerome's Laneway Festival. Heidi Pett spoke to frontman Husky Gawenda about his literary influences and thoughts on triple j Unearthed:

“I’d say we’re about songs.” It’s a deceptively simple explanation from Husky Gawenda when asked to define his band and their music. Variously described as indie folk and harmonic pop, favourably compared to the likes of Fleet Foxes and Boy & Bear, Husky have certain a knack for creating gentle melodies that nonetheless stay with you all day. Single History’s Door received extensive radio play on both triple j and Sydney’s FBi, as well as some recent lovin’ in the Bobbysix End Of Year Reviews, and with good reason: it’s an almost perfectly-crafted modern folk offering, sparking all sorts of comparisons with such a range of artists it leaves Gawenda faintly bemused. “I’m always so surprised by how people describe us and the different bands we’re compared to. I don’t always agree or hear the influence and sometimes it’s somebody whose music I’ve never actually heard, but I don’t think there’s any point being precious about it. People will listen to music and want to categorise it. It’s human nature.”

“I can say whatever I want about the songs I write and the sort of music we play, but in the end it doesn’t matter what I think. It matters what you think, it matters what the people who come to our shows think.” It’s an almost postmodern attitude - the death of the author/songwriter in favour of the audience’s interpretation. When I mention this, Husky laughs and admits “Well my father’s a writer and my mother’s an English teacher, so literature and writing was a big part of my upbringing and part of my life as far back as I remember. I grew up reading the classics, novel-wise. Most of the 20th century classics, as well as 19th century English and Russian literature, and a bunch of poets - Dylan Thomas, Wordsworth, those sort of guys. There are musicians as well, who are as much poets as they are songwriters; Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan, even Paul Simon.” These early literary influences certainly come through in his music, expressed through a strong lyrical component to the songs on debut long-player Forever So.

Recorded in a backyard bungalow in Melbourne’s northern suburbs which the band spent late nights soundproofing themselves with the aid of Youtube tutorials, it was an album Husky says, “we really wanted time and space to record”. Well, that and the fact that before scoring a spot at Pushover Festival thanks to a triple j Unearthed competition, Gawenda admits they were fairly unknown and thus hadn’t the cash to hire a studio and producer. “We wanted the luxury to be able to record songs that we won’t necessarily use. To take the time to write, develop and arrange the album. If we went into a studio and were paying by the hour we wouldn’t be able to do that. It was a mixture of getting the sound we wanted, and just not having the money to record in a proper studio.”

Looking back on their success over the last year, it seems Husky won’t be running into the same problems again. “I think what Unearthed does for bands like us is incredible. It does exactly what it’s supposed to, which is to bring bands to the attention of the public that otherwise nobody would hear of. That’s the beauty of the platform that triple j has, they can pick bands out of near obscurity, and put them on the radio.” Since the release of Forever So in late October, Husky spent some time touring before the busy summer festival season, where they’ve found the crowds, “really embracing and responsive”. Husky notes that the festival circuit is an equally important way for emerging bands to establish themselves. “You get exposed to people who might not know you that well or might not otherwise have come to your show. They discover you for the first time and you get to meet all these people that you otherwise wouldn’t have met. I think festivals are great for all bands, but especially for newish bands like us.”

Having seen them at Woodford Folk Festival over the New Year, I can attest to the fact that they put on a charming live performance which has certainly added to a fan base that has grown exponentially over the past year. Offering something a little different from the current crop of fingerpicking, harmonising folk acts, they’ve attracted praise from high places - triple j’s Richard Kingsmill, for instance, described them as “pure class.” This is something which Husky attributes in part to the varying musical backgrounds within the band. “I think the jazz training that they’ve done over the years have influenced them and it's certainly added to their ability as musicians,” he says of bandmates Evan Tweedie, Luke Collins and cousin Gideon Preiss.

Despite spending a lot of time together growing up in quite a creative family, Husky says he and Gideon, “didn’t really formally play music together until about three years ago. We spent a lot of time listening to music and going to gigs together, but he was on a different path for those early years. He was playing in a lot  of jazz bands and I was kind of just writing songs. Then, about three years ago, we decided to get together and have a play and see how that went.” It seems things have panned out fairly well so far, and Husky agrees. “Even from the beginning it felt right, and it’s never stopped feeling like that.”

Interview by Heidi Pett. For more information on the St Jerome's Laneway Festival, click here.

Yuck interview

Bobby Townsend has a chat with Daniel Blumberg from Yuck about making music and living up to expectations at St Jerome's Laneway Festival:

"I have no idea what to expect." 

Despite taking a trip there to visit family when he was young, Daniel Blumberg has few memories of Australia and little in the way of preconceptions of his band's upcoming debut performances there. He is looking forward to it though. "We toured with Tame Impala and they said it was really great. I've heard [Laneway is] a really good festival too."

Yuck are a four piece - sometimes a five piece - made up of London-based vocalist/guitarist Daniel and guitarist Max, bassist Mariko from Hiroshima, New Jersey's Jonny on drums and part-time fifth member Ilana, who joins brother Daniel for the harmonies on the album and occasionally live. Their record, self-produced and recorded in the homes of Max and Daniel, has received so much acclaim and attention that it has led to the band being on tour pretty much solidly since its release early last year. In May, they sold out headline shows at New York's Bowery Ballroom and the Scala in London, as well as making their debut TV appearance on Later with Jools Holland. Such a hectic schedule means they haven't had much opportunity to look forward to - or even think about - their turn at Laneway. "I need to check the line-up," Daniel laughs as we discuss who he is looking forward to seeing. "We haven't really had time to prepare. I know that it's coming, but we're on a three-month tour so I haven't been thinking that far ahead. When we come back from a tour, we're back for about a day or two and in that time we record a song or paint tour posters. Straight away from the airport I'd be setting up my paints for the poster for the next tour, or we'd go straight to the studio to record a song."

All of which means that, while they put out their own singles, there hasn't been a lot of time to think about a new album just yet. Considering the DIY ethic involved in the first recording, one wonders whether, now that they have a raised profile, they will do things differently next time round? Will they take themselves to a swanky studio in LA, or will it be back to Max's bedroom for a makeshift set-up? "It depends on the songs. Now, more people know our music so maybe there are more possibilities in terms of producers. I guess when we finish writing we will talk about it. But it won't be the same as the last album, because that was all we had equipment-wise."

The band's first record offers many reference points - all the while without sounding derivative in the slightest. For instance, Get Away bursts from the speakers with Pixies basslines, Sonic Youth guitars and Malkmus vocals, the outstanding Shook Down is Teenage Fanclub at their most romantic and Georgia is My Bloody Valentine mixed with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. It was clearly pieced together with a love of these kind of bands but, joyfully, still sounds fresh and exciting. However, Daniel admits that his interest in the music that influenced Yuck's sound came about relatively late-on. "When I was younger I listened to a lot of Blink 182. I'm not from a family that had lots of records lying about except for things like Joseph and His Technicolour Dreamcoat and Elton John. I did find a Neil Young CD once, which was very rare. I discovered Harvest when I was about 17, and that was when I really started listening to music."

Stumbling upon Neil Young led the singer on all manner of musical paths. "First it took me to Will Oldham, Smog and Lambchop. I remember being blown away by those bands. Then it was Silver Jews into Pavement and then someone recommended Dinosaur Jr. Once you get into those bands, you start noticing the record labels that are putting things out." He starts listing other groups. "Neutral Milk Hotel, Sparklehorse, Royal Trux. There's a band called Video Nasties that changed a lot for me."

And so, influenced by these great sounds, Daniel and his chums crafted an album which has caused such a buzz that they arrive in Australia to a certain amount of expectation from attendees of St Jerome's Laneway Festival. However, the band aren't really feeling any particular weight on their shoulders. "I think I'm detached from those feelings of expectation. I just like the idea of putting on a good show," Daniel shrugs. "The music has gone so much further than we thought, but we're just doing what we're doing. If people don't like it, then we're not going to change. That's pointless."

So honest and exciting is Yuck's sound, it seems hard to imagine people not liking it.

Interview by Bobby Townsend. Find out more about St Jerome's Laneway Festival here. 

St Jerome's Laneway Festival announces its 2012 line-up

At Bobbysix.com, we've been fans of Laneway since the early days. We were there in 2007, watching The Temper Trap belting out anthemic tunes at Sydney's Circular Quay before most people knew who the hell they were. We saw Daniel Johnston's heartbreaking performance, Mumford & Sons' triumphant display and Florence + The Machine's lung-busting turn in 2010.

So we're excited to bring you the line-up for the 2012 event, which, once again will take place in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Auckland and Singapore. Highlights of next year's event include the wonderful Laura Marling (above), Feist, The Horrors, Portugal The Man and Yuck.

So, without further ado, here's who you can see at next year's Laneway: ACTIVE CHILD, ANNA CALVI, AUSTRA, BULLION, CHAIRLIFT, CULTS, DZ DEATHRAYS, EMA, FEIST [except Adelaide], GEOFFREY O'CONNOR, GIRLS, GIVERS [Syd + Melb], GLASSER, HUSKY [Bris, Syd, Melb], JOHN TALABOT, JONTI, LAURA MARLING, M83, ONEMAN, PAJAMA CLUB (feat. Sharon and Neil Finn), PORTUGAL THE MAN [Syd + Melb], SBTRKT (Live), TRIPLE J Unearthed Winners, THE VERY WEST, THE DRUMS, THE HORRORS, THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART, THE PANICS, TORO Y MOI, TOTAL CONTROL, TWIN SHADOW, WASHED OUT, WU LYF, YUCK

Tickets go on sale Wednesday October 19th at 9am (EDST) through Greentix.We said it last year and we'll say it again, if you want to go, you'll need to be on the ball when tickets are made available. If you snooze, you lose.


You can keep up to date with all things Laneway on Facebook and Twitter.

Guinness Live Thursdays, semi-final details announced

Guinness have just announced that 25 groups of musicians from all four corners of Australia have been selected from over 100 entries to make the semi finals, in the Guinness Live Thursdays nationwide search to find Australia’s best quality live music.

During the past five weeks over 100 bands have entered and over 5,000 votes were cast by fans supporting their favourites. This next phase of the competition is crucial, with an amazing prize on offer whereby the overall winning band will travel to Ireland to represent Australia at the global Arthur’s Day celebrations in Dublin.

The semi-final events will be held in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Melbourne and Adelaide on Thursday 1st September and Thursday 8th September. All events will be open to the general public who will be able to vote for their favourite band on the night, whilst enjoying live music and of course a pint of the black stuff.

APRA award winning blues and roots artist Ash Grunwald (above), has been the ambassador for Guinness Live Thursdays from the start of the campaign. He said, “I knew that we wouldn’t have any problems discovering quality live music acts in Australia – it is great that Guinness wants to support emerging artists, we have a lot of untapped talent here. But having listened to some fantastic entries, it was really tough to make the decision to narrow the bands down to just 25. This will be a close contest, and I can’t wait to see who makes the final four.”

Fans can also vote for their favourite bands on the Guinness Australia Facebook page. However, even if your favourite band wasn’t originally selected, you can still help get them to the final, as the five bands with the highest votes will be given a Wildcard pass to the semi final stage. The 30 semi finalists from across Australia will then be shortlisted to just four bands who will then progress to the National Final, which will be held in Sydney on 15th September at The Gaelic Theatre. The overall winning band will feature in the Arthur’s Day global celebration on Thursday 22nd September in Dublin alongside internationally renowned acts including the Scissor Sisters, Stereophonics, Paloma Faith and Calvin Harris.

Arthur’s Day is a globally celebrated event honouring the date Arthur Guinness signed the lease on the St. James’ Gate Brewery (in 1759) and introduced the drink to the world. 47 other countries will also be holding high-profile music events and celebrations to honour the remarkable life and legacy of Arthur Guinness.

GUINNESS LIVE THURSDAYS – THE SEMI FINALS EVENT LISTINGS
Thursday 1st September
NSW - Iron Bar Hotel vs Tortured Willow – at PJ O’Brien’s King Street, Sydney
NSW - Luke Dickens Band vs a wildcard finalist tbc – at PJ Gallagher’s Parramatta
QLD - Fairchild Republic vs Paddy McHugh and The Goldminers – at Mick O’Malleys Irish Pub in Brisbane
VIC - My Lasting Reply vs The Modern Age – at Elephant & Wheelbarrow in St Kilda

Thursday 8th September
NSW - Modern Error vs Claire – at PJ Gallagher’s Parramatta
NSW - The Jefferson vs The Acid Monkeys – at PJ O’Brien’s King Street, Sydney
QLD - Punxie & The Poison Pen vs Arcade Made – at Mick O’Malleys Irish Pub in Brisbane
QLD - MC Kitch vs a wildcard finalist tbc - at Gilhooleys in Brisbane
VIC - Between The Wars vs a wildcard finalist tbc - at PJ O’Brien’s in Southbank
WA - Palatial Digs vs The Brow Horn Orchestra – at Rosie O’Grady’s in Perth
WA - The Augustines vs a wildcard finalist tbc - at JB O’Riley’s in Perth
SA - Hawks of Alba vs a wildcard finalist tbc - at PJ O’Brien’s in Adelaide.

ALREADY BATTLED (25th August)
QLD – Founds vs The Penguin Kings – at Byron Beach Hotel
QLD - The Great Shame vs Sharon Friel and The Blue Steel Band - at Mick O’Malleys Irish Pub in Brisbane
VIC – Hotel on Mayfair vs Buddah in a Chocolate Box – at Pugg Mahone’s in Carlton

Steering By Stars - Collision

Last year, we interviewed Aussie four-piece Steering By Stars about their debut album. Well, now they're back with two new songs, Collision, which will feature on their forthcoming sophomore record (due to hit the streets early next year), and B-side Ink. Both are available on itunes.

Keyboardist/vocalist Lachlan exclusively told Bobbysix.com "We have been rather quiet of late, as we have been focusing on writing the new album. We intend for this to be a slight departure from our last, including more space in the songs, more structure and shedding some of the post-rock indulgences that have defined our previous efforts. Notably also, is a focus on cleaner and less effected vocals, which we now have the courage to write and perform."

Have a look and listen to Collision below and check out their facebook page here.

Fantine - Eleven

Releasing her second solo single, Eleven, is Fantine. No, not the tragic character from Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, but rather a supercool Russian-born, Sydney-based musician who fuses indie and electro soul. Have a look/listen to the above clip and, if you like what you hear/see, then pop along to see her on her tour of Australia and New Zealand this August and September. If you live in that part of the world of course.

Here are the dates:

Thursday 11th August – Mojo’s – Fremantle, WA

Tickets: www.heatseeker.com.au Tel. 08 6102 7270

Friday 19th August – Bondi Beach Hotel – Sydney, NSW

FREE ENTRY

Saturday 20th August – Great Northern Hotel – Newcastle, NSW

Tickets: On the door

Friday 26th August – X&Y Bar - Brisbane, QLD

Tickets: www.oztix.com.au

Saturday 27th August – Byron Bay Brewery - Byron Bay, NSW

FREE ENTRY

Thursday 1st September – The Evelyn – Melbourne, VIC

Tickets: www.moshtix.com.au

Friday 2nd September – Rocket Bar – Adelaide, SA

Tickets: www.venuetix.com.au Phone: (08) 8225 8888

Friday 23rd September - Juice Bar – Auckland, New Zealand

Tickets: www.iticket.co.nz

Abbe May - Taurus Chorus

If you read this website with any level of regularity, you'll know that we are big fans of super-hot guitar-wielding Australian, Abbe May. Well, today we have double the reason to post about her. Not only has the new video for her upcoming single, Taurus Chorus dropped, but it's her birthday.

Taurus Chorus combines blues with post-grunge references and is the third single to be lifted from her fine new album. You can read our review of the gutsy, visceral long-player here. If you are Australia-based, you can catch her ripping the roof off the following venues in August:

Thu 11 Aug - PRINCE OF WALES HOTEL, BUNBURY
Sat 13 Aug - ASTOR THEATRE, PERTH
Fri 19 Aug - SETTLERS TAVERN, MARGARET RIVER
Wed 24 Aug - EAST BRUNSWICK CLUB, MELBOURNE
Thu 25 Aug - ANNANDALE, SYDNEY
Tue 30 Aug - GRACE EMILY, ADELAIDE

Harmony hit the road tomorrow

Melbourne's Harmony are set to release their debut album on July 1st and are hitting the road to promote it.

The band officially commenced, in legally binding terms, in 2009, when Tom Lyngcoln (The Nation Blue) and Alex Kastaniotis got married. Deciding to create new material, the two newlyweds would write and record a song each Saturday until they had enough for an album and a 7".

In early 2010, the duo grew to a six-piece and they set about focusing predominantly on a bleak and isolated form of balladry, with somber, heavy and downbeat songs ignited by flourishes of noise. Their self-titled album was recorded and mixed by Tom and Matt Voigt (Cat Power, The Nation Blue, Oh Mercy) and you can pick yourself up a copy at the following Australian tour dates, starting this week:

TOOWOOMBA | Friday 17th JUNE – Spotted Cow with The Gin Club
BRISBANE | Saturday 18th JUNE – The Zoo with The Gin Club
MELBOURNE | Saturday 25th JUNE – The Tote (Album Launch)
ADELAIDE | Friday 1st JULY – The Metro
HOBART | Saturday 6th AUGUST – The Brisbane Hotel, Hobart

Check out single Cacophonous Vibes, below:

Cacophonous Vibes by Solar/Sonar Records

What's that you say? You want moving pictures too? Holy smoke, you want the moon on a stick, you guys. Well, okay, have a look at this little warm up vid:

For more good music and free tracks, follow Bobbysix.com at Facebook

Free Grand Atlantic download

Brisbane quartet Grand Atlantic have recorded their third record, entitled Constellations, at the Seacliff Lunatic Asylum - an abandoned psychiatric hospital near Dunedin, New Zealand. Excitingly, they have made the first single to be lifted from this long-player available as a free download.

Poison To the Vine represents a refinement of the band's sound and bridges the pop sensibilities of the previous album with the more intense mood of the new record. Get amongst its rolling riffs, chiming 12-string licks and massive rhythm by downloading it here.

Grand Atlantic will be playing the following Australian shows in June:
Thursday June 9 - Edinburgh Castle, Adelaide
Friday June 10 - The Evelyn, Melbourne
Saturday June 11 - Rock Lily @ Star City, Sydney
Sunday June 12 – Woodland Bar, Brisbane