Perth Music

After a very successful few years which has included ARIA nominations, national and international tours Holly Throsby has recently released her third album A Loud Call to the waiting public. She is also in the middle of The Loud Call Tour which started in Alice Springs and winds up in Cairns in mid-October, taking in 20 cities and towns along the way. Holly has been joined by her long time band Bree van Reyk and Jens Birchall. The three piece play eleven instruments between them. Holly is fresh from a string of solo shows in the UK & Ireland with the iconic Paul Kelly, as well as two dates in London supporting Australian sweetheart Tim Rogers. Holly spoke to Justin Middleton for this exclusive interview.

Click here to download the podcast of the entire interview. (13:55 - 1.6Mb)

A Loud Call was recorded in Nashville with engineer and producer Mark Nevers (Lambchop, Will Oldham). It includes guest performances by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, and members of Lambchop and Silver Jews. It also includes Holly’s latest single ‘A Heart Divided’ and the title track from last years’ One of You for Me EP. I asked Holly if she was happy with the reception that A Loud Call has received so far. “I was really pleased, it’s always nice to get good reviews and things like that. We’ve been on tour and it’s been nice to play new songs to people and have people come buy the record after the show.”

“Most of the recording was done in the U.S. I was writing it when I was finishing up the touring for Under The Town and then in the month following that. By the time I had enough songs we went to the U.S and made the record with this guy called Mark Nevers in Nashville who I was very keen to work with. We made the whole album there and a few extra songs that didn’t make it to the record. After we finished that process I came back to Australia and I thought about it for a little while and when I was in Nashville I really missed Tony Dupe who made my first two albums. The only reason I left Tony was that both Tony and I felt that it was the right thing to do at the time because I had done everything I had ever done with him and I didn’t really know anything else. So I got Tony to do some arrangements when I got back to Australia…and he really completed some of the songs for me” Holly explained.

I asked Holly how she found Nashville and if she had ever been there before. “I had actually been there before for a couple of days when I was living in Texas a few years ago. I did a big drive up to Nashville with some friends and then we went back to New Orleans and this time I went back to Austin as well. It is a fun, kinda weird, scary, southern drive and we actually ran out of petrol on the side of the road. It’s an interesting city and quite pretty and doesn’t feel that big even though it is quite large. It’s circled by those big highways like those American cities are surrounded by on and off exits. It feels relatively small in terms of the scene there because I guess America is quite segregated, and I don’t mean racially I mean more stylistically, like if you are certain kind of person you go to certain places, the same kind of bars and the same cafes. So we kept running into the same type of people there and feeling like we were part of this cool little community which was nice.”

I also asked Holly if she tried a different approach to songwriting on this album compared to he previous two albums. “Nope. I never really approach song writing differently, I certainly approach the recording and arrangements differently but the song writing always seems to come from the same spot for me. Actually in one way I did because the drummer in my band actually wrote a couple of the guitar parts and the introductory guitar riff to A Heart Divided which I ended up making a song out of. So that was kinda co-written, I got a little piece of music and added a chorus and the words and that was actually nice to do that and gave me an idea about the possibility of collaboration. I’ve always been a very solitary songwriter in the alone in the bedroom way, sitting on my own in the light of a candle, listening for people that aren’t there.”

With many of Holly’s songs sounding part beautiful song, part poem I asked her if she sometimes writes poems that don’t become songs. “I doubt if I write any poetry separate to music but I do certainly think a lot about words and I am very interested in words and how they go together and how they sound together. I am a big fan of poetry and I do read quite a lot of it but although I feel that I write quite quickly sometimes, it is something that is quite considered for me. I always write the music first but I do tend to find that with most of the songs I write they come out with words attached to the music for some reason. As soon as I start humming a melody I find that words and sometimes whole phrases come out and the song is always based around those initial words.”

Holly was also just announced as an ARIA nominee for 2008 in the Best Female Artist category. “It was actually a really big surprise this year. I was very pleasantly surprised. This year there were lots of big stars and stuff and I thought I was a little on the small scale. It was very nice to get nominated.”

A Loud Call is out now.

ROLLERCOASTER 4
Sat 27th December 2008
Mandurah Foreshore : Western Australia

The Living End
Gyroscope
Cut Copy
Operator Please
The Teenagers (France)
Tame Impala

General Public Tickets on sale 9am Thursday 2 October

Rollercoaster shifts into high gear for 2008 and screams into the lead from the slipstream with its raciest line-up to date but without losing its focus on a great value ticket price and being held at one of WA’s best festival sites on the banks of the Peel inlet.

True to it’s name Rollercoaster is a wild ride this year with plenty of dance floor action and fun acts through the day as it rolls into a glorious high energy rock and roll love-in to close out the big day.

There will also be a major line up additionally announced on December 1.

So Rollercoaster 4 is back with an awesome line up in its majestic location with its greatest line up to date. Part music festival - part barbeque - part party but 100% Australian summer fun. Where super sounds mix with the sun, the salt and the sea!

All Ages with 18+ Areas. No BYO. No Passouts.

Gates open 3.00PM – 11.00PM
Ticket available from www.heatseeker.com.au

Bob Evans has returned from recording in Nashville filled with inspiration to hit the road for a national tour this November and December ahead of the April/May release of his third album ‘Goodnight, Bull Creek!’.

The Blind Faith Tour will showcase songs from the new album giving you an insight into what they to expect when ‘Goodnight, Bull Creek!’ comes out next year.

Joining Bob on stage to help perform the songs in intimate duo mode will be Malcolm Clark (ex The Sleepy Jackson). Lucky Melbourne and Perth fans at the Northcote gig and the Kings Park gig will also get to hear the dynamic new band play the first of many gigs to come.

Bob says, “Blind faith - I know it well. It’s driven me to recording a new album that does not attempt to recreate the songs of my past and it will be the magic potion I drink as I present these new songs to live audiences for the first time in a format that I’ve never toured before. How many instruments can two men play at the same time? Will members of the audience, upon being given instruments of percussion, be able to play in time with the music? Will any celebrity musician friends agree to join us onstage? These are just some of the questions we will be seeking answers to as we wind our way around the country throughout November on the “Blind Faith Tour” of 2008.”

For tickets visit www.bobevans.com.au
Get in fast before they’re gone!

Hailing from Perth, Bravo Inferno are a new rock/pop band making music that they love. Bravo Inferno are energetic one song, cruisey the next, and are absolutely always passionate. Featuring sensational lead guitars and catchy heartfelt lyrics, Bravo Inferno are a band you’ll want to crank up loud and sing along with.  Guitarist Glen Strindberg caught up with Justin Middleton for this exclusive interview.

I asked Glen to give us a little bit of a history of the band and how the members got together to create Bravo Inferno. “The band got together with Lee (McDonald, vocals) and myself jamming in a tiny lounge room for about a year on some ideas. We decided we wanted to create a sound that we liked. We were not looking to break musical boundaries, we wanted to create music that would excite us. Something we would enjoy listening to time and again.”

“After recording our EP ‘This Balloon‘ it became obvious that if we were to push this musicial gamble further we needed to get some other musos in on action. After looking for the right people for the role Wayno (Clayton, Drums), Gardy (Mike Gardiner, Guitar) and Christy (Fok, Bass) joined with thier own stlye and influence, hence Bravo Inferno exploded onto the scene.”

Asked what bands have had the most influence on the band and your music, Glen replied “There have been many bands that have influenced our sound. All of us “Bravo Inernites” have different bands we like. Interpol, Maximo Park, Foo Fighters, Powderfinger, Frans Ferdinand, Kings of Leon and many more. Currently Vulture St by Powderfinger is rotating in the car stereo.”

I asked Glen to list his top 5 Perth bands of all time. “Mmmmm tricky one. All time Top five Perth Bands would have to include Birds of Tokyo, Jebediah, Kill Devil Hills, The Dirty Secrets and John Bultler Trio. For thier musicianship and stage presence.”

Glen says “Live shows for us is about sharing with people what we hear every week at practise. Solid catchy songs with exciting lyrics. When we play live to 5 or 500 people we want them to feel that we are giving our best.”

“Crowd interaction does mean a lot to us. Crowds respond to being acknowledged. We aways make an effort to mingle before and after the gigs to show our appreciation and to hear feedback. Lee always give his 110% to the songs and the crowd when on stage. All you have to do is look and see the sweat dripping off us in the first few songs to realise how hard we work to entertain. We jokingly have said we need roadies to run out and mop our brows after each song.”

Asked whether he had to give up alcohol or playing music for 6 months Glen replied “Haha is that a trick question? Give up Alcohol without a doubt. You get the same high playing music and watching total strangers nodding their heads to your songs than anything Alcohol gives you. Plus theres no hangover in the morning and no beer gut!”

Bravo Inferno are playing the following gigs coming up:
Friday September 19th at the Railway Hotel
Saturday October 11th at the Rocket Room
Friday November 21st at the Hyde Park Hotel back room

For more info visit www.myspace.com/bravoinferno

All the way from the United States of America we have two of the most decorated groove-makers on this floating round ball they call Planet Earth: the sizzling Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings and saucey Santogold.

We’re blessed Blue King Brown could make it back for the big weekend, and they’ve brought countrymen and hip hop renegades Bliss N Eso along for the journey.

We’re chuffed some of our British cousins have saddled up for the ride; meet The Cribs and Late Of The Pier.

And while we’re getting all European there’s Lykke Li from Sweden. There’s Murs and South Rakkas Crew fighting for the microphone; they’re all the way from the USA.

There’re CW Stoneking and Ash Grunwald strumming around the campfire, and it’s wonderful to see the Kiwi kin are represented with Cut Off Your Hands.

And here comes the conga-line, with Grafton Primary, Tame Impala, Dash And Will, Violent Soho, Drapht and The Autumn Isles.

And finally there’s End Of Fashion.

These latest Southbounders join Franz Ferdinand, The Hives, The Kooks, The Cat Empire, Gomez, Pete Murray, Tegan And Sara, The Grates, Architecture In Helsinki, Donavon Frankenreiter, Atmosphere featuring Brother Ali, Faker, Birds Of Tokyo, Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed And The True Loves, Jamie Lidell, Liam Finn, Karnivool, The Drones, TZU, Mystery Jets, Soko, A-Trak and Wolf & Cub in the New Year feast that is Southbound.

Go to www.sunsetevents.com.au for full ticketing information, including bus tickets. Public tickets go on sale Monday, September 15

It’s official! Summadayze now not only boasts the headliner of the summer in Underworld, but a line up so long it’s the party all parties to follow are going to be compared to. Proven superstar DJs and killer live acts – chosen for their party credentials as well as their considerable talents – are teamed with the production Future Entertainment and Mellen Events are famous for. Best of all it takes place in the comfort of Perth central city, and will again be the only festival to see Barrack St closed off, acting as a giant bridge linking the city’s biggest dual-venue: The Esplanade and Supreme Court Gardens. Folks, this is going to be huge.

Summadayze 2009
The Esplanade and Supreme Court Gardens, Perth City (Barrack St closed off)
Sunday 4 January 2009
Underworld (live), Armin Van Buuren, Ferry Corsten, Eric Prydz, Calvin Harris (DJ set), Digitalism (live), Adam Freeland, Chris Lake, Cicada (live), Boys Noize, Switch, Steve Aoki, Busy P, DJ Mehdi, Tydi …and more to be announced

Limited Early Bird Tickets, $99+bf on sale now until Friday 26 September 2008 or sold out.
Thereafter, Full Price Tickets, $118+bf on sale until show day or sold out. More at the gate if available.

Visit www.summadayze.com, www.futureentertainment.com.au and www.mellenevents.com for more info.

It is with great pleasure to announce the return of the modern day psychedelic, pop/rock icons The Dandy Warhols. Visiting Australia this October in support of their recently released album ‘…Earth To Dandy Warhols…’, this, the band’s first visit in over three years, sees the infamous act delighted to be bringing over a decade’s worth of material to our shores.

After skyrocketing to success in the late ‘90s with their hits “Not if You Were The Last Junkie on Earth” and “Bohemian Like You” The Dandy’s became a force to be reckoned with on the touring scene. Internationally renowned for their live performances, both sonically & visually, the band have not only gained, but sustained, a reputation for sell-out shows across the globe. With Australia being one of their largest and most devoted fan bases and October 2008 marking the band’s tenth year since they first set foot on Australian soil, there’s little doubt tickets will sell fast…

Tickets for The Dandy Warhols shows will go on sale 9am Thursday 14th August

Tour Dates:
Tue 28th October - Metro City, Perth
Fri 31st October - Enmore Theatre, Sydney (All Ages)
Sat 1st November - Stonefest, University of Canberra
Mon 3rd November – Venue TBC, Hobart
Wed 5th November - The Tivoli, Brisbane
Thur 6th November - The Palace Theatre, Melbourne

With a week to go before the release of her third album ‘A Loud Call’, Holly Throsby is very pleased to announce her most extensive Australian tour ever.  The Loud Call Tour starts in Alice Springs on August 22nd and winds up in Cairns in mid-October, taking in 20 cities and towns along the way.  Holly will be joined by her long time band Bree van Reyk and Jens Birchall. The three piece play eleven instruments between them. It is sure to be a musical adventure.

Holly will start this tour fresh from a string of solo shows in the UK & Ireland with the iconic Paul Kelly, as well as two dates in London supporting Australian sweetheart Tim Rogers.

‘A Loud Call’ was recorded in Nashville with engineer and producer Mark Nevers (Lambchop, Will Oldham). It includes guest performances by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, and members of Lambchop and Silver Jews. It also includes Holly’s latest single ‘A Heart Divided’ and the title track from last years’ ‘One of You For Me’ EP.

Tour Dates:
Fri 19th September - Altitude Bar, Dunsborough
With guests The Lonely Brothers

Sat 20th September - The Bakery, Northbridge
With guests Apricot Rail & Benedict Moleta Five Piece

Sun 21st September - Mojo’s, Nth Fremantle
With guests Schvendes

Wednesday 27th August 2008
Challenge Stadium, Perth
Panic At The Disco
The Academy Is…
Cobra Starship

Due to a bit of an underwhelming response from fans this gig was moved from The Burswood Dome to Challenge Stadium and plenty of people were arriving early to see the great lineup of international bands. Panic At The Disco have only just released their second album, Pretty Odd, but they have been extremely successful and sold in excess of 2 million albums. They brought with them two other American bands that are good touring friends of PATD. The Academy Is… have released three albums of pop/punk tunes while Cobra Starship have developed a huge following on myspace as well as successful touring.

With Challenge Stadium split into multiple sections of sitting and standing areas, the crowd was building nicely as Cobra Starship started playing. It was obvious early on that 80% of the crowd were aged between 15 and 18 but that did not lower the anticipation and excitement of those there. Surprisingly a lot of the crowd knew the words to most of the songs Cobra Starship were singing (probably due to myspace) and even knew the special Cobra Starship gang sign. The band played a tight set but did lack a little in interacting with the crowd successfully. A highlight was William Bennett of The Academy Is… joining the band onstage to co-sing a song.

In between bands, a line of girls formed just near where I was standing as Ben from Big Brother was spotted and everyone wanted to get a photo with him. It definitely reiterated the age group of the crowd there as girls were almost hyperventilating at the sight of a ‘Big Brother celebrity’. The Academy Is… played a great set of songs the crowd could sing and dance along to. To repay the favour Gabe Saporta from Cobra Starship joined the band onstage to sing a couple songs. Plenty of songs from their latest album Fast Times At Barrington High were played but the biggest sing along was to We’ve Got a Big Mess On Our Hands from their second album Santi.

After a long break and a whole redesign of the stage, including a video monitor, Panic At The Disco walked onstage to a thunderous cheer. Looking less vaudeville than they have been famous for in previous tours, PATD had a Beatlesesque look and sound to them. They didn’t completely ignore their past, playing plenty of songs from their debut album, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, including a surprisingly almost acoustic version of their smash hit I Write Sins, Not Tragedies. There were lots of singalong moments and lots of finger clicks, hand clapping to songs and even bubbles with crowd favourites Nine In The Afternoon and The Green Gentleman being highlights. A great show by three fantastic young bands.

US rockers Disturbed have done what a lot of people did not expect from a hard rock/heavy metal band. That is have an album that isn’t pop or R’n'B and have it go to number 1 in the USA, New Zealand and Australia. Their fourth album, Indestructible, is out now and creating a stir in the music industry. They have also just finished an Australian tour playing Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Sydney, Newcastle and Melbourne. Before their Perth show lead singer David Draiman caught up with Justin Middleton for this exclusive interview.

I asked David if crowds had benn enjoying the new songs at their shows and if they were playing a lot of new material compared to their older stuff. “Up until this point we have only been able to play a very small portion of the record. At the Mayhem Festival both us and Slipknot had 60 minute slots so when you are trying to squeeze 4 albums worth of material into an hour it’s tough and the diehard, old school fans want the classics…it’s weird that I can say we have classics….but we have had 7 number one singles so they have to be there. The crowd usually sing louder than I can so it’s always tremendously exhillerating to feel that and see people take to what you’ve written.”

David explained the creation of Indestructible with the following “When we decided to sit down and start to think about writing the new album I thought, given my past 2 or 3 years of life experience and where my head is at, I asked the guys to throw the darkest, nastiest, most brutal shit they could. They were only too eager to accomodate so that’s where it started. When I first got some material I was obsessed. It was an exercise to convince the powers that be to allow us to produce it ourselves but the process allowed us to learn a lot and it was very gratifying.”

“The theme of the new record overall is one of power. One of strength. The record is meant to make you feel indestructable. It is meant to be that record that you take with you to the gym. That you listen to on your way home from work. That the soldier listens to before heading out onto the battlefield. That the athlete listens to before he marches out onto the field. That is the sort of record it is meant to be.”

For more info on Disturbed visit www.disturbed1.com

Disturbed - Fri 29th August - Challenge Stadium