Wagons have been tearing it up across the USA on the back of their new album Acid Rain & Sugar Cane and now they’ve returned to Australia and put together another run of live dates through Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney in the coming months. Also below is the claymation video clip for the new … Continue reading
Emma Swift has been receiving widespread acclaim from both mainstream press and the Americana community for her debut solo release, a self-titled mini-album. We absolutely love it and described it in our review as: Swift has created a dreamy intoxicated world where the heavy-lidded noir crawl of bands like Mazzy Star and Spain co-exist with … Continue reading
Justin Townes Earle’s new album Single Mothers is just around the corner (Sept 9th) and here’s the first video clip to come from it, ‘Time Shows Fools’ featuring Justin hanging out in a budget motel room with a long-legged female companion. Continue reading
Hannah Aldridge is a new discovery for me, even though the Muscle Shoals native released her debut album Razor Wire back in May this year. Aldridge is the daughter of Alabama Music Hall of Famer, Walt Aldridge, who is one of the most prolific songwriters of the modern music era having written countless Number One and Top … Continue reading
Skyscraper Stan made his way up from Melbourne to play support and he did a sterling job, setting the scene with just his guitar, voice and self-deprecating humour. Impossibly tall, hence the nom de plume, and possessing a deep, richly-toned voice he played a set that showed his impressive lyrical ability, dissecting and poeticised topics … Continue reading
Marlon Williams graced the stage with just his shabby-chic hat and tie, acoustic guitar and a voice that left many spellbound for the majority of his opening set. The New Zealander, (now based in Melbourne) held long, wavering country notes, caressed lullaby-like tones and bullied out a gravelly blues delivery across originals and covers of … Continue reading
For those of us unable to make it to the inaugural Out on the Weekend Americana Festival (JTE, Robert Ellis, Nikki Lane, Henry Wagons, The Delines, Emma Swift, Raised By Eagles etc) in Melbourne, this is the start of the news we’ve been waiting for. The sideshow announcements have started rolling with Justin Townes Earle … Continue reading
Los Angeles-based Mia Dyson recently released the excellent LP Idyllwild featuring the first single and candidate for song of the year ‘When We’re Older‘. Now she’s released a video for the title track and announced she’ll be heading back to Australia for a run of dates this October. Wednesday, October 1: Live at Lizottes (solo), … Continue reading
Coogee Diggers have been doing great things for original music for a couple of years, in an area well outside the normal locales for live music. Tonight’s small audience was both symptomatic of the reluctance of punters to venture out east and a still growing Sydney alt-country scene. Regardless both acts performed exceptionally well, … Continue reading
The story behind Corb Lund’s eight album involves a trip with his band the Hurtin’ Albertans down from Canada to Memphis’ legendary Sun Studio for a completely live recording session over two nights. That approach has certainly reaped rewards with the album sounding raw and alive. There is a real sense of the players bouncing … Continue reading
Kasey Chambers has released the first single from new album Bittersweet that comes out at the end of August. Below you can watch the black and white clip for ‘Wheelbarrow’, the upbeat and grittier than normal track for Chambers. Continue reading
My new discovery of the day is Mary Roth aka HT Heartache who has just released her new album Sundowner. This is what I terms country soul, laden with melancholic waltzes, hazy shimmering guitars and reverb-laden shuffling drums as the backdrop for Roth’s late night sultry voice. Check out the clip for the single ‘Cowboy Poetry’ … Continue reading
Mood and atmosphere are key factors in the creation of immersive and transportive music and Jo Meares’ new album is richly imbued with them. Eerie forlorn harmonica, delicate and heart-wrenching piano notes, slow shuffling drums and exquisite guitar courtesy of Jeff Lang are the backdrop to Meares’ tales of love, pain and emotional turbulence, rendered … Continue reading
After his appearances at the Sydney Festival and elsewhere earlier this year, John Murry is heading back to Australia to record his next album in the Dandenong Ranges in Victoria with Australian producer Mark Stanley and Irish producer Karl Odlum (Kila, Glen Hansard & The Frames, Lisa O’Neill). While he is here he will also … Continue reading
Liam Gerner has just released a new single from his 2013 album Land Of No Roads. ‘Hank and Tammy’, the true story of two struggling retirees who transported methamphetamine in their mobile home for Mexican cartels before being arrested in Texas and sentenced to twenty years behind bars for their troubles. Gerner is hitting the road to promote the single from … Continue reading
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