ANNOUNCE DEBUT ALBUM
HIGH RISK BEHAVIOUR
OUT MARCH 27
THE CLAP SINGLE & VIDEO RELEASED TODAY
|
|
If they didn’t keep hassling drummer Matt Boggis about skating in places he shouldn’t – and giving him tickets listing that as the offence – who knows what idiotic title the self-proclaimed “dropkick drongos from the Sunshine Coast of Australia” would have come up with.
And yet it’s the perfect name for an album that does not fuck around. An album that sounds like Aussie greats the Cosmic Psychos downing beers with The Saints before doing shots with the Buzzcocks and then spewing it all up behind the kebab van. An album that’s over in 28 blistering, funny, sweaty, unforgettable minutes, with half of its 14 songs failing to reach the two-minute mark. Some might call the Queensland trio lazy. Singer-bassist Eamon Sandwith sees it differently.
“I don’t want to make the songs boring, so I just keep them short and sweet,” shrugs the man whose mullet became an international talking point following the success of 2017 viral hit “Smoko”. “We try not to think about it or complicate it too much. You don’t want to force it or the song’s going to turn out crap.”
Since forming in their mate’s bong shed in 2016 while still at high school, that attitude has taken The Chats – completed by guitarist Josh Price, who once wrote a song called How Many Do You Do? in which he boasted of doing 52 “dingers” in a night – from the sleepy coastal village of Coolum (located roughly two hours north of Brisbane) to venues around the world. Their fanbase includes Dave Grohl, who loved the video for Smoko so much he showed it to Josh Homme, who then asked the trio to support Queens of the Stone Age on their 2018 Australian tour. Iggy Pop is also a card-carrying member of The Chats’ fanclub, requesting that they support him in Australia in early 2019 and peppering them with questions like, “What’s a smoko?” and “What’s a dart?”
The rest of 2019 was spent taking the world by storm armed with nothing more than guitars, drums, shorts, shirts and thongs (or, if it was a formal occasion, sandals and socks). Shows across Australia and the UK were sold out, and they performed their first gigs in America (the LA show was attended by Homme, Grohl and Arctic Monkeys’ frontman Alex Turner). The band capped off the year with a return visit to Britain, selling out venues such as London’s 2,300-capacity 02 Forum.
Suffice it to say, life has changed a fair bit for The Chats over the past two years.
“Well, I don’t have to work at the supermarket anymore,” says Sandwith.
That he does not. In fact Sandwith and his mates have been too busy touring, writing songs and, when their gigs took them to Victoria, dropping into engineer Billy Gardner’s studio in the coastal city of Geelong for a day of recording. That they chose this piecemeal approach explains why the album took 18 months to finish – a luxury considering 2017 EP Get This In Ya took four hours to record one hungover afternoon.
“If we’d just done a week and slogged it out we could have had an album before now but we just kept going in there and making newer and better songs so it’s hard to put a stop on it,” says Sandwith.
The sessions were fast. “Some of the songs were first-take and we were like, ‘That’s good, whatever’,” says Sandwith. “We’re really not perfectionists.”
Remarkably, they still found time to experiment with exotic instruments such as… a tambourine.
The end product is an album that buzzes like an out-of-control chainsaw, propelled by Sandwith’s spoken-spit-sung vocals, their three-chords-is-one-too-many approach, and an exacting combination of youth, vigour and drunkenness. But don’t mistake simple for stupid – if it was easy to make songs this short, this catchy and this downright brilliant, everyone would be doing it.
“I think they’re good songs,” says Sandwith. “And at the end of the day, if I like it then fuck it, who cares if other people do?”
Despite being the subject of a record label bidding war, The Chats are releasing High Risk Behaviour on their own label, Bargain Bin Records. It’s indicative of a band that have embraced DIY culture since day one, to the point where Sandwith used to spend his days at the post office sending out merch orders.
“We thought, if we just do it ourselves we don’t have to worry about getting swindled,” says Sandwith. “We’ve always done it our way.”
Their determination to do things “our way” extends to their music, which is why High Risk Behaviour delivers everything you’ve come to love from The Chats – only more of it – and confirms their status as Queensland’s greatest ever export (apart from Bundy Rum).
“I just want people to have a good time,” says Sandwith of the album. “I want them to dance around and have a beer and enjoy it. We don’t make songs for people to look at in a fucking emotional or intellectual way. We just make songs for people to jump around and have fun to.”
|
|
|
|
Tour Dates
Friday 21 February: Glamorama, Melbourne
Saturday 22 February: Tusk, Wollongong
Saturday 22 February: Goodbar, Sydney
|
|
|
Nearly six years since their last Australian tour, Sebadoh are finally dragging their lo-fi slacker genius back to our shores this month! Due to demand, they’ve added a Perth show at Mojos Bar in Fremantle on Sunday 26th January and today announce local tour support acts (see listing below).
With the release this year of their acclaimed return to form album Act Surprised, their first since 2013’s Defend Yourself, the band have returned to the genius that made them an essential part of every right thinking person’s record collection.
On leaving Dinosaur Jr in 1988 and teaming up with old mate Eric Gaffney, Lou Barlow almost invented a new genre in rock n’ roll, signing to the seminal Seattle label Sub Pop and releasing a couple of cassette only releases that are much sought after collector’s items. Despite several line-up changes Sebadoh effectively became an outlet for Barlow’s creative efforts outside of Dinosaur Jr. As the obligatory hiatus for the first part of the 2000s kept fans wondering if they’d seen the last of them, 2007 saw Sebadoh reform to much acclaim and the promise of new recordings.
That promise has now led to a second post-reformation recording, with Barlow taking time off from Dinosaur Jr to regroup with Jason Loewenstein and Bob D’Amico to track 15 new songs last year, with Justin Pizzoferrato, the engineer behind many Dinosaur Jr albums at the helm. The studio results see Loewenstein taking the lead on his more lo-fi style musings paired against his co-conspirator’s folkier style offerings, with the band actually spending more time working on this album than many of their previous minimalist efforts. “In the past,” says Barlow, “we would write in the studio and the songs would develop on the road.“ This time, we did some rehearsals a few weeks before recording,” adds Loewenstein, “which we almost never do. So we got a chance to not use the first take and took time to finesse things, which we also don’t usually do, so that was a good step.”
For their first tour down under in almost six years, with a new album under their belts and their lo-fi garage slacker pop offering the blueprint for many acts worldwide, this is a rare chance for Australian fans to enjoy their seminal sound live.
with guests Immigrant Union
with guests Brightness
with guests Immigrant Union
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Scotland’s favourite underground tastemaker, DJ Prospect, is joining Apple Music’s Charlie Sloth in a hunt for fresh music talent
DJ Prospect is joining the internationally renowned presenter and pioneer of UK music, Charlie Sloth, on a mission to bring more musical talent to the forefront of the international stage.
The Edinburgh DJ, otherwise known as Ben J. Kaelin, has risen through the Scottish club scene building a formidable reputation on the decks. Now, he’s one of the most sought-after names in the game, playing alongside hip-hop royalty including Snoop Dogg, Drake and Eminem. Not only that, he’s been the first port of call when superstars like Justin Bieber and Lewis Capaldi need a private party.
DJ Prospect went on to make waves in Scotland’s musical landscape & beyond when he took the reigns as mix resident at BBC 1Xtra. He championed Scottish sounds on the station with his slots on Charlie Sloth’s show before hosting a 1Xtra Scottish takeover with DJ Target last year.
Now, he’s teaming back up with Charlie who caused some serious heat last year as he brought his legendary rap show to Beats 1 Radio as his Head A & R at Charlie’s label partnership Grimey Limey with Warner Records ADA and Downtown Music Publishing.
Charlie’s impeccable taste and enthusiasm for the undiscovered has played a crucial role in the global success of UK genres like grime and UK rap. With previous releases from grime superstars like Giggs and Lady Leshurr, as well as Mancunian rap hero Bugzy Malone, Grimey Limey is on the search for fresh talent from Scotland and beyond with DJ Prospect at the helm.
International heavy-hitters like Lewis Capaldi and Calvin Harris have set the global stage, and now DJ Prospect says “The scene as a whole in the UK is a hot topic globally, and of course my eyes will always be on Scottish talent.”
DJ Prospect, said: “I’m excited to be joining this venture with Charlie Sloth. Charlie has had his ear to the ground for new talent from running one of the most successful music outlets Fire In The Booth on Youtube to being the voice of Hip-Hop on Radio 1 & now Apple Music with Beats 1.
For years we’ve connected on a creative level & when this opportunity came along it just made sense. Growing up the surrounding of music in Scotland, there is so much unheard talent amongst the incredible artists that have come out of here from Emeli Sande, Gerry Cinnamon, Lewis Capaldi, Calvin Harris to industry shakers like Young Fathers.
There something in our waters. I’m definitely looking forward to shining more light on our own. As for the record label & publishing, it’s a world wide deal so we’re looking to build a pool of creatives artists which much like Charlie’s ventures shake up the industry blueprint. There’s a lot of things already in the works to kick start the Grimey Limey label & publishing this year. We’re excited to release these moves soon.”
ALEXISONFIRE is starting 2020 with a bang. The band has just released a new song, “Season Of The Flood”, available to stream and purchase HERE.
A seductive, hypnotic, seven-minute slow-burner anchored by haunting three-part harmonies and heavy reverb-filled guitars, the song notably features AOF’s George Pettit singing off the top for the first time. The track comes on the heels of “Familiar Drugs” and “Complicit” released last year, marking the first time the band released new music in almost 10 years.
“I’m very proud of this new song,” says Pettit. “There were some first time attempts for us and we all really came together in the studio to make this song what it is. This was also my first time singing with Dallas on a song. I know I’ve been playing in a band with Dal for almost 20 years, but damn, that guy’s voice could melt an angel.”
STREAM “SEASON OF THE FLOOD” HERE
“Season Of The Flood” is now available on vinyl by pre-order through the band’s website, theonlybandever.com. The limited pressing is available as a single-sided standard black 10” vinyl with a laser-etched b-side. A limited edition white variant will be randomly inserted throughout the stock quantities of black vinyl. Along with the 10” vinyl, AOF will have a new online exclusive “Season Of The Flood” inspired t-shirt for sale, designed by graphic artist Jeremy Dean, best known for his “Wonders of Black Flag” prints. This T-shirt is part of a collection of Jeremy Dean x Alexisonfire merchandise items inspired by the songs, “Familiar Drugs”, “Complicit” and now “Season Of The Flood” with cover art design once again by Nick Steinhardt.
The song was produced by AOF long-time friend, the late Karl “Horse” Bareham (City and Colour), and mixed by Grammy-award winning Jacquire King (Tom Waits, Kings of Leon, Modest Mouse). The album cover and 10” package features many personal nods honouring Karl as the song is the last of a trilogy of tracks Bareham produced for the band.
An official video for single “Familiar Drugs” directed by Michael Maxxis (who directed AOF’s personal favourite video for “The Northern” and City and Colour’s “Fragile Bird”, “Thirst”, and “Lover Come Back”).
|
|
|
|
Meadow – March 27 – 29, 2020
Bambra, Victoria
MUSIC – CAMPING – BYO
General Release On Sale Now
Regional Victorian music festival Meadow returns to Bambra from Friday 27 – Sunday 29 March 2020. Melbourne’s own new-age raconteur, Angie McMahon, and frenetic guitar-pop dynamos; Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever will headline the 7th musical feast.
Nestled on the edge of the Otways, backdropped by rugged bushland and open plains, Meadow will showcase a cross-section of contemporary music within a stacked three day, two-night program. The first taste of the 2020 bill dropped late last year, featuring NYC bedroom pop savante Frankie Cosmos, angelic local songstress Elizabeth and cinematic soul journeymen Surprise Chef. Now, Meadow is proud to unveil the full spread set to appear in the Bambra Bowl this Autumn.
Just 90-minutes southwest of Melbourne, perched on the edge of the Otways, Meadow unfolds between the rolling Bambra hills. The refreshments are regionally focussed with craft beers courtesy of Salt Brewing, gin from Great Ocean Road Gin, plus some of the tastiest cool climate wine in Australia from various Otway Hinterlands vineyards. Food stalls are handpicked to represent the region, and will be operated by local restaurants and businesses. FYI – the festival is still BYO, but when everything starts to taste a bit flat, head to the bar for something 4-dimensional.
With the limited release allocation now exhausted, 300 general release tickets + glamping packages are now available starting from $170.00 + BF. Total capacity is carefully capped to maximise room for movement. Grab your tickets now – you don’t want to miss this party!
One final and more serious note: BUSHFIRE RELIEF
Whilst we’ve been blessed with luck on our side of the state, wildfires around Australia have devastated many. We are a small organisation, but alongside our punters we wish to make a real commitment. Meadow will be donating 20% of profits from 2020 ticket sales to the CFA in Victoria.
Triple R and Forte Presents MEADOW 7
ANGIE MCMAHON
ROLLING BLACKOUTS COASTAL FEVER
FRANKIE COSMOS (USA)
SHEER MAG (USA)
DYSON STRINGER CLOHER
CLOSE COUNTERS
YOUTH GROUP
LOURE
ELIZABETH
EMILY WURRAMARA
COOL SOUNDS
3K
DARCY JUSTICE
SWEET WHIRL
FIRST BEIGE
ELLE SHIMADA COLLECTIVE
COLETTE
EGOISM
SURPRISE CHEF
100
SWAZI GOLD
+ MORE TO COME
March 27 – 29, 2020
Bambra, Victoria
General release, 300 tickets available at $170.00 + BF
$20.00 car parking pass per car
Glamping available – $330 for two people, $450 for four people.
Includes double mattress, super soft linen bedding, towels, cushions, blankets, chairs, LED lanterns and decorations.
+ Children under 12 free and Children over 12 can enter on a full-price ticket
On Sale Now Until Monday 24 February (Unless Sold Out Prior)
Tickets, information, artist profiles – https://www.meadowmf.com/
It is with great delight that I OH YOU share ‘Dark Star’, a cutting single about the murky depths of infatuation and the final track to drop from Jack River’s forthcoming Stranger Heart EP ahead of its release on Valentine’s Day (Fri 14 Feb).
Premiered last night via triple j Good Nights, and with a video premiere from Flood Magazine (US), ‘Dark Star’ joins first single ‘Later Flight’ and follow up piano ballad ‘Closer’, and sees River tap into long-past feelings and sing of the dark obsession underlying young love. When Rankin was 21 years old, she says she dreamed the bridge into being: “a racy, guitar-y, sentimental song that made you feel like you’re driving past your ex’s house”. Rankin imagined a song that replicated the feeling of “having your heart dragged through the room” while listening to Oasis. Pitched high, the sweetness of her voice betrays the desperate, wanting plea that grows out of a feeling of being abandoned or forgotten.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
![Credit: Charlotte Patmore King Krule today announces the release of his forthcoming album Man Alive! with his first ever self-directed video. Following on from last year’s ‘Hey World!’ video in which Archy Marshall performed acoustic versions of four new songs, Man Alive! (set for release on 21 February 2020) will be the third King Krule titled studio album. Archy Marshall’s long-time love of cinema seeps out in his first foray into directing, with a video for ‘(Don’t Let The Dragon) Draag On’ that pulls influences from Carl Theodor Dreyer’s classic The Passion of Joan of Arc while still creating a typically wry King Krule visual. Presave / Pre-order Man Alive! https://kingkrule.ffm.to/manalive Archy Ivan Marshall has the world at his feet. After two feverishly received albums as King Krule, plus another low-key outing under his own name, this extraordinarily gifted 25-year-old from Peckham in South London adds further depth and substance to his oeuvre with another wondrous long-player called Man Alive!. It arrives packed full of his trademark sonic ambition and compositional skill, as well as the now-familiar corrosive lyricism and lurid social observation. Marshall has emerged as a pack leader amongst his peers, leading the charge in a fearless blurring of genre divisions, one minute seeming to drag the listener through the trashiest punk experience, the next ushering in a soundworld that’s apparently hi-tech and forward-looking. Like any great artist on the rise, Archy’s life is moving fast. There’s a lot to catch up on, after 2017’s sprawling masterpiece, The Ooz, broke through amid Mercury Prize nominations and minds-blown media plaudits. Unlike that record, Man Alive! doesn’t aim to present any kind of narrative thread, or Brexit-era state-of-the-nation address, just a collection of snapshots and stories, artfully sequenced into a dazzlingly coherent whole. This third King Krule album was written as a direct reaction to the non-stop energy of touring The Ooz, and then partly recorded at Shrunken Heads in Marshall’s native stamping ground of Nunhead, with ‘Ooz’ co-producer Dilip Harris. Midway through those sessions, however, Archy found out he was going to become a dad for the first time, and he decided to move up to the North West to be near the mother’s family, ready for the baby’s arrival. “I should’ve had it all wrapped up before my daughter was born,” says Marshall today with a sheepish grin. Impending parenthood came at a felicitous moment for him, as he was beginning to feel trapped in South London’s suburban lifestyle of all-eclipsing drunkenness and depression, which existing fans will know was a recurring theme in his earlier music. “It was just the easiness of it,” he reflects today. “There really is nothing else to do here, especially when it turns to winter. Everyone I know has jobs, whereas I’d sit on my arse all day sometimes not doing anything, then I’d go to the pub with them when they finished work. It became a bit habitual. Then, right in the middle of the record, this big change came in my life that I didn't really comprehend initially. It was like, ‘Oh, I’d better get my shit together!’ To be honest, I was really glad to get away from all that so I could focus on more pressing matters – like keeping a child alive and stuff.” The new album’s title, he explains, “is an exclamation, about the times we live in. Like, ‘Fucking hell, man!’” He stole the title from a CD that his uncle gave him back in 2013 with some of his uncle’s own music on it, and originally planned to use it for his last album. “More and more,” he explains, “I've been put off by the intention of speaking about what's going on in society as a black-and-white thing, or trying to get to the bottom of why we’re in this position. So the album is mostly made up of snapshots and observations. There are a lot of real-time-and-place moments, songs talking about walking through the park just over there and getting a head injury [don’t ask! – Ed.], then there are other tracks which are just simplicity, looking at one particular situation and reflecting on it as somehow being super-profound.” Just as the lyrics are diverse in theme and purpose, so is the music: ‘Comet Face’ lopes along with irresistible unease like a wonky New Wave hit, and ‘Stoned Again’ packs all the inspired beatmongery of ’90s hip hop, while much of the record’s sparser second half recalls the lo-fi intimacy of Robert Wyatt’s ’80s solo work, or indeed the recordings of mass-murderer Charles Manson. As the concluding ‘Please Complete Thee’ sails out on upliftingly twangsome slide guitar, you’d be forgiven for imagining that some of the more agonizing preceding numbers have served as a kind of therapy for their creator. “Oh yeah,” he freely admits, “once you’re able to discuss things and talk honestly, there is no better way than just shouting it out at a bunch of people. I was always empowered by lyricism and getting my aggression out in some way, or any kind of emotion. That has always been a process for me. This time I felt like I had gotten out of a dark place, and I was on a high. I appreciated the depression, and the low times I’d been through, but I also liked how I felt better in the here and now. So it was about reaching that new plateau.” King Krule - Man Alive! 1. Cellular 2. Supermarché 3. Stoned Again 4. Comet Face 5. The Dream 6. Perfecto Miserable 7. Alone, Omen 3 8. Slinky 9. Airport Antenatal Airplane 10. (Don't Let The Dragon) Draag On 11. Theme For The Cross 12. Underclass 13. Energy Fleets 14. Please Complete Thee King Krule - Man Alive! is out Friday 21 February via XL Recordings / Remote Control. xlrecordings.com remotecontrolrecords.com.au](https://thepartae.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/KING-KRULE-1170x776.jpg "KING KRULE")
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Banoffee has shared the second single ‘Count On You’ from her debut album Look At Us Now Dad out Friday 21st February via Dot Dash (AU/NZ/Asia) and Cascine (ROW).
‘Count On You’, a full-throttle anthem fueled by blasts of jagged synths and written at the peak of the MeToo movement, is a relentlessly upbeat declaration of solidarity with survivors.
Named as one of The NME 100 and Junkee’s Ones To Watch for 2020, Banoffee is a Melbourne-born, Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and producer with a musically transgressive and deeply vulnerable approach to pop. She has toured with Taylor Swift on a worldwide stadium tour as part of Charlie XCX’s troupe, and represents the new wave of mutant pop bubbling up from today’s queer club underground. She has been described as one of pop music’s “recent great forward thinkers” (FACT) and is known for infectious melodies that belie more unsettling, experimental textures and beats.
The album was written in the two years after the artist moved to Los Angeles from Melbourne in 2017, seeking a fresh start. Meticulously retracing her steps, Banoffee examined her life with a fine-toothed comb in order to reclaim her narrative and the struggles she’d once sung about in earlier releases. Look At Us Now Dad thus tells a story of survival—of abuse, sadness, and loss—and is a testament to the possibilities of rebirth. As Banoffee puts it: “Each track is about a struggle and achievement that anyone could experience, the ones that seem so trivial. We’re all survivors for one reason or another.”
Look At Us Now Dad will be available digitally and on vinyl. Pre-order / Pre-save via https://banoffee.lnk.to/
|
|
|
“Earth Chronicles”will be released on the 24th of January on his own label: LNDKHN
“Por tu Amor… o no” single is already available including a remix by Tolouse Low Trax. “Niburu” was released last 8th of December with great success.
If something characterizes the Spanish electronic artist Landikhan, it is his open mind and his extraordinary respect for music, no matter the style, nature or origin. Two skills that the producer has always put into his productions, as seen on his releases on Natura Sonoris and Balance Music. Now, it’s time to see Landikhan express all of this in his first album.
An LP that, as its title “Earth Chronicles” indicates, is an ode to a wide collage of sound influences from different origins and cultures. Its creation took place in Fashion Beat team, many tracks were created by Vlackmotor, a member of LNDKHN’s colectiv’, and its design process has been in the hands of the digital artist Aitana Basquiat. The release is scheduled for the 24th of January on his own label: LNDKHN, a label that has been very successful in the last few years with thousands of downloads on all platforms and receiving support from huge names in the scene.
“Earth Chronicles” has eight original tracks and two remixes. “Por Tu Amor” is the opening track with a broken rhythms base and some suggestive Spanish voice in opera mode. It continues with the homonymous “Earth Chronicles” with a hypnotic nature and a selvatic imaginary. The album continues with “Babilonia”, a track that along its development takes us to Andean lands. “Nibiru” is the next track and in it the birdsongs and other sounds of nature live with evocative and rhythmic melodies full of cadence. “Interludio” is the most “old school” track on the album, its broken rhythms takes us to the ‘90s while its dark atmospheres invites us to introspection. “Quimera Cósmica” brings back more airy sounds without losing its reflexive and evocative side. The next to last track is “Eridu”, with a slow tempo and an environmental inspiration, taking your mind to a state of trance. And the LP ends with “Annunaki”; the most experimental track of the ensemble in which the classic percussions mix together with ethnic rhythms and ancestral voices. A superposition of complex layers that closes this package of tracks in an evocative and solid way.
On top of these eight original tracks are two remixes, as we said before, “Nibiru” by Progressive master Hernan Cattaneo with Martin Garcia. The result is a musical piece in which drums of ethnic inspiration mix with evocative atmospheres creating a climate of intense emotion. And “Por Tu Amor…O No”, by the renowned German artist Tolouse Low Trax. Both remixes and the originals are already available as the first album’s advances.
BEATPORT
Nibiru | Por Tu Amor… O No | Earth Chronicles (Pre-Sale)
BANDCAMP
VINYL PRE-ORDER