GHEIST – ‘You’
Release Date: Out Now
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Title: Paradise
Label: Stabby Records
Sam Blacky is back with her new single “Paradise,” an appropriately titled house gem that evokes images of places like the sun-soaked Ibiza and Mykonos. The track features ethereal vocals by Florida-based singer/songwriter Madeline Austin; the two connected via social media and hit it off when Madeline sent demos for what is now “Paradise.” Sam works in a deep, groovy bassline with gently undulating melodies, making for a sultry dancefloor track that will heat up the night wherever you may be. “Paradise” is the third single to come out on Blacky‘s own Stabby Records, which launched in February this year.
“‘Paradise‘ is a more melodic track that I feel people can enjoy in different environments; listen to it while driving, use as a morning soundtrack after waking up, or dance to it in a club. I wanted to make it more universal than just a club banger. Once again, I pulled inspiration from all the beautiful places I have been to, and ‘Paradise‘ feels like summer in Ibiza or Mykonos. It’s the feeling of butterflies in your stomach, floating through the ocean with the wind on your face and a big carefree smile coming from within. Featured on ‘Paradise‘ is singer/songwriter Madeline Austin. When I look for a female vocalist, I post on social media about it because I want to find someone fresh, new, unknown to give them a shot and keep the female movement going. Madi sent me a message and some demos, and the rest is history. She started as a fan, and I soon realized that she is a very talented singer and songwriter. Her vocals and lyrics about paradise, heaven, and a little flirty danger were just perfect for this release.” – Sam Blacky
Samantha Black is a multitalented DJ/producer, model, and influencer professionally known as Sam Blacky. Originally from San Diego, Sam spent several years in Australia, where she first fell in love with producing music and performing live. Since moving back to Los Angeles, music and performing have taken a front seat in her life. In addition to her hectic modeling schedule, Sam has performed live across the world from 2017 to 2021, from Mexico to Ibiza to Bali, racking up over 120 gigs a year at some of the premier electronic festivals and clubs on the planet. With the global pandemic in 2020, Sam released a series of videos on Youtube called “A New World,” where she streamed live sets from some of her favorite places in Mexico, giving viewers a taste of vacation vibes even while staying safe at home. Before all the music, her modeling portfolio included brands such as Nike, L’Oréal, Galore, Marie Claire, Superdry, Guess, Sports Illustrated, Malibu, and Playboy, giving her a unique creative perspective to all types of cultures and styles to bring to her music. With the launch of Sam Blacky‘s label, Stabby Records, and her first releases, 2021 is set to be a breakout year for Sam as she expands her artistic brand.
TOUR MEMORIES with Manchester Orchestra’s Robert McDowell
With their sixth album The Million Masks of God heralding the return of Manchester Orchestra, fans now anticipate their next opportunity to see the beloved U.S. band present the long-anticipated record live.
But, you know, we still gotta deal with this pesky pandemic. And while music events are restarting around the world, slowly but surely, we’re still a ways off from seeing bands like Manchester Orchestra touring on a global scale.
For guitarist Robert McDowell, the yearning for live performance is real. Below, he shares some memories from tours gone by, and tells us about the venues and locations he can’t wait to get back to.
The Fox Theatre, Atlanta
We have done a festival for eleven years, I think it’s eleven years now, in Atlanta called The Stuffing. It started off at Centre Stage and it’s moved to The Tabernacle. We did two years at The Fox Theatre and then we missed the last year because of the pandemic. For me, the Fox Theatre was a room that I grew up seeing The Nutcracker in, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra…I got Pinkerton taken away from me for trying to listen to it during The Nutcracker!
It’s the historic room in our hometown. We looked into trying to do a limited capacity gig or a livestreamed thing, but we were unable to. Our hope is that we can, this November, do a version of The Stuffing there, as long as it’s safe for everyone. That venue, to me, just represents a full circle gratitude of “Man I hated this room for the wrong reasons,” I loved seeing My Morning Jacket there, Bob Dylan played there, I saw all these great acts there…to be able to be on that stage and have my family there, is a very, very special moment.
I would say that was my biggest miss of 2020, that we weren’t able to do a third year there.
Stubb’s, Austin
I would love to return to Stubb’s in Austin, Texas. I remember the first time we played there in March of 2006, my dad flew down…for the rest of the family it didn’t mean anything, but to music lovers, that venue is a special place. We’d opened up there God knows how many times and then once we finally got to a place where we could finally headline it, it was such an experience.
We don’t really eat past 4pm because we have nerves and we don’t wanna be sluggish on stage, but it’s a great venue in that the food isn’t pizza or something waiting backstage – it’s BBQ.
Shepherd’s Bush, London
There’s a venue in London called Shepherd’s Bush, that we’ve played twice now. Even in the dressing rooms, the history of it…it’s where the Rolling Stones rehearsed for all of these epic things, it has the history of the bombings that went on around it.
The sound and the way it’s tiered, the interaction with the crowd in the room…I had one of my favourite live moments ever there. We were playing ‘Dear’, the opening track off Simple Math, and there’s a line that says, “Dear everybody who has ever paid to see my band,” and the cheer that we got made five grown men cry on stage. It’s not a cool look, but it’s still burnt into my brain. Those are the moments that I will remember and hopefully tell my grandkids about. It’s a very humbling and special room.
Australia, the whole country!
The first time we ever came over to Australia, I remember it was Laneway Festival 2007. It started in Adelaide and I remember landing there, jetlagged and a child, basically. Walking up to this festival…I didn’t know what a laneway was, it’s not a term we use in the States. Trying to get into the festival that we were supposed to play and couldn’t really, we finally just talked to enough people and started to walk in.
It was Clap Your Hands Say Yeah playing, Broken Social Scene, Feist…just the energy that the Australian music scene has, specifically with festivals, some of my greatest festival memories are in Australia. I miss that aspect of going to a place that’s similar enough but also different, and also on the other side of the world! You get to share moments with people through energy and music; you may not see them again, but you always uniquely have that moment together.
For me, it was my first time in Australia, so at the time I knew of Sydney – I didn’t know of the booming music scene in Melbourne, I didn’t know of all the different dynamics of Australia. Adelaide was such a warm and welcoming introduction to the country.
It’s fucking bonkers! I loved it. I had such a fun time. It was a wild festival too because bands like Broken Social Scene, Feist, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, those bands were stars, they were so well established and we were so little. In the States or in Canada, it would have been a different scenario but because we were all in Australia together, it was like we were all one big family. It was like a wonderful summer camp.
The Million Masks of God is out now.
LISTEN/BUY
PRAISE FOR MANCHESTER ORCHESTRA
Pitchfork
“Manchester Orchestra forge a newly lush, cinematic sound, unraveling detailed tales of characters with abstractly personal references.”
Altpress
“A Black Mile To The Surface feels richly nuanced, offering up something new on every repeat listen.”
The Line Of Best Fit
“By consciously interrogating everything they do, they’ve created something that doesn’t need a condescending suffix to justify its existence. It’s a new high-water mark for the band, and one well worth the pain to reach.”
Drowned In Sound
The Million Masks of God is out now via Loma Vista Recordings
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Warren Hue: Instagram | Facebook | TikTok | YouTube | Twitter
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SUPPORT FOR TRACKS OFF ‘DEFENCE MECHANISMS’
“There’s something about this that makes me want to just push that little bit harder against the patriarchy.” – 4/5 stars
Bridie Tanner – triple j Unearthed (AUS)
“Charged bursts of captivating alt-rock-meets-punk-pop that sits in-line with long-time influences from Sonic Youth and Savages.”
Pilerats (AUS)
‘White Noise’ music video added to rotation on ABC’s Rage
‘Out Of Time’ premiered on triple j Unearthed TOPS Program
Sydney based alternative-rock quartet Second Idol have revealed their earnest debut EP ‘Defence Mechanisms’ – produced, mixed and mastered by Nick Franklin (Peking Duk, Polish Club, CLEWS).
‘Defence Mechanisms’ is five tracks of reflective and dynamic alternative rock, all-inclusive with arduous melodies, sincere lyricism and compelling instrumentation that strengthens the group’s notoriety and defines their prominent sound.
Lead singer Kate Olivia talks about the process behind ‘Defence Mechanisms’:
“This record is about resilience and strength, vulnerability and authenticity, self-worth and self-determination. The growing of armour. ‘Defence Mechanisms’ explores concepts of power and control, ambition and listlessness, political frustration, queerness and gender, all fuelled with a relentless vengeance.”
EP opener and lead single ‘White Noise’ introduces vitality with a comprehensive mix of ominous guitars and resolute drums, mesmerising the listener in a sweeping movement of powerful vigour. Track two, ‘Out Of Time’, commences with ethereal riffs and a resonant rhythm section, combining for an enthralling chorus that takes cues from the band’s 90’s influences. Bending the rubrics of harmonic expression, the track’s broad form thrusts the listener into a captivating finale.
Introducing track three, ‘Tired Eyes’, is a steady fusion of polyphony that heaves into an arena-sized chorus, layered with richly distorted guitars and reverberated vocals, while a resounding nostalgic melody soars above the arrangement, fulfilling its impassioned atmosphere. Track four, ‘Low Tides’, substitutes energy for intimacy, as the tempo and vulnerable production emphasis the authenticity behind Second Idol’s song writing.
Finally, ‘The Way It Is’ caps off the EP with a familiarising mixture of candidness and insolence, conveyed through clean and fuzzy guitars, sturdy drums and fervent vocals. It summarises a thoughtful and pensive body of work, shining a light on the trio’s diversity and liberation through their dynamical aptitudes and the EP’s subject matter.
Lead single ‘White Noise’ was widely embraced by Australian radio stations triple j, triple j Unearthed, FBi, The Faction, Edge Radio, 2SER, 2XX FM, RTR FM, 4ZZZ, SYN FM and WXRY Unsigned (USA). The band have also seen immense online praise from Pilerats, Milky, Out Now Magazine (IRL), The Underground Stage, Australian Music Scene, Temporary Dreamer, Something You Said, AAA Backstage and The Music.
‘Defence Mechanisms’ is available worldwide now
SECOND IDOL
UPCOMING SHOWS
SUN 23 MAY | KELLY’S ON KING, SYDNEY NSW
SAT 29 MAY | THE TOTE, MELBOURNE VIC
SAT 19 JUN | CHIPPO HOTEL, SYDNEY NSW
SAT 31 JUL | DICEY’S SATURDAYS, WOLLONGONG NSW
SUN 1 AUG | SIDEWAY BAR, CANBERRA ACT
Click to stream ‘Defence Mechanisms’
FOLLOW SECOND IDOL
FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | SOUNDCLOUD | SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC
This Donovan / Cream tinged jam riffs out in the British California of our minds where it’s always sunny yet somewhat dark. The song’s style twangs like a whistle in the distance on a runaway train; a call and answer of thick western sound. Written for an ex-lover on the plains of Saskatchewan, “Sunshine” features four time Juno winner and former guitarist of the sheepdogs Leot Hanson on lead guitar especially during the middle 8, along side skull creek producer Aspen Beveridge, completing this small town imagination.
PLAY/LISTEN
Where are you currently based?
Saskatchewan Canada
How did you first start playing music?
I got this old nylon string guitar when I was 19 and wrote my first song shortly after, It was no good probably but real, I remember it being about a good friend.
What’s been happening recently?
I am recording a new album for the fall it’s about half way right now.
Your new single ‘Sunshine’ is out on May 20, 2021, what influenced the sound and songwriting?
I think on this track I had that heavy 1965 British folk rock thing in the back of my mind, where the concepts are a bit dark, but sung with a more light spin. This song is about an ex-lover that had passed away suddenly, but I had not found out until years later when I had returned back to Swift Current, SK Canada after being gone for a long while. Expecting her to be there but she wasn’t.
How did you go about writing Sunshine?
I brought this song to the producer that I was recording with at the time. I had just written the song days before, I’m not sure why I didn’t pick one of the other songs I had wrote in the past, but I had just cut the a song from the record and this one seemed right.
Where and when did you record/produce/master and who with?
This toon was Recorded in Saskatoon SK, Canada about a year ago, at Skull Creek Studios. Aspen Beveridge and I produced, mixed and recorded this track, with help from Leot Hanson. Mastering done by Harry Hess from Toronto ON March 20th 2021.
What programs/equipment did you use?
The gear that we used was an old acoustic guitar plugged directly into a fender twin reverb. Aspen played a tremolo pedal which you hear in the beginning of the song. Leot through down some killer dark lead licks in the middle 8 using his 62 fender bassman and broken reverb pedal.
How did you approach the recording process?
We approached it a bit unconventional for sure, but we had a few demos of the track already so we knew where it was headed, but we all just let go and had fun really.
What do you like to do away from music?
I’m not sure I fully achieve getting away from music, but I do enjoy art, however I always have this feed back loop to music or songwriting.
Who are you listening to at the moment?
At the moment I’m listening to People like Guy Clark, Donovan, Karen Dalton, Hasil Adkins, Towns Van Zanbt, The Velvet Underground and Skip James.
What’s planned for the remainder of 2021?
Release the full EP in a month and finish recording my album but end of summer, and tour this fall.
Favorite food and place to hangout?
Pizza and a blues bar.
Hey guys, great to chat to you. How are things in your world?
Hey, our world is full of love and music. All good 😉
We first met about 6 years ago and for a long time we were both residents of one of the clubs in Kiev.
Its a spicy mix between indie dance and melodic house, for sure, with a big influence of 80s.
We are slowly back to normal life and normal night life. We see light at the end of the tunnel and expect this summer to be massive.
We have amazing gig on 4th of June, playing with Keinemusik team – Rampa, Adam Port, &Me. We couldn’t imagine a better opening of the season.
Robert is a true legend and the “voice of house music”. It was always a dream to work with him, since we just started listening to house music. So we created a demo with his vocal cuts, sent him to check. He liked it and agreed to make a collab with us and wrote original lyrics for this single.
We work together all the time, but Oleg is more responsible for the groove elements and Maxim is for melodic parts and mixing.
Yes, amazing that it happened and big thanks to Sascha and Oliver that took this risk to believe in us and remix first single of a new project.
For next release we have collab with Canadian vocalist Elly Ball. It’s a very sexy tune, so we are looking forward to it!
Saint Idiot (Tomáš Andel) is a Slovak-Canadian art pop musician, sound designer, and multimedia artist from Edmonton, Canada.
His music has been interpreted as a deconstruction of pop; familiar forms rendered in sophisticated sound palettes, set in lush, carefully textured compositions, that are both a little futuristic and a little mossy. Tomáš’ inspirations include the multisensory worlds of artists like Björk and Bowie, the continuing legacy of bell hooks, as well as Zen, Deep Listening, ambient music, and flora.
“Talk” is the third single from the upcoming album Alternate Utopias from a Nostalgic Future, a record that explores masculinity. Softening the heart with the grainy pastel sounds of nostalgia, “Talk” invites topics we tend to only reach for on certain kinds of days—a sitting-on-the-stairs sort of honesty, the most rewarding labor of love.
“It’s a celebration of those life-changing moments—both nostalgic and timeless—where we are really being there with a person without reservation,” Andel says, “listening fully, unpacking emotions, or learning to love and hold one another even through our disagreements.”
With a sort of skin tone sound palette, “Talk” is carried by earnest falsetto, guitar, harp, clarinet, and a host of gauzy synthesizers that are underscored throughout by an almost ASMR-like pointillism of intimate sounds. The end of the track features an excerpt from interviews titled “Conversations With Young Men,” a work in progress from documentarian Laura La France.
Where are you currently based?
I live by the tree in Edmonton.
How did you first start playing and writing music?
Apparently I had tinkling piano fingers as soon as my wrists reached over the lip of the piano, and I used to cut guitars out of paper as well. I really started as a drummer, though—I played in a fair number of bands in the past—so I’m really coming from the world of rhythm and improvisation. I loved my bands, but my creative ambitions tended to take over them, so eventually I started writing for myself. It’s for the best—I’m probably still a lousy collaborative songwriter.
What’s been happening recently?
I’ve discovered that I can rollerblade to the convenience store to buy all-dressed Ruffles, so now I pretend I’m Chip from “Baskets.”
You’ve got a new album on the way, what influenced the sound and songwriting?
I was really obsessed with “soft, human” sounds. I wanted an album that felt like skin, like a caress, something that’d get the oxytocin (the “love hormone”) flowing, ‘cause I wanted to support the potentially challenging lyrics with something both fantastic but also warm, inviting, and nurturing. At first I was obsessed with bells, chimes, wood blocks, and other “earthy” sounds—partly ‘cause I really fell in love with the almost tactile earthiness of Kilchhofer. I raided a whole bunch of antique stores for bells and tines and such. That didn’t make it on the album so much, but it got me thinking about hang drums, kalimbas, and mallet instruments (which did make it), and before I knew it I was painting with orchestral colors. I wanted to marry the sophistication, emotional pull, and rich, grounding character of harps, strings, and clarinets with the abstraction of synthesizers, to get something simultaneously organic and futuristic.
My goal with my music is to take a huge range of sounds, especially from the more experimental corners of the music world, and search for where they can intersect and still make sense. This is partly because I just love so many different types of music, and partly ‘cause I figure that I’m bound to find something interesting in these strange combinations. On this album, I was thinking a lot about Björk, Laurie Anderson, Motion Graphics, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, and Cosmo Sheldrake, and I’m also a massive fan of noise and ambient music. I guess it’s safe to say I really like music that tells stories and is deeply textural.
When will the album be released?
September 8th. After “Talk,” there’s two more singles coming on June 30th and August 11th.
How did you go about writing the album?
I was doing a lot of introspecting and inner work when I started working on Alternate Utopias from a Nostalgic Future. I’ve been really fascinated by masculinity. I wondered why I found it so hard to identify with it for most of my life, why certain toxic tendencies coalesce in certain masculine contexts, and what kind of work men have to do to cause less harm and become happier people. As you might imagine, this is a pretty tremendous topic with a lot of traps and tricky ground, and I really tried to approach it from a radically honest and transparent place, from a pre-political place, and with all fairness to the many different and valid ways to be a man.
I was very poindexter about it and planned it out almost like an essay, with every song unpacking a specific question, problem, or struggle that I’ve had in my own healing—whether that’s my relationship to anger, or possessiveness, or the reluctance to express emotions or ask for help. As rigid as that sounds, it ended up being a really organic and iterative process. It felt like exploration, or discovery. It felt like I solved a lot of my own personal tensions and found even more helpful questions to grapple with in the future, so it was really generative.
Where and when did you record/produce/master and who did you work with?
It was entirely a lockdown record, so I recorded and produced it in my room, but I’ll try to romanticize it a little.
The truth is, my workspace and my bed are less than 2 feet apart, and I’ve had the old “wake up at 3:00am, boot up the computer, and put down a chord progression” routine happen a few times, which is to say that from a certain point of view, it is as intimate a record as it can get.
I’m sure many people who have been creating through the lockdown agree that the boundary between life and art really disappeared in the last year. In the same way a lot of us are used to living in a “50 Chrome tabs open” world, Alternate Utopias from a Nostalgic Future was always only a few steps away from where my life was happening.
I sleep in this room, relax in this room, meditate in this room, read in this room, have sex in this room, have deep, honest conversations in this room… Basically, my work on the album was in such proximity to my regular everyday life, that the life-process that is “me” and my life unfolding was fully intertwined with the process of this album coming about.
My very good friend and talented piano composer Doug Parth (With Dogs) finessed the orchestral arrangements, and the incredibly spacious and accommodating mix and master were painstakingly carved by Hill Kourkoutis and Kristian Montano, respectively. All three of these people are the kindest, most inspiring mentors you could wish for. I really look up to them and am so thankful that this album passed through the prism of their kindness and creativity.
What programs/equipment did you use?
I swear by Reaper. I also do a lot of field recording that I then process, so I got a Zoom H5 for that. Otherwise, with the exception of some Omnichord parts, the bulk of it was soft synths. I love the Melda plugin suite to death, and also swear by Obscurium. I’m always on the lookout for “weird” equipment though. I’d die for a deliciously dusty old modular synth like the EML Electrocomp 200. I love instruments that seem to do what they want to do.
Please tell us about your motivation for writing about masculinity:
When it comes to who I feel myself to be, I’ve always felt like masculinity was an awkward map for the territory. It feels tight and constricting, and like parts are missing, which was sort of my conclusion when I started thinking about it a lot.
Please understand that I’m painting in broad strokes as I answer this question, but I think that “popular” or “traditional” masculinity is often guilty of being very isolating. The “code” doesn’t encourage a lot of open, emotional, vulnerable conversation between men, or even between men and the wider society—cool, rational stoicism seems to be the vogue instead. But really, the emotional and the rational are just two parts of a whole, and my motivation is simply to draw attention to the ways in which men trapped in this restrictive paradigm can restore their whole humanity and be happier for it. I strived to write in a way that put people before politics, and encouraged a holistic kind of masculinity with two very simple goals—healthiness and happiness.
You describe the song ‘Talk’ as an invitation—what do you mean by that?
I want to encourage people who have had the faintest brush with the questions I’m exploring on this album to take the time to dig deep, answer those questions as self-honestly as they can, and then share that with other men. Although, this isn’t just for men exclusively—we can all obviously benefit from openness and humility—but perhaps it is for men especially. Or, at least, that’s who I feel I have sufficient grounds to address.
This masculinity work is certainly not new—organizations like Next Gen Men here in Canada have been holding masculinity circles and helping youth disentangle themselves from the harmful behaviours boys tend to get socialized into for years. Before I discovered them, Nora Samaran and bell hooks started me on this path. The sea change is already under way.
With “Talk” I want to help catalyze other people’s journeys. In this song, I’m saying that it’s OK to be scared—it’s tough to genuinely, voluntarily open yourself in these ways—I get it. I’m saying that I’ve gotten it wrong before too, and I’m not saying I have the answers. I’m just saying that we all have some long overdue questions to pose to ourselves, and to one another. I was no better, and I’m still doing the work. I want people to realize that the work of being a better person never stops, but it certainly starts with honest, candid dialogue.
Please tell us about how you combine your music with your own visuals:
I don’t have synesthesia, but I do have a very strong personal sense of how sounds “look,” and how visual things “sound,” and it’s something that’s both helped me sound design and compose, as well as create visuals that reflect or amplify the feel of the music. I always loved album art and cool music videos—to me they seem completely inseparable from the experience of an album. I wanted to build a really strong sensory identity for my album, so super early on, I was planning songs in terms of color palettes and moodboards. I think that in the end the sonic profile of each song matches the color palettes and imagery I’m working with when I construct my visualizers, and people have told me that together they create a really clear sense of the tone of my message.
How would you describe the genre of your music?
I’ve adopted “art pop” as a genre because to me it seems like the most flexible way to say “music that wants to surprise you and break your expectation,” without necessarily pigeonholing myself in the world of “experimental music.” I LOVE experimental music, but I know that a lot of people groan when they hear “experimental,” and in a way it’s also become a sort of loose, diluted term. When people hear “art pop,” I think they know they’ll probably get something mostly straight forward, and so they have an easier time buying in. It’s the free-est genre label for what I like doing.
Who are you listening to at the moment?
This second it’s Rafael Anton Irrasari’s Solastalgia.
What do you like to do away from music?
I love long-distance road cycling, and recently I’ve really gotten into mountain bike trail riding. I’ve also practised as a lay Buddhist for a few years, and I just started digging deep into the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Spiritual exploration is deeply important to me.
I love people, but I also really love solitude and I’m really curious by nature, so it makes sense that I set off on long rides or go get lost in a forest with a field recorder. I like feeling like I’m tapping to some other level, and cycling, spirituality, and nature all bring me to this same infinitely generative place.
What’s planned for 2021?
Well, by the time you read this, I may have been vaccinated here in Edmonton, so without shooting too high, I’m hoping our social lives will get more permissive in the not-too-distant future. I miss patio beers. However, the more realistic answer is more audio and 3D work, and because I’m slightly masochistic, probably the beginnings of the next record.
Favourite food and place to hangout?
Oh boy. Get this—a four-layer Slovak bread-pastry with plum jam, poppy seed filling, walnut paste, and tart/sweet farmer’s cheese (“tvaroh.”) It is literally the most advanced taste on Earth, and has been studied by Mensa. My favorite place to hang out is anywhere I can get Sapporo lager for cheap enough.
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Today, Melbourne-based vocalist, producer & rapper IJALE releases his latest single, ‘MI GORENG’, via Daily Nightly records. Detailing the various highs & lows faced by emerging artists trying to make it big, the track features IJALE’s signature melodic flow & playful lyricism to express a pivotal time in his personal growth.
With lyrics like ‘makin’ bookings, still live on Mi Goreng, signing deals and still I’m hopping the train’ – IJALE references the staple snack to paint a picture for the listener of the ups and downs of an artist teetering on the edge of success.
“Mi Goreng was sold at uni for 50c a piece when I was studying, so I’d eat that a lot during this time cuz I was real broke,” recalls IJALE.
On the single IJALE details, “I had moved back to my folks place and it felt like I was taking two steps back, but on the other hand I had started to get more traction with my music after I had finished studying and I began to get a solid team around me, so there were wins mixed in with the losses.”
Written in 2019 with the producer Binfolks following a rough breakup, “the hook ‘last year was a doozy’ was about where I was at the end of 2019 but it definitely rings true now post-2020 because that was a hell of a year for the world in general. A lot of the emotional shit from 2019 still lingered on into lockdown and isolation for me.”
‘MI GORENG’ follows his triple j supported debut EP ‘Wildly Disparate Sounds’ & triple j Unearthed Feature Artist mid last year, as well as his recent collaboration with Dugong Jr. ‘Ceramic’ which landed coveted Spotify playlists New Music Friday AU/NZ, The Local List, metropolis, Poolside Grooves, crush & the hybrid.
IJALE is one of six lucky recipients of a triple j Unearthed/NIDA music video competition, and will be creating a music video later in the year.
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BIO
Melbourne producer, vocalist and performer, IJALE, is a self-contained master of his sound.
A keen music fan and avid creator, he blends a myriad of afrocentric sounds and western influences that reflect his Nigerian heritage, his Australian upbringing and the multifaceted taste of an open-minded listener of the internet age. These concoctions vary in sound from piece to piece, but are usually punctuated by hints of African percussion, infectious basslines and layered electronic textures, all of which pay direct homage to the hallmark genres of black creativity including jazz, soul, r&b and hip hop.
Jerry Agbinya, aka IJALE, began releasing music in 2017 but has been busy honing and perfecting his songwriting and production skills for years. Following a brief break from his previous project Spirals, IJALE hit the ground running with support shows alongside Winston Surfshirt, Raiza Biza and Phondupe. Since then, the Melbourne based artist has been busy releasing multiple singles, including his recent track ‘Coffee Cups’ feat. Zephyrr Greene, out via French label Kitsuné Musique. In January of 2020, IJALE hosted his first show and played alongside some of Melbourne’s most promising up and comers including Jordan Dennis, Nasty Mars, Rara Zulu & more.
IJALE has a unique knack for sound design and mood, which he effortlessly encapsulates in both recordings and in his live shows. Keep your eyes on this latest Melbourne producer, as he’s about to take the next step on his eventual path to global fame. ______________________________
Praise for IJALE
“It’s clear that IJALE is destined for stardom” – Mixdown Mag
“Continuing to defy expectations with every release, you’ll want to get IJALE on your radar now” – Ticketmaster
“Some of the brainiest bars and complex beats on Unearthed” – triple j
“Sounding like the golden age of Hip Hop” – The Guardian
“IJALE continues to defy expectations with each and every move” – Purple Sneakers
“IJALE is the true definition of a hidden gem” – EARMILK
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Upcoming IJALE Shows
Fri 14 May, Square Up @ The Forum (Melbourne)
Thu 20 May, Local Produce @ Ferdydurke (Melbourne)
Thur 27 May, 30/70 Support @ The Evelyn (Melbourne)
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Beloved rock band The Murlocs have unveiled the second track from their upcoming new album Bittersweet Demons, out June 25th on Flightless Records. ‘Eating At You’ is an instantly charming, bluesy sing-a-long with plaintive harmonies and lush pedal steel. Displaying a more languid, melancholy side than the album’s first single – last month’s rocking ‘Francesca‘ – ‘Eating At You’ is an ode to troubled friends. |
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Says frontman Ambrose Kenny-Smith, “It’s an ode to all the loveable train wrecks out there that have gone off the rails and keep going back for more. The never-ending vortex cycle. Some seem to never learn their lesson even when it smacks them right in the face constantly. It’s important to address these issues before disaster strikes and it’s too late. Never give up on your loved ones when they’re in need of a helping hand.” The song comes with an impressively off-kilter video, directed, edited, and shot by John Angus Stewart. |
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The theme of celebrating their nearest and dearest continues on the upcoming album, which is equal parts character study and adoring homage. The album, Bittersweet Demons out June 25th via Flightless Records, shares a collection of songs reflecting on the people who leave a profound imprint on their lives, the saviours and hell raisers and assorted other mystifying characters. The most personal and boldly confident work yet, the album sets that storytelling to 11 infectious tracks written mostly on piano, lending a greater emotional intensity to the band’s restless and radiant brand of garage-rock. What emerges is a beautifully complex body of work, one that shines a light on the fragilities of human nature while inducing the glorious head rush that accompanies any Murlocs outing. |
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With their lineup including two members of the globally beloved King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard (Kenny-Smith and bassist Cook Craig), The Murlocs recorded at Button Pushers Studio in Melbourne with producer Tim Dunn, dreaming up a prismatic sound that pinballs from sunshine-pop to blues-punk to wide-eyed psychedelia. Naming John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Harry Nilsson’s Lennon-produced Pussy Cats among their key reference points, the band adorned their songs with many unexpected details: woozy Wurlitzer melodies, Brian May-esque guitar harmonies, playful atmospheric elements like the whoosh of summer rain, caught by a microphone dragged into the street mid-storm. The result is an album both exuberant and heavy-hearted, a dynamic that wholly fulfills Kenny-Smith’s mission of “always aspiring to write songs that have a bit of twisted positivity to them.” |
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The Murlocs hope to have some touring plans to share sooner rather than later. In the meantime, we can promise that Bittersweet Demons is a dizzying delight of cracking songs, all set to provide some superior sonic sparkle for each listener. |
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The Murlocs are: Matt Blach (drums, vocals), Cook Craig (bass guitar), Tim Karmouche (keyboards, guitar, vocals), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonica, guitar) and Cal Shortal (guitar). |
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