Tag Archives: 2012

Interview with The Vernons ahead of the 4 Walls Festival

LMM: Tell us a little about The Vernons?

The Vernons officially formed in May 2011 with 3 members (Jonny, Andrew, James) from the Gold Coast, and one from Brisbane (Elliot). Jonny Nyst (Lead Singer) had been playing acoustic originals for a few years around the Gold Coast area, and the other members of the band came from playing covers gigs on the Gold Coast for our friends. When an opportunity came for Jonny to play an originals gig with a band, we all leapt at the chance, and The Vernons were born. Since then, we have been slowly picking up momentum, playing shows in Brisbane, Gold Coast, Byron Bay, and just recently Sydney.
 
 
LMM: How would you describe your music?
Continue reading Interview with The Vernons ahead of the 4 Walls Festival →

Interview, Quickies, Stuart Blythe

Interview with Bandito Folk ahead of the 4 Walls Festival

Bandito Folk chat with Life Music Media ahead of the 4 Walls Festival.


LMM: Tell us a little about Bandito Folk?

We have been togther for about 18 months, we all met doing music at QUT. Also we have taken Samba Dance Classes together for 15 of those months, which has helped us bond and become good mates. We have recently finished tracking our debut EP which is currently being mixed, this should be available in a few months. We have played at Brisbane Festival Speigletent in 2011, and will be again in 2012. In the last 12 months we have played at Zoo, Powerhouse and Black Bear Lodge, we are looking to do a tour to launch our upcoming EP around Nov-Dec 2012. You can check out our music through Facebook, Youtube and Triple J Unearthed.
 
 
LMM: How would you describe your music?

Epic Indie Folk
 
 
LMM: You’re playing at the 4 Walls Festival in August, are you looking forward to that?
Continue reading Interview with Bandito Folk ahead of the 4 Walls Festival →

Interview, Quickies, Stuart Blythe

Single Review: Art Of Sleeping – ‘Above The Water’

By Meghan Player
After the successful release of their single, ‘Empty Hands’, Brisbane 5-piece Art of Sleeping are about to release their latest single, ‘Above The Water’.

Not wasting any time, the track grabs your attention from the get go, with a wonderful, whimsical melody – beautifully complimented by frontman Caleb Hodges soulful, haunting vocals.

Drumming up comparisons to Grizzly Bear, the track progresses naturally, building into an achingly gorgeous chorus that grabs hold of your heart and mind. This is a band that not only grabs your attention, but deserve it.
Continue reading Single Review: Art Of Sleeping – ‘Above The Water’ →

Album Review, Meghan Player, Review

Album Review: Elliot The Bull – Elliot The Bull

By Meghan Player
With the local, and indeed international, alt rock/indie/folk sciences currently thriving thanks to the likes of Bon Iver, Grizzly Bear, Mumford & Sons and City & Colour – it was only a matter of time before the young Australian acts started enjoying some well-deserved attention.

Enter Central Coast quartet, Elliot The Bull.
Continue reading Album Review: Elliot The Bull – Elliot The Bull →

Album Review, Meghan Player, Review

Interview with Logan Bell – Katchafire

Katchafire lead vocalist Logan Bell takes time out with Life Music Media.

LMM: You’ve just completed a massive headline tour of the USA, playing quite a few iconic venues. How was that experience?

Logan Bell: The boys have been touring the USA quite hard for the last 7 years, and it has exploded, reggae scene in the USA is huge, our sound has been excepted among Americans and it’s really started to be noticed. We have sold out iconic venues such as The House Of Blues, headlined festivals like the Orange County Fair, and Sierra Nevada festival… All really big shows and amazing experiences!
 
 
LMM: I understand that a documentary is in the making?
Continue reading Interview with Logan Bell – Katchafire →

Interview, Stuart Blythe

Album Review | Breaking Orbit – The Time Traveller

Review by Billy Geary
Sydney four piece Breaking Orbit’s debut album The Time Traveller has been a long time coming, with a name change and some member shuffles preceding its release. The wait was certainly worth it, though. The Time Traveller has blown anything done by any other Australian progressively minded band out of the water, save for maybe Karnivool’s Sound Awake and Cog’s The New Normal. However, Breaking Orbit do things slightly differently, placing a heavy emphasis on the tribal and percussive elements in their sound. The result is a debut album of monolithic proportions.

The familiar amalgamation of heavy alternative and progressive genres is certainly apparent, however hints at tribal music and some dabbling in electronic samples ensure The Time Traveller stands out as a record in a vastly oversaturated scene. Opening track ‘Echoes’ is a slow burner with thudding bass guitar, soaring vocals and a distinct touch of post rock influence, immediately showing the band’s diversity. This trend continues throughout the record, with each track offering a different side of Breaking Orbit to the listener. Instrumental track ‘Machiguenga’ is the perfect example of this, featuring an array of tribal percussive instruments and flute passages.
Continue reading Album Review | Breaking Orbit – The Time Traveller →

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PARKLIFE 2012 LINE-UP

Parklife 2012 premieres the long awaited return of Australian electronic royalty The Presets. Armed with a new anthem “Youth In Trouble”, a new album (released September 2012) and a brand new live show, The Presets’ return will be massive, bold and electrifying on the Parklife stage. Over in Perth, Psychedelic rockers, Tame Impala have a brand new album in the works to follow their massive debut LP ‘Innerspeaker’, while Sydney ‘s Hermitude will showcase their hip-hop stylings to Parklife audiences.

Expect big things from electro-pop outfit Passion Pit when they return to our shores with their infectious sound and the release of their highly anticipated sophomore album ‘Gossamer’ (20th July 2012). Their fellow American indie darlings Chairlift, and hip-hop favourites Chiddy Bang join the line-up.
Continue reading PARKLIFE 2012 LINE-UP →

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Album Review: Marilyn Manson – Born Villain

Review by Sibel Kutlucan
Born Villain is the eighth full length album from Marilyn Manson and has been deemed as the “comeback” and its fourteen tracks definitely reflect the reinvention. It is unique, catchy and offensive, all elements that definitely emulate the colourful frontman.

Born Villain is a great album, and I dare say one of the best from Marilyn Manson. The album tells a story and the fourteen tracks have a clear beginning, middle and end. It has the usual shock tactics so iconics of the band with confronting lyrics, such as Pistol whipped with “You look so pretty when you cry. Don’t wanna hit you but the only thing, between our love is a bloody nose/a busted lip and a blackened eye”. However some of the songs portrayed a more personal side and definitely had depth. ‘The Gardener’ which opens with Marilyn Manson whispering “I’m not man enough to be human but I’m trying to fit in and I’m learning to fake it” seems to be autobiographical and has a fantastic dance party on acid vibe.
Continue reading Album Review: Marilyn Manson – Born Villain →

Album Review, Review, Sibel Kutlucan

Album Review: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – Here

Review by Sibel Kutlucan
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros have returned with their brand new second full-length album ‘Here’. The album is melodious, magical and yet sleep inducing. Having big shoes to fill after the popularity of their first album “Up from Below” (2009) and their hit single, “Home” they have made some distinct changes, some for the better and alas, some for the worst.

‘Here’ channels a relaxed 60’s vibe, with sing-a-longs, acoustic guitars and simple rhythms. It certainly hasn’t been as catchy for me as “Up from Below” and I was silently disappointed with how ‘tame’ it was mostly. With the opening track “Man on fire” frontman Alex Ebert singing “I want the whole damn world to come dance with me” and with the upbeat rhythm, I was anticipating an album that I could actually dance too or have something to really get into. Maybe it’s just me, but I did find it too smooth throughout after “Man on fire”; this wasn’t a particularly bad thing it just made more for background music and not something I would particularly go out of my way to listen to.

That being said they did have some high points for me, and ‘Mayla’ was definitely one. It was hypnotic and soothing, I just wanted to close my eyes and drift away. Its sweet ‘Kumbayah’ campfire sing-a-long quality was definitely something I could have on repeat if I just wanted to kick back and relax.

Jade Castrinos definitely has more of a primary singing position on ‘Here’, where she takes the lead on one of my preferred tracks, “Fiya Wata”. The track has more of a classic-rock sounding vibe in comparison to the rest of the 60s folk-rock sound on the album.

Ebert and co. have hinted at a third album coming out this year, and that the second release of 2012 with be the more ‘celebratory of the two’. Hopefully, we can expect another album with a bit more oomph. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros are quirky and lovable, they may not appeal to the masses but ‘Here’ was pleasant sounding and didn’t have any ugly bits. I’d say I wasn’t completely won over but I’ll definitely have a listen to their upcoming material.

6/10.

Review by Sibel Kutlucan

http://www.facebook.com/themagneticzeros

Album Review, Review, Sibel Kutlucan

Album Review: Cradle of Filth – Midnight in the Labyrinth

By Meghan Player
Cradle Of Filth have always been known for their signature take on the dark wave, gothic metal sound and grandiose theatrics. Latest offering, ‘Midnight in the Labyrinth’ – an orchestral selection of the bands first four albums – is no exception.

Opening with a glorious string section of sweeping, melodic sound ‘A Gothic Romance [Red Roses For The Devil’s Whore]’ pulls the listener into an album that not only celebrates the band, but reinvents the tracks that once pounded through your headphones.

‘The Twisted Nails of Faith’ sounds almost as if it has come straight from a melodramatic, theatrical musical – with striking strings, stirring vocals and choirs intertwining with frontman Dani Filth’s narrative growl.
Continue reading Album Review: Cradle of Filth – Midnight in the Labyrinth →

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Interview: Blu Avenue

Interview by Stuart Blythe
LMM: You’ve recently released your debut album “Sounds From The Escape”
Can you tell us about the song-writing and recording process?

Blu Avenue: We wanted Sounds from the Escape to try and be cohesive and yet have each song tell their own story. The songs themselves were all created at different times and we allowed each one time to evolve into what they became on the album. We gave them a taste of being played live as well as practicing them to get the songs to what they became. Honestly, some of them are still evolving even after recording them!

For us, as far as actually recording the songs, we wanted the sound of the album to emulate how we sound live as much as we could. We wanted the listener to hear our music and to see us live and be able to enjoy the music because it sounds like the album. So with that we set out to keep the sound as organic as possible. We really feel the album is a true representation of our live sound which is what we set out to do!
 
 
LMM: Your first single “Skydown” is getting rotation. For the uninitiated, how do you describe your sound

Blu Avenue: It is really hard for us to put a label on our sound. When you think of a certain genre tag you have an assumption of it will sound like. We love dynamics in our music and having the songs tell stories. For the new fans we normally say we are a progressive band but even then it’s hard for us to call it that! Our songs take different paths dependent on where each song takes us.
Continue reading Interview: Blu Avenue →

Interview, Stuart Blythe

Interview: Penny Hewson – Penny Hewson

Interview by Stuart Blythe
LMM: You’ve recently returned to Australia after 10 years in the USA.
How was the USA experience and what prompted your return to Australia?

Penny Hewson: I’d spent quite a bit of time traveling around the USA with my past bands prior to moving there, and although Los Angeles wasn’t necessarily at the top of my list of places I wanted to live I was able to create my own niche in amongst it all. I initially went over because I was offered a great job at the beginning of the dot-com boom to help musicians figure out how to navigate their way through the internet to connect with their fans and to empower bands to be a bit more DIY, etc. So it was a great opportunity for me to do something I was passionate about, one thing led to another, I made great friends, got into the buzz of life in a big city and all of a sudden a decade zoomed by. I was always going to be coming home to Australia, I just caught up in daily life over there and guess I was waiting for things to slow down. But LA never slows down! Ultimately I was really wanting to make this solo album but I just wasn’t in the right place to do it. I had to come home to Melbourne to find a certain “quietude” in order for it to happen.
 
 
LMM: You’re about to release your second solo album “It’s An Endless Desire”
How was the recording process and working with producer Phil Butson (Sea Stories)?
Continue reading Interview: Penny Hewson – Penny Hewson →

Interview, Stuart Blythe

Interview: Chris Hetherington – The Slow Push

The Slow Push are launching their 2nd album “Misshapen Giants” at Beetle Bar, Brisbane on 8 June 2012 (Click here).

Lead man Chris Hetherington of The Slow Push takes time out with Life Music Media…

:: What track changed your life ::
Through Being Cool by Devo.

:: What is your favourite Album ::
It changes with the seasons. I’m currently into Wild Flag by Wild Flag.

:: Name a band or artist we should checkout ::
Tiger Beams.

:: Favourite Quote ::
“When angry, count to four; when very angry, swear.”– Mark Twain.
Continue reading Interview: Chris Hetherington – The Slow Push →

Interview, Stuart Blythe

Live Review | The Ocean @ The Hi-Fi, Melbourne with Sydonia, Lo! – 26 May 2012

Review by Billy Geary
The OceanThe Ocean are one of the more interesting bands of the past few decades. The brainchild of guitarist Robin Staps, The Ocean has, over the years, morphed into one of the most forward thinking and innovative metal bands in the world. Their show at Melbourne’s Hi-Fi bar on Saturday night was the second last leg of their maiden tour of Australia, and what a night it was.

Upon descending the steps below Swanston Street, Sydney’s Lo! and their brand of chaotic hardcore was reverberating around the room and up the staircase. First impressions were good, with the quartet proving dynamic on the Hi-Fi’s stage. Front man Jamie-Leigh Smith screamed his way around the room, both on stage and off it and gradually won over an oddly surly audience over as their set progressed. Coming across as a mixture of Converge and Mastodon, the sludgy riffs from Carl Whitbread sounded huge over the PA, really driving the band’s sound into the punters present. At the conclusion of their set, it was more than obvious why they were hand picked by The Ocean to support the entire tour.
Continue reading Live Review | The Ocean @ The Hi-Fi, Melbourne with Sydonia, Lo! – 26 May 2012 →

Billy Geary, Live Review, Melbourne, Review

Interview: Thomas Oliver – The Thomas Oliver Band

Interview by Life Music Media

Ahead of their debut Australian headline shows The Thomas Oliver Band lead man Thomas Oliver takes time out with Life Music Media…

:: What track changed your life ::
Pleasure & Pain by Ben Harper, because it made me buy a lap-slide guitar.
 
 
:: What is your favourite Album ::
I can never decide between Dave Matthews Band : The Central Park Concert, and NOFX : So Long And Thanks For All The Shoes.

:: Favourite Quote ::
“Perfection is a quest, not a destination.”

:: When on tour, you can’t live without ::
My skateboard. There’s always something to do in fast food and supermarket carparks.
Continue reading Interview: Thomas Oliver – The Thomas Oliver Band →

Interview, Stuart Blythe