Review by: Ben Connolly
There’s a warmth to Colin Hay’s vocals which instantly resonates. There’s no confusion as to what’s to be expected when an acoustic guitar and that Scottish-via-Sydney vocal kicks in. Like others of his ilk – namely Robert Forster, Paul Kelly and to a lessor extent The Church’s Steve Kilbey – his peculiar brand of Australian-ness swells the heart and instantly proves to be a soothing salve.
Suffering from an abundance of talent by a fairly lackadaisical approach to career direction, Hay’s name seems to have dropped out of the contemporary consciousness. Save for the odd appearance on an American sitcom (he seems to be the darling of the US medical satire Scrubs) and a recent legal stoush thanks to an opportunistic claim for copyright infringement, Hay has been relatively out of the public eye since the 1985 implosion of Men at Work.
Continue reading Colin Hay – “Gathering Mercury” – Album Review
Pushking’s new album, “The World As We Love It” certainly isn’t for the faint-hearted! The album packs a punch with 19 tracks selected from an extensive back catalogue, and featuring a smorgasbord of rock legends, from 
Wings teases the listener with 6 tracks, each as unique as the other, broadcasting the diversity of the Bloodpoets style. It is great to hear real instruments amongst so much of the heavily synthesised and edited muck that is disguising itself as music nowadays. 
Take One For The Team, the second full-length album from Sydney pop punk act Heroes For Hire definitely has a strong pop punk sound that plants them on the same page of any well known Fueled by Ramen band. 
Monday was another delightful mix of new discoveries and big names, with a good dose of puppetry and performance art thrown in.
Musical legacies are fickle beasts. For the privileged few, early bravado can lead to a lifetime of open doors and opportunities; for most, thorough, their own massive shoes are rarely filled again, leaving a life of painfully striving either to attain the same heights, or failing to convince the world that there’s more to give. For those at the pinnacle, the ones whose exploits drew a definite line with which others would measure themselves, this is arguably even more acute: audiences are liable to bay for more brilliance, and are vocally deflated when their lofty expectations are not met (take, for example, the expectation of larger-than-myth Bob Dylan, whose audience is rudimentary brought down to earth every time his never-ending tour juggernaut rolls through town).
It was Easter Sunday, the sun was shining over Bluesfest and the Crossroads tent was gearing up to celebrate with a solid block of gospel, soul and blues, kicked off by the enigmatic, effervescent powerhouse Mavis Staples and Her Band.
Celebrated actor and director turned musician Tim Robbins, touring Australia on the back of his debut CD with the Rogues Gallery Band, brought a mixture of blues, country and a dash of sing-a-long to the Jambalaya tent on Saturday. Robbins, on guitar and vocals, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself, rumbling through Folsom Prison Blues before festival superstar and all-round maestro Trombone Shorty joined the Rogues for “Oh Mary Don’t You Weep”. A change of tempo and “Crush On You”, inspired by the young victim of a hate crime, demonstrated a simple approach, buoyed by beautiful instrumentation, as was a gorgeous, measured cover of Tom Waits’ “All The World Is Green”. Featuring the sweet wail and wallow of a musical saw over vocal harmonies, it was easily the high point of their set.
Despite dismal forecasts, the weather held out for music lovers as they descended onto the Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm in Byron Bay, the new site for Australia’s premiere Blues and Roots Music Festival. Now extended to cover six days, campers and eager punters slowly edged their way into the grounds, with staff and volunteers doing their best to ensure that parking, setup and entry was relatively painless. The wet grounds were eclipsed by the buzz of excitement, a busy energy punctuating the usually laidback Byron feel. 
