Photographer: Krista Melsom
Continue reading Photo Gallery : Elision at The Basement, Canberra – 14 April 2021Tag Archives: The Basement
Photo Gallery : Thornhill at The Basement, Canberra – 14 April 2021
Photographer: Krista Melsom
Continue reading Photo Gallery : Thornhill at The Basement, Canberra – 14 April 2021Photo Gallery : Bloom at The Basement, Canberra – 14 April 2021
Photographer: Krista Melsom
Continue reading Photo Gallery : Bloom at The Basement, Canberra – 14 April 2021Photo Gallery : Okilly Dokilly w/ Dr Colossus at The Basement, Canberra – 12 February 2020
Live Review : Blackberry Smoke + Adam Eckersley Band at The Basement, Sydney – March 23, 2016
Review and photos by Peter Coates
Support act, the Adam Eckersley Band from the NSW Central Coast, took to the stage fresh from their CMC Rocks appearance and delivered a set of country-style folk-rock, full of Aussie attitude with a mean twin-acoustic guitar attack.
The band is pretty laid-back with lovely, easy harmonies with some raw emotion in the vocals and gave us a highlight set of ‘The First Album’ and the more recently released ‘The Second Album’. The crowd particularly enjoyed the acoustic solo from Adam in ‘Wheels’ and the set-closer featured some great interplay between the various band members, featuring drums, keyboards and bass. A terrific warm-up set from a great local outfit.
Blackberry Smoke are from Atlanta, Georgia, and have been linked to the stable of The Zac Brown Band for some of their earlier releases. They have been recording and touring for over 10 years, since the release of first album ‘Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime’ in 2004.
The lineup consists of Charlie Starr (lead vocals, guitar), Richard Turner (bass, vocals), Brit Turner (drums), Paul Jackson (guitar, vocals), and Brandon Still (keyboards). While the band is one tight country-rock outfit, there is no doubting the talent and sheer presence of front-man Charlie Starr, with a powerful vocal delivery, sharp moves and great guitar playing.
This is the band’s first visit to Australia for the Bluesfest in Byron Bay, so an early show in Sydney is a great way to see this critically-acclaimed southern country-rock band in an intimate setting. This will be the first and last time we will get to see the band play to 250 people in this country!
‘Holding All The Roses’ is the latest and fourth full-length album from early 2015, but their set was drawn from all four studio albums opeing up with ‘Six Ways’, ‘Let Me help You’ and ‘Like I Am’, before really warming the place up with ‘Pretty Lil Lie’. The crowd knew most of the songs and Charlie Starr was delighted with the response and the frequent singalongs!
The Turner boys on bass and drums must be the most laconic rhythm section doing the rounds, but rock solid with it. Lots of keyboards give some of the songs an atmospheric jazz-fusion feel with some great Hammond organ and honky-tonk piano from Brandon Still, particularly in the extended workout of ‘Sleeping Dogs’ and ‘Holy Ghost’ – but the band never strays far from the electric guitar-based core of the music.
The set rolled on with two cracking tracks in ‘Wish In One Hand’ and my favourite from the latest album, ‘Payback’ which is just a great rock song with a cool story. Title track of the previous record, ‘Whippoorwill’ almost felt like early Pink Floyd in the beginning but rolled into some great guitar work from both Paul Jackson and Starr with a glorious piano and organ solo from Stills.
The songs kept coming, with the simplest of ballads written about Manette, Alabama, One Horse Town, and then a retreat into 1980’s classic rock with ‘Up In Smoke’, contrasting the ballad with rumbling riffs and a wailing solo. The energy started building through ‘Ain’t Got The Blues’ and the enormous-sounding ‘Holding All The Roses’ with more killer riffs and a false ending before the raucous close.
‘Shake Your Magnolia’ closed the set as another upbeat piano and guitar-driven track before the encores brought the band back out, Starr in a tasteful hat, for ‘Too High’, new song ‘Let It Burn’, and the signature southern rock anthem of ‘Ain’t Much Left’.
Good luck Bluesfest – these guys are going to bring the deep south all the way to Bryon Bay this weekend – Do Not Miss Blackberry Smoke!
Click here to view our photos from the show
Headliner: Blackberry Smoke – www.blackberrysmoke.com
Support: Adam Eckersley Band – www.adameckersleyband.com
Venue: The Basement, Sydney Australia
Date: March 23, 2016
Photographer: Peter Coates – www.facebook.com/InsideEdgePhotography
Photo Gallery : Blackberry Smoke + Adam Eckersley Band at The Basement, Sydney – March 23, 2016
Janiva Magness – Bluesfest Sideshows Announced – March 2016
Along with her world-class road band, Detroit-born Blues powerhouse Janiva Magness will bring her dynamic live show to Australia in 2016.
With 25 Blues Music Award nominations and seven wins over an illustrious career spanning eleven albums, Janiva is a powerful vocalist with timbre likened to Melissa Etheridge and Bonnie Raitt.
Continue reading Janiva Magness – Bluesfest Sideshows Announced – March 2016
FRANK TURNER – Australia & New Zealand Tour – April 2015 ** Supports Confirmed **
Supporting Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls this April, Jon Snodgrass (Drag The River) brings his raucous live set to stages nationally, with a sense of humour and ability to instantly engage an audience. For The Love of Punk declared, “his voice has a breathiness that lingers in the background, allowing him to create really tender moments and then surprise you when he really pushes his tone and achieves a mellow yet strong timbre.”
Some great local additions including Lincoln Le Fevre, Isaac Graham, Dan Cribb and Luke Carlino round out the bills. Details below…
Continue reading FRANK TURNER – Australia & New Zealand Tour – April 2015 ** Supports Confirmed **
The Black Dahlia Murder – Australian & NZ Tour – June 2015
Having dropped five genre-defining albums since forming in 2001 The Black Dahlia Murder have made it impossible to discuss melodic death metal without the mention of their name. They are hands down (or horns up?) one of the most popular bands in the extreme metal realm, TBDM will close off their touring cycle for their monstrous 2013 release Everblack with an Australian and New Zealand tour this June!
Continue reading The Black Dahlia Murder – Australian & NZ Tour – June 2015
JEFF MARTIN ‘Returning From The Ocean’ Solo Acoustic Australian Tour 2015
Following a mammoth year of recording and touring in Canada and Australia, JEFF MARTIN will hit the road in solo acoustic mode nationally from March through to May on his ‘Returning From The Ocean At The End’ tour.
Armed with a bunch of new material under his belt, don’t miss Jeff Martin as he performs around the country this Autumn. Expect to hear acoustic versions of tracks from ‘The Ocean At The End’, as well as some classic Tea Party…and the odd little surprise. Dates below:
Continue reading JEFF MARTIN ‘Returning From The Ocean’ Solo Acoustic Australian Tour 2015
Photo Gallery | Guy Pearce – The Basement, Sydney – November 19, 2014
Photos By Meghan Player
Continue reading Photo Gallery | Guy Pearce – The Basement, Sydney – November 19, 2014
Live Review | Guy Pearce – The Basement, Sydney – November 19, 2014
By Meghan Player
There is a certain level of cringing that is associated with actors becoming musicians, and vice-versa. For the most part, the “music” feels dishonest, an attempt at another cash-grab – that feels about as genuine as a snake oil merchant.
For Guy Pearce, tonight is quite the test. Not only launching his debut album, Broken Bones, but also preparing to break down the boundaries of being pigeon-holed as an actor.
Continue reading Live Review | Guy Pearce – The Basement, Sydney – November 19, 2014
BOUND FOR RUIN | ‘Victim To Villain’ Tour | June/July 2014 *UPDATED*
Brisbane’s hardcore champs, Bound for Ruin are taking one last run around the country with their brand new single, From Victim to Villain. Releasing the track as a single, signals the last release from their album “Oblivion” before they move into new album recording phase. The boys are taking the opportunity to do one great big last hurrah to the album for the fans and then are going to bunker down putting all of their effort into a new slab of their melodic hardcore for release in 2015.
They are taking the single all around the country, taking in QLD, NSW, VIC, SA and WA in a round-the-country run that would usually test the mettle (metal?) of many a band. They take in iconic venues around the country such as Crowbar in Brisbane, the Cooly at the Gold Coast, Bald Faced Stag in Sydney and The Basement in Canberra.
Continue reading BOUND FOR RUIN | ‘Victim To Villain’ Tour | June/July 2014 *UPDATED*
RICHARD BONA Journeys to Australia – November 2010
The electrifying Cameroonian bassist and singer Richard Bona is coming to Australia with his band for the very first time. This is destined to be a wonderful, genre-bending tour that takes in Sydney and Melbourne before finishing up at the famous Adelaide International Guitar Festival which is curated by Slava Grigoryan.
Richard’s band for his first Australian outing includes a handful of fine contemporary musicians – Etienne Declin Stadwijk on keyboards, Lee Tatum Greenblatt on trumpet, Jean Christophe Marie Maillard on guitar, and Ernesto Siverio Simpson on drums. |
Continue reading RICHARD BONA Journeys to Australia – November 2010
Live Review: Jeff Martin @ The Basement, Sydney – 7th May 2010
Review: Ben Hosking
Arriving at Sydney’s iconic Basement at around 8.30pm, one could have been forgiven for thinking that they were arriving early enough to catch a decent viewing point of the stage. Alas, walking into the dimly-lit venue an hour before the scheduled start time – past rows and rows of cattle-like drunken Friday night inner city executives at the bars next door – actually saw punters encounter an already half full concert space.
Clearly, this was going to be a big night.
Thanks to a complete lack of any advertised information, the evening’s opening acts seemed to catch a lot of people unaware, including this reviewer. However, despite the complete rudeness of the audience, both performed well; Brisbane singer/songwriter Pear (aka Stephanie Barros Lees) providing the surprise performance of the night.
Continue reading Live Review: Jeff Martin @ The Basement, Sydney – 7th May 2010