Tag Archives: rock

Slide Milligan Releases Debut Album ‘Blood Red River’

May 6, 2022 Marshall Cullen

Slide Milligan’s musical journey has been half a life in the making but sounds as exciting as the latest Australian Rock & Roll export being paraded around the world. After years and years of playing in bands through the late 80’s/90s, Dave “Slide” Milligan gave up his musical dreams to pursue a trade in rural fencing and woodworking. To unwind after working all day in the paddocks of rural Australia and his sawmill, Dave built himself a lap steel guitar.

Over the years he started to write a collection of exceptional songs that weren’t your usual “roots” music fare, mixing his hard rock background and his ability to tap into that authentic Australian sound. Despair and dread mixed with sunshine and water, and he caught the ear of local producers and with some help with production from Indie impresario Andy Clockwise (he was working on a fence on Clockwise’s farm when he was back from LA and the two lit a bonfire in the paddock), “Slide” has produced a psychedelic slide guitar masterpiece called “Blood Red River”. A pastiche of outlaw country, psychedelic post-punk & a different approach to the slide guitar. This music sounds familiar yet fresh in the current musical landscape. At the ripe old age of 52, this new artist is sure to make a splash in the country-indie-rock crossover here and abroad.

Song Descriptions
Feelin’ Fine
The track is an undeniable summer anthem in the vein of the Sunny Boys, Australian Crawl & The Church, and features vocals by Slide’s daughter Lani. The up-tempo “Australiana Classic” song rolls along with infectious melody and nostalgic production. Sure to resonate with fans of Classic Australian Pub Rock, Pink Floyd & Waylon Jennings.

Gasoline
Up-tempo drums begin this blues rock/indie tune. Produced by Andy Clockwise, who also did a brilliant job on the kit, this song is peppered with modern sounds but maintains a retro feel. Think Black Keys, Jack White and adding it to your list you can’t go wrong.

Slide Milligan – Blood Red River is out NOW (May 6th)
Foghorn/MGM

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John Kennedy Releases Raining Treasure Vol. 2

April 21, 2022 Marshall Cullen

Volume 2 of Raining Treasure from John Kennedy – iconic Aussie Indie Covers from the golden age – Physco, Shivers, The Nips are Getting Bigger to name a few

John Kennedy’s 2019 album Raining Treasure Vol.1 celebrated the golden era of Australian independent music from the late ‘70’s and the 80’s. This album, Raining Treasure Vol.2, goes both deeper and wider into the world of Australian indie music. Kennedy compiled a list of classic indie songs (and some obscurities) from that era and with his band, John Kennedy’s 68 Comeback Special, has covered songs from Radio Birdman, The Riptides, The Cruel Sea and more.

Some selections covered are likely to create controversy with indie music diehards. The Sports and Mental As Anything? Indie? Really? The Mentals released their records on Regular Records, the Sports on Mushroom; both Australian independent labels. The Angels ?!?! They were on pioneering Australian independent label Albert Productions. Weddings, Parties, Anything (WPA) were on major label WEA. What defines these songs as indie for Kennedy is the independent spirit of the music and the bands who originally recorded them.

An enthusiastic young music journalist once described John Kennedy as a humble genius. Kennedy is neither a genius nor particularly humble. He is the writer and performer of many fine songs, some of which have found a place in the hearts of music fans of the golden era of Australian independent music. Kennedy started his music career in Brisbane in the ‘80’s with his band JFK and the Cuban Crisis. The band moved to Sydney and after establishing itself on the indie music scene, broke up, leaving Kennedy to pursue a solo career with his band vehicle, John Kennedy’s Love Gone Wrong.

Despite numerous indie hits, commercial crossover proved to be elusive leading to his decision to leave Australia. Kennedy spent the ‘90’s living and playing music in Berlin, Hong Kong and London before returning to Sydney’s Inner West in 2000. He formed a new band, John Kennedy’s 68 Comeback Special and continues to perform and produce independent releases.

Over the years Kennedy has shared stages with many of the acts covered on this new album. His band members have come from or gone on to The Triffids, the Go-Betweens, Pop Mechanix and the Lime Spiders. The current line up of the band boasts its own fine indie pedigree. Long time drummer, Peter Timmerman was an original Love Gone Wrong member before moving on to the Widdershins.

Bassist Phil Hall played with Sardine v and the Dropbears. Guitarist Murray Cook started out with indie hopefuls Finger Guns before going on to form what is probably Australia’s most successful independent band, the Wiggles. Together with Kennedy they have created versions of these Australian indie classics, reinterpreting some, expanding some and celebrating them all.

The tracklist is:

The Album Launch Show is on the 6th of May @8pm
At the Petersham Bowling Club

Raining Treasure (Australian Indie Gold Covers Vol.2) is out now 22 April 2022,
on Foghorn Records through MGM.

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Drawing Arrows Release – This Space Between

March 28, 2022 Marshall Cullen

The new single and video for Drawing Arrows is Out Now on Foghorn/MGM

Have you felt like you in the same space as someone, but somehow a thousand miles apart? ‘This Space Between’ focuses on the feeling of how we are more connected and yet more isolated than ever.

The song itself feels like a rock anthem hiding inside a more radio-friendly track. Building to an amped up reprise at the end.

Drawing Arrows is a love letter to rock music. Not one band, not one decade, but the whole effect. With multiple influences – from Australian rock’n’roll, US grunge and flamenco guitar to Britpop rock and amped-up punk.

With band members from Spain, the UK and right here in Australia, each member brings their own unique influences. Sidney (vocals) and David (bass/guitar) have previously worked on an experimental dubstep project (Milo Firewater). Drawing Arrows is a creative outlet – a way to channel all their experiences – not just musically influences. The aim – to create music that feels good to play and to listen too.

Powderfinger, Radiohead, Arctic Monkeys, Nothing But Thieves and Queens of the Stoneage all inspired an authentic live sound that sits as well on stage as it does in your headphones.

This Space Between OUT NOW(Fog/MGM)

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Daxton Releases New Album ‘Electric Satellite’

February 18, 2022 Marshall Cullen

Long Awaited New Electric Blues album from slide and blues man Daxton out today February 18

Daxton releases his new album ‘Electric Satellite’, a twelve-track slide blues album with up-tempo spacious songs produced by Pat Dow and Marshall Cullen. Daxton has worked with Pat on many projects – someone who has a keen ear for Daxton’s rustic blues mixed with psychedelic pop/rock sounds.

The new album is Daxton’s seventh following the release in 2018 of ‘In Verses’ which features songs covering his favourite themes: life and death, the yin and yang of life, love and loss, while still keeping his always positive and up-tempo vibe.

Producing and playing music since his early teens, Daxton’s passion has kept him continually creating new material both for his band and solo career. On stage, Daxton comes across like he was born to play, his unique guitar style blending perfectly with heart-warming vocals.

Daxton has appeared at major festivals including the Sydney Blues & Roots and Tamworth Country Music Festival where he supported artists such as Kasey Chambers and Beccy Cole. He also has had one of his tracks ‘Moody Liz’ featured in the popular American TV series Doll House.

Based in Sydney, Daxton is best described as a blues/rock artist with a twist of pop and rock. He plays slide guitar rock/blues songs with a fresh and innovative sound. The new album ‘Electric Satellite is a heavy, rustic blues rock album with psychedelic pop/rock sounds.

Song Descriptions

Electric Satellite
The title track to the new album is a frenetic up-tempo post punk folk blues anthem. A full band and all the rocking bells and whistles to make it work.

High As A Kite
Bluesy slide guitar starts this classic Daxton tune. Catchy backing vocal ‘ooh ahs’ and full band including the classic Hammond organ, complete this mid-tempo tune.

Bad Tmes
Down and dirty blues from Daxton, featuring blues harp, slide guitar. Mid-tempo drums and bass, snappy guitar licks and riffs and the whole thing comes in at a rockin’ 2mins 47seconds.

Daxton – Electric Satellite is out NOW February 18th
Foghorn/MGM

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Kaijin Solo Releases New Single ‘Pretty Cool Hat’

February 11, 2022 Marshall Cullen

Pretty Cool Hat started as a response to anonymous emails from internet dating services. From there Kaijin moved to the search for the mystery that makes human relationships. Rather than complaining about what is wrong with Sydney, Kaijin reminisces about ‘The Cross’ and ‘Darlo’ in the 80’s.

Kaijin Solo is a contemporary singer/songwriter based on the NSW Central Coast with a blues rock influence.

He has been working and honing his craft for many years with various band line-ups and the plentiful bread and butter busking jobs and pub/club gigs around the coast (most recently at Link and Pin in Woy Woy). With the advent of Covid, Kaijin spent the downtime working on new material which resulted in the recording and release of a number of tracks last year.

Song Description
Pretty Cool Hat
Strong drums, bass and guitar start this retro rock tune from Kaijin Solo. Mid-tempo with a driving chorus full of catchy hooks. Kaijin’s Dylanesque vocals and lyrics weave in and out to complete the picture.

A Night In Sydney
Mid-tempo classic rock from Kaijin Solo comes to life on this narrative song of Sydney back in the hey days of Kings Cross and Darlinghurst by night. The band are rocking and Kaijin’s Marshall stack powered guitars puts the cream on the cake.

Pretty Cool Hat is OUT TODAY February 11th – via MGM
All DSP’s

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Thirty Three Degrees Release New Single ‘Drinking On My Own’

February 4, 2022 Marshall Cullen

Something many of us can relate to coming out of lockdown – the brand new single from Thirty Three degrees – “Drinking On My Own”

Shane Romeyn lead singer and principal writer talks about the new single – : “This song came about in an instant when Chris started playing a Johnny Cash type rolling drum beat. From the outset it felt like a fun song which didn’t need over thinking in its structure or anything to take away its light heartedness. The cords just instantly came and before I knew it the theme was going to be a light hearted crack at falling out with your loved one and nothing you say or do gets you back in the good books. You end up drinking on your own! I’m sure many people have been there before.”

Thirty Three Degrees are an original rock band with a strong groove and some rootsy vibes, from the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia.

After a brief hiatus from the music scene, Shane decided to re-enter the music world and search for like-minded musicians to write and perform with. At this same time, Chris was re-entering Australia from Los Angeles with the same goal. Thanks to musician classifieds on social media, the two met up and at the end of January 2020, Shane Romeyn and Chris Roberts formed the band.

The good vibes and good songs flowed out immediately. Due to COVID-19 gigs were off the table for the most part, so with the temporary assistance and amazing bass work of Chris’ brother Mike, the band decided to instead enter the studio and recorded their debut album.

Song Description

Drinking On My Own
Up-tempo snappy drums start this rocking new single from Thirty Three Degrees. The band kick in and with the song being all about ‘drinking’, the vocals, guitar licks and solo are appropriately gauged. You certainly get the vibe pretty quickly.

Out Now Feb 4 On Foghorn/MGM

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Grant Stevens releases single V8 Sandman

November 16, 2021 Marshall Cullen

Irreverence, style, art, honesty, dynamism and the growl of guitars – this is musician and composer Grant Stevens. His metaphor laden lyrics have positioned him as one of the best songwriters in Germany where he has had successes such as “Everlasting Friends” which was used as a television jingle for Holsten Pilsener in Europe, and another of his singles “Sage Ha!” which entered the pop charts in Germany and Europe.

He has recorded several albums and EPs for his bands Nervous Germans, The Soho Jets and Razar, produced by Kit Lambert (producer for The Who).

His music is guitar driven rock with a big dollop of blues and a little twist of country. It’s also melodic with lyrics that reflect his life experiences and engage with the audience. It’s sometimes uplifting and sometimes downright depressing and aggressive, but hey that’s life, reflecting the range of universal human feelings that everybody has at one time or another.

Grant is an Australian artist based in Berlin since the 70’s, giving rise to a musical career full of achievements, as you can find in his Wikipedia profile:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant_Stevens

After successful tours of Europe and the composition of several musicals of great projection in Germany, Grant presents his new musical album Devil’s Machinery to be released in February 2020.

The first single “V8 Sandman” is a classic blues-rock tune inspired by the memories that many had in the classic Australian 70’s cult wagon of the same name. V8 Sandman brims with energy and life, providing a petrol fuelled boost to your day.

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Daxton Releases New Single Otherside

November 12, 2021 Marshall Cullen

Based in Sydney, Daxton is best described as a blues/rock artist with a twist of pop and rock. He plays slide guitar rock/blues songs with a fresh and innovative sound. The new album ‘Electric Satellite’ is a heavy, rustic blues rock album with psychedelic pop/rock sounds scheduled for release in 2022.

Daxton’s raw and bluesy acoustic guitar and harmonica begin this laid-back mid-tempo blues tune. The drums and bass come in from the chorus to fill out the mix and some subtle guitar riffs add to the hooks. Daxton’s vocal delivery is heartfelt and real, a perfect match to the music.

The song was recorded at home during the recent lockdown. Daxton and his collaborator guitarist Pat Dow, both working in isolation, found a new musician friendly digital recording software system which they both downloaded and were able to swap files back and forwards. The entire album was recorded in this way and just shows how far technology has come as the end result speaks for itself.

Daxton – Otherside is out NOW
Foghorn/MGM

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Halfway Homebuoy Release New Single The River

November 4, 2021 Marshall Cullen

It’s been a strange path for Halfway Homebuoy to finally end up as ‘based’ on the NSW Central Coast, an hour north of Sydney. The band was formed almost 10 years ago on the ski slopes of Switzerland where all of the (then) members were working the season and playing shows at night.

With three Englishmen and one Aussie the band moved out here and were recommended to Foghorn Records where they quickly found a home. As things happen after a few years the visa’s ran out, the Aussie moved back to Europe and the sole remaining member, principal writer and singer, Jack Davison, married an Aussie and stayed here. Unfortunately, he was left without a band.

Not to be deterred, Jack found local musicians, new songs were written, live shows booked, a new album released, the band continued on. With Eps, Albums and live recordings released, airplay on national radio including Triple M the boys were well received from the start.

Now based on the coast and with a new record almost finished the guys are ready to reboot post lockdown into 2022.

All the Homebuoy recordings have been made at Damien Gerard Studios, first in Balmain and now, the new album at the new facility in West Gosford. With Andrew Beck engineering and co-producing, Jack says, “DG’s has always made us sound magical, and the new spot is no exception, not to mention close to home”. The new record features new material, some penned by Jack and others written by the whole band in preparation for the recording session. The new songs continue the bands’ own UK/Euro/Aussie rock style with the additions of extra guitar and keys adding interesting layers. Russell Pilling is the mixing engineer and has just finished these two songs mastered by Andrew Beck – the first taste of the new album.

Song Descriptions
The River
The first single from Halfway Homebuoy for 2021 features a powerful guitar and drum intro along with some Chilli Pepper’s like bass runs. Jack’s power vocals soar over the mix and the solo guitar has some brilliant hooky riffs. An up-tempo rock song, closes out with some strong backing vocals.

Kick Me Out
Acoustic guitar and vocals begin this mid-tempo song that carries till the band kick in with a strong rhythm and guitar bed. The chorus is truly anthemic with backing vocal and keyboard layers intermingling to create a very catchy and memorable tune.

The River is OUT NOW – November 5th via MGM

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Jack Nolan Gabriel album launch Live Show

November 3, 2021 Marshall Cullen

‘The GABRIEL Album Launch’

Book here – Tickets

Friday 12 November,
8pm
The Red Velvet Room
Upstairs at The Coogee Diggers
2 Byron Street Coogee

Support Australian music & musicians

After all these crazy months, we’re finally live again.

Join me and the band at the Red Velvet Room – upstairs at the Coogee Diggers, 2 Byron Street, to release and celebrate the critically acclaimed LP ‘Gabriel’, released earlier this month.

Get your VINYL copy at the show.

Come and support Australian music and check out my great band.

Jack Nolan – Acoustic & electric Guitars

Travis New – Electric Guitars – Andrew Farris INXS, Mi-Sex, Imogen Clark

Andy Horvath – Drums – Casey Donovan, Adam Brand, Boney M, O’Shea, Jack Vidgen, Cyrus, Vanessa Amorosi, Kate DeAraugo, to name a few.

Tim Sampson – Base – Andrew Farris /Christine Anu

Check Out Jack Nolan’s New Website

Gabriel is Jack Nolan’s fifth solo album, and the first album he’s yielded to someone he trusted enough to produce: This is an album that mines its own carefully sculpted acoustic world with a profoundly atmospheric sense of place, and a depth of self-knowledge that speaks of arrival after a lifetime of sometimes hard, sometimes tender experience.

The genesis, Gabriel came to Jack a few years ago, sat at his side on a long desert drive that he wasn’t sure he’d come back from. The title track, in its own unhurried and roundabout way, eventually found itself in Nashville, USA, on an album completed just before COVID-19 wrought its havoc on the world.

Atonement is upfront in titles like The Hopeless Son and Restitution Song. Others — Tomorrow Came, Faster Than the Speed of Change, A Fool Would Follow Me — are deeper stocktakes, songs from life’s rear view mirror. Ghosts of people and places and other, maybe darker things, receding for sure, but too close to ignore.

Produced by Justin Weaver and captured on two-inch tape in the aptly named ‘Welcome to 1979’ Studios by engineer Chris Mara, the assembled band included drummer Jimmy Paxson, bassist Chris Autry, keys player Phil Towns and pedal steel player David Spires who were joined by backup singers Terri Lynn Weaver & Siobhan Maher Kennedy. Justin himself applied the deeply textured lead and electric guitars.

Gabriel, is a record offering up evocative, ethereal stories, perhaps best signalled on the album’s title track, with Nolan singing “Endless lanes /endless cars // In the absence /of stars” reminding us of this new world, turned on its axis in 2020/21.

Video

Gabriel is OUT NOW Oct 8 Quay Records/MGM.
Vinyl LP, CD and Digital

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The Album Launch Show is on the 6th of May @8pm At the Petersham Bowling Club

Out Now Feb 4 On Foghorn/MGM

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Daxton – Otherside is out NOW Foghorn/MGM

‘The GABRIEL Album Launch’

Book here – Tickets

Friday 12 November, 8pm The Red Velvet Room Upstairs at The Coogee Diggers 2 Byron Street Coogee

Video

The Album Launch Show is on the 6th of May @8pm
At the Petersham Bowling Club

Daxton – Otherside is out NOW
Foghorn/MGM

Friday 12 November,
8pm
The Red Velvet Room
Upstairs at The Coogee Diggers
2 Byron Street Coogee