Tag Archives: new reviews

Extra Time Scores Again at International Film Festivals

June 25, 2024 Marshall Cullen

Extra Time, Brendan McNamara’s collaboration project, brings together premium artists on his newest labor of love, Songs With Long Titles.

The first two singles, Where Is The Light, and the current release The Girl Who Rules The Sea are available now alongside the album release.

Both singles have been brought to life by inspiring video clips, with both achieving high view numbers on YouTube and also capturing the attention of international reviewers.

Where Is The Light, released in January 2024, features animation by renowned Sydney-based Brazilian artist Gabriel Gareso. The video has been officially selected for Lift Off International Film Festivals in Berlin, Tokyo, Austin, and Manchester, while also making the official selection for the Richmond International Film Festival (RIFF), one of the Mid-Atlantic’s largest and most sought after international competitive festivals, and AniMate, the Australian International Animation Film Festival, now in it’s fifth year.

The video for Extra Time’s newest single, The Girl Who Rules The Sea, is brought to life through live drone and underwater footage shot by Leonard Clifford and Chris Flaxman, and motion art by renowned French artist Veronita Va, who brought to life McNamara’s concept of a Piet Mondrian artwork, drawing the eye to the ‘girl who rules the sea’ as she swims through the crystal blue waters of Bondi Beach.

Recent quotes:

“The soft jazz undertones add a calming element that is similar of peaceful beach days spent taking in the grandeur of the ocean and the peace that it provides after the chaos. More than just a song,”The Girl Who Rules The Sea’ is a love letter to Bondi Beach and an ode to the unsung heroes who have a profound effect on our lives.” - Skylight Webzine

“Extra Time stands as a testament to the power of genuine musical craftsmanship in an era dominated by digital enhancements. Renowned for its cinematic and harmonically rich compositions, the project blends intricate musical narratives with authentic performances.” - Fenomen Magazine

“The romantic track from Extra Time is a wonderful combination of light, airy music and deep, but at the same time light text that can fill everyone’s heart with a feeling of freedom. The melody is full of tenderness and emotions, giving an exhaustible opportunity to dissolve in it again and again. Music that comes from the very depths of the soul” -nagamag.com

The vinyl release of Songs With Long Titles is available now – a beautiful gatefold presentation released globally on Foghorn Records, recorded and mixed at one of the industry’s leading spaces, Damien Gerard Studios at West Gosford, featuring a veritable who’s who of Sydney Session Musicians including Amanda Easton and Serena Jennings on sublime female backing vocals, Tim Firth on Drums, Brett Hirst Bass Guitar, Aaron Blakey Keyboards, Peter Koopman Acoustic and Electric Guitar, plus Horns and Strings all engineered and mixed by ex-LA engineer Andrew Beck and mastered by Grammy Award Winner William Bowden.

Watch The Music Video for The Girl Who Rules The Sea

Stream the Album

Connect with Extra Time

News and Touring

BEC TAYLOR & THE LYREBIRDS “LIMBS & ALL” OUT NOW ON VINYL

June 21, 2024 Marshall Cullen

Limbs & All, the second album by Bec Taylor and the Lyrebirds is now available on vinyl through Foghorn Records, direct from the band at live shows, and Bandcamp - https://bectaylorandthelyrebirds.bandcamp.com/album/limbs-all

“A masterpiece of the folk-pop genre” – Sonic Realms Germany - https://sonicrealms.de/musik/alternative-indie/bec-taylor-and-the-lyrebirds-begeistern-mit-vielfaeltiger-und-tiefgruendiger-musik-auf-zweitem-album-limbs-all-audio-alternative-folk-pop-folk/

“Limbs & All” is chock full of moody alt-country and folk-pop gems that touch on loss, grief and joy. ‘Limbs & All’ is a collaborative album which features all five of the Lyrebirds on every song, weaving together a gentle americana-folk sound palette with acoustic and pedal-steel guitars, drums, bass, mandolin, keyboards, banjo and the Lyrebirds’ signature vocal harmonies.

Bec wrote the lion’s share of the songs while pregnant and nursing her first baby, and her sense of inner turmoil throughout the album is palpable. Whether it’s the darkly rhythmic and poetic ‘Wormhole’ or the elated but hesitant ‘Whisky’, this album is subtler and broodier than The Lyrebirds’ previous album, featuring connecting themes across songs. One example is the musical connection weaved into tracks ‘Photograph’ and ‘Goner’, referencing their sister-song origins, beginning as one song but evolving as two separate songs.

All recording and mixing was done by Louis Montgomery with some additional mixing on ‘Photograph’ by Marshall Cullen at Damien Gerard Studios, NSW. The album was mastered by Andrew Edgson at Studios 301.

Hidden treasures of the Canberra music scene, Bec Taylor and the Lyrebirds are a five-piece alt-folk-pop band. Described as Canberra’s Seeker-Lover-Keeper, their unique harmony-laden sound combines with “charming melodies and lyrics brimming with heart” (Scenstr).

REVIEWS OF Vinyl LP “LIMBS & ALL”

“Bec Taylor and the Lyrebirds have firmly established themselves as torchbearers of the alt-folk-pop genre, crafting a sound that is as timeless as it is timely.”

- Jamsphere – https://jamsphere.com/newreleases/discovering-emotional-landscapes-inside-bec-taylor-and-the-lyrebirds-limbs-all#google_vignette

“”Limbs & All” is a must-listen-to for fans of alt-folk-pop and anyone who appreciates music that touches the heart.” – Planet Singer - https://www.planetsinger.net/discovering-the-enchanting-sounds-of-bec-taylor-and-the-lyrebirds-with-their-brilliant-new-album-limbs-and-all/

“Bec’s voice is so special..it soothes like aloe on a cut.” – Indie Band Guru (NYC) - https://indiebandguru.com/bec-taylor-and-the-lyrebirds-limbs-and-all/

UPCOMING LIVE DATES

SATURDAY JUNE 29th TOMAKIN, NSW – Smokey Dan’s, 12pm with Jason Recliner

BEC TAYLOR & THE LYREBIRDS are…

Bec Taylor – vocals, acoustic guitar, mandolin, Hammond organ, felt-muted piano, percussion
Sam McNair – vocals, acoustic guitar, banjo
Sophie Chapman – vocals, bass guitar
Grahame Thompson – drums, cello
Hannah Beasley – vocals, wurlitzer piano
Matt Dixon – pedal steel guitar
Jacqui Bradley and Donal Baylor – violins