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M.E. Baird Spotlight 0

M.E. Baird is a Singer-Songwriter and Artist. For M.E. Baird music and art is much more than just pursuits. They are his life force and foundation. M.E. Baird yields from the songbook of Folk, Rock and Blues with his own original interpretations that are enigmatic, deeply emotive, and visually rich.  His live performances are nothing short of compelling with his lamenting vocal style and singular stage presence.  Since beginning his career in 1992, M.E. Baird has toured nationally, and internationally, has written, and recorded four albums and several Up’s.  He has also contributed songs to compilations and soundtracks including original compositions for film and television internationally. Yet, he is practically unknown in his own country.

In 2014, M.E. Baird recorded FALL in Melbourne. His first truly solo album in twenty years. Due to personal circumstances and relocation north to New South Wales the album wasn’t officially released until May 2016.  FALL was an album burdened with personal tragedy, loss and grief resulting in an unavoidable sorrowful feel to the material.  The Album received critical acclaim and was hailed for its emotive intensity.

M.E. Baird’s follow up solo album and 5th long player, TIME is a tad more upbeat. At its core the album is a lyrical and sonic journey through age, experience and a testament to the passing of ‘time’. The tracks on TIME individually explore varied sub texts ranging from belonging, coming of age, corruption, migration, fortune, misfortune, contempt, loneliness and the joy of being alone.

All tracks for the album were written in the winter of 2016 and recording of the album began in the following winter. The album was recorded at Wild Mountain Sound Studio, Brisbane located amongst the sublime beauty of Mt Nebo’s Eucalyptus forests. The album was produced by producer/musician, Jamie Trevaskis.  Jamie and M.E. Baird had mused for some time about recording a new album together, with Jamie playing a leading and creative role in the co- production of the album.  When recording began it became instantly clear that Jamie, as a collaborator was be able to transport the songs sonically into a universe far beyond the ordinary.

It was important for the songs narrative to tell Jamie Trevaskis where the song/story needed to go sonically. Where a song needed to be tough, it had to be threatening, where it needed to be honest, it needed to be candid, where there was tenderness, it must be achingly forgiving and where there’s was anger, it’s uncompromised.  It was creatively vital that the album not pander to any genre, audience or expectations, of course, there is some hat tipping and influences evident; it would be arrogant to pretend otherwise. Both Jamie and M.E. Baird wanted to show that it is an album born of maturity, rigour, determination, and patience.

With this album there was a return to how M.E. Baird made records in the past. All tracks were recorded to analogue tape, predominantly live and with very little overdubs. This was done not for nostalgic reasons but for a more ‘authentic’ audio representation. It also places more emphasis on musicianship rather than software know-how and digital trickery.

In regards to band members, most notable in the line up is Welsh/Australian songstress Sali Bracewell with her piano/keyboard skills and extraordinary vocal talents.  Sali’s vocal dexterity is featured on many of the songs but most clearly on the title track, Time and My Girl. Also key to the process was long time collaborator, Hannah Jane who provided her distinctive and haunting string arrangements, violin playing and virtuous vocals.  Seconded from Brisbane, bands Sacred Shrines and Hillsborough for the rhythm section were new friends, Phil Usher on drums and Robbie Zawada on bass, truly two of Brisbane’s finest musicians.  Lastly, but certainly not least, was notable Brisbane singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Skye Staniford who provided percussion. The album was Mastered by Andy ‘The Master’ Stewart at The Mill Mixing and Mastering, studio, Gippsland, Victoria, Australia.”

http://www.mebairdmusic.com
https://soundcloud.com/mebaird
http://www.facebook.com/mebairdpage

Melbourne Synth Festival 0

MELBOURNE SYNTH FESTIVAL
NOVEMBER 23-25
Meat Market, North Melbourne

There are a number of ways you can experience the Melbourne Synth Festival and get great value.

A Festival ticket will get you a wristband to the Friday Night launch event featuring Luke Million, Emah Fox, Beatrice and Honeysmack. Plus entry to the exhibition and seminars program over the weekend.

There are Weekend and Day tickets which include the exhibition and a great chance to see try and buy the latest gear, plus the seminar and workshops program plus 10 great acts live.

Mumford & Sons + Michael Kiwanuka Australian Tour 0

Making stops in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, the comprehensive run will see the wildly popular Mumford & Sons reconnect with a fanbase hungry for new material nearly four years after the release of their previous ARIA #1 album Wilder Mind. With new single ‘Guiding Light’ released last month, Mumford & Sons have once again proven, they are in the form of their lives.

Speaking about the new album, lead singer Marcus Mumford has said that Delta represents a place where “order meets chaos and shelter meets wilderness”. In this observation, he could easily be referring to the bands’ infamous knack for sweeping, organised musical tumult.

Recorded over the past two years with Paul Epworth (Adele, U2, London Grammar) at his Church Studios in North London, the release aims to capture Mumford & Sons at their impassioned and muscular best. It transfixes on the transitional elements that give meaning to life itself.

Transition has been a theme for Mumford & Sons since they first burst into our lives almost nine years ago with their iconic debut single ‘Little Lion Man’. With that Hottest 100 topping release they ushered in a new era of melodically stunning heart-on-sleeve folk that was recognized the world over.

Masters of the call-to-arms, the band then went on a wildly successful run as their albums Sigh No More, Babel and Wilder Mind sold into the millions. They were awarded the Album of the Year Grammy in 2013 (for Babel) and their songs ‘I Will Wait’, ‘The Cave’ and ‘Roll Away Your Stone’ have entered the public lexicon as rousing anthems to be sung in full-throated unison.

Always a huge hit on this side of the planet, Mumford & Sons were last in the country in 2015, where they closed out their wildly successful Wilder Mind Tour in Sydney with their special Gentlemen of the Road one-day festival.

In a coup for Antipodean fans, the upcoming tour will see the band return to our shores in one of their first major international runs after Delta’s release on November 16 this year.

Michael Kiwanuka signaled his arrival as one of the UK’s most distinctive new voices in 2012 with his vintage soul imbued debut album, Home Again.  It was a voice that sounded both rich and timeless, and the young Londoner received widespread critical acclaim. 2016’s Love & Hate LP was a different beast entirely, produced by Danger Mouse it was one of the year’s great peerless records and picked up support across the globe, earning Michael his first number 1 album in the UK, and his first Brit Award nominations too.  Having toured the globe alongside a very special collection of musicians, Michael Kiwanuka is a true artist of distinction, and with the best almost certainly yet to come.

Secret Sounds Present
MUMFORD & SONS 
DELTA AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2019
WITH SPECIAL GUEST MICHAEL KIWANUKA 

PRE-SALE: 2PM WEDNESDAY 10 OCTOBER UNTIL 8AM FRIDAY 12 OCTOBER LOCAL TIME
GENERAL SALES (EXCLUDING PERTH): 9AM FRIDAY 12 OCTOBER LOCAL TIME
PERTH GENERAL SALES: 8AM FRIDAY 12 OCTOBER LOCAL TIME
SECRETSOUNDS.COM

TUE 15 JAN          ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE                      BRISBANE                     QLD

FRI 18 JAN           QUDOS BANK ARENA                                SYDNEY                         NSW

TUE 22 JAN          SIDNEY MYER MUSIC BOWL                    MELBOURNE                 VIC

THU 24 JAN         ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE                        ADELAIDE                      SA

SUN 27 JAN         RAC ARENA                                                 PERTH                            WA

Paul Andrews - Drums 0

Paul Andrews was a founding member and chief singer/songwriter in Sydney band Lazy Susan and the driving force behind its four albums, six EPs, and countless national and international tours. Shortly after Lazy Susan played their final gig, Paul began writing songs for a new project that was eventually to become Family Fold.  Fast forward to late 2017 and Family Fold’s second album, Ashfield Skyline took shape under the masterful watch of Nashville producer Brad Jones. A recently released single from Ashfled Skyline, ‘Molly Meldrum’s Eyes’ is cut from the same easy, laid back Americana cloth of Wilco’s ‘Being There’, the Jayhawks’ ‘Hollywood Town Hall’, and Gold Smog’s ‘Weird Tales’.  Built around harmonica, slide guitar and honky tonk piano, it is an evocation of 70s and 80s Australia; of the immeasurable influence ‘Countdown’ had on a generation of music-mad young people.

‘Ashfield Skyline’ will be released on October 5th. Ahead of the album release, Paul Andrews was kind enough to proffer a musician profile for us.

Even though I’m the singer-songwriter and rhythm guitarist in Family Fold, the drums were my first instrument and they’re what I enjoy playing the most. I really don’t know anything about mics and guitars (other than what sounds good), but I know a lot more about drums. So that’s why I chose this category.

What was your first kit like?
It was a Century drum kit, second hand, in high school. The guy I bought it off was in a band with my friends and had been at closing down sale for an instrument shop where everything had been priced to clear. The crowd grew massive before the doors opened and things got out of control and he was pushed through the front glass window. They gave him the kit for free to make up for it. But not long after he started playing, he realised he was going deaf. So I bought it from him for a couple of hundred, albeit with no cymbals, and joined the band the next day.

What was your first band t-shirt?
A Neil Young and the Lost Dogs Australian tour t-shirt in 1989. I wore it until it disintegrated.

A record that changed your life?
George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass. No record has ever meant as much to me.

What’s your regular kit set up?
I’ve got a Ludwig Classic Maple that I splurged on a few years back.

Is it the same for recording?
If I’m playing drums on a recording, I like going somewhere that has access to a range of kits and snares so I can play around with the
sounds. I don’t usually take my kit to record with.

What sticks do you favour?
I’m pretty unadventurous when it comes to my sticks. I usually go with Vic Firth 5A American Classics with wood tip.

Other drummers that you admire?
And endless number, but if you had to pin me down, three names I always come back to: Ringo taught me how to serve the song; Mitch
Mitchell taught me how to fill; and Stewart Copeland just blew my mind.

What’s your latest recording and when will you be back in the studio?
My band Family Fold has a new album by the name of Ashfield Skyline which I recorded in Nashville in late 2017. I’m hoping to start on its follow up in 2019.

What gigs have you been playing lately?
Mainly around Sydney’s inner west: Gasoline Pony, The Union Hotel, The Hideaway Bar.

Most memorable gig?
To attend: seeing Nirvana playing Selina’s in 1992. The room became so hot with thrashing bodies, it started raining from the ceiling.
To play: supporting Brian Wilson at The Enmore in 2010.

Worst stage nightmare?
Most of them I’ve encountered in real life. Like starting a song in front of thousands of people with the capo on the wrong fret while the rest of the band is playing in a different key. So embarrassing.

What gigs are coming up in the next few months?
I’m looking forward to playing the Dashville Skyline festival in the Hunter Valley and playing Some Velvet Morning in Melbourne.

A drum tip for the kids?
It’s so tempting when you’re starting out – especially when you’re sitting at the back of the band – to play over everyone and do a million fills because you want people to hear you and notice you can play. But the reality is no one comes to see a band for the drummer. And trust me, if you keep doing fills everywhere or playing outside the song, your bandmates will kick you out before too long. Your job is to serve the song. Keep that at the heart of everything you do and you’ll be fine.

Catch Paul Andrews & Family Fold Live
Sun Sept 30   Dashville Skyline Festival, Belford, NSW
Thurs Oct 4    Some Velvet Morning, Melbourne – Ashfield Skyline album launch
Sat Oct 13      The Noble Hops, Redfern, Sydney
Sun Nov 25    The Union Hotel, Newtown, Sydney – Ashfield Skyline album launch

Family Fold on Twitter: @familyfold
Family Fold on facebook: @familyfold

Snarky Puppy Add Bluesfest Side Shows 0

Bluesfest Touring are proud to present Snarky Puppy for headline shows in Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney this April. The New York based quasi-collective has gone from the best kept secret to one of the most respected names in instrumental music. Snarky Puppy seamlessly fuses a deep knowledge and respect for musical tradition with sonic and conceptual innovation in a way that can reach the most critical or most carefree audience. This convergence of musicians from white and black America have performed regularly with artists like Erykah Badu, Snoop Dogg, Kirk Franklin, Justin Timberlake and Marcus Miller among many others.

Formed in Texas 12 years ago by exceptional young musicians, the band is a collective that is orchestrated by bassist Michael League, whose creative grass roots approach to a tougher than ever industry has created a new model for independent artists.

The last four years have brought dramatic changes for Snarky Puppy. After a decade of relentless touring and recording in all but complete obscurity, the Texas-bred/New York-based quasi-collective suddenly found itself held up by the press and public as one of the major figures in the jazz world. But as the category names for all three of the band’s Grammy® awards would indicate (Best R&B Performance in 2014, Best Contemporary Instrumental Album in 2016 and 2017), Snarky Puppy isn’t exactly a jazz band. It’s not a fusion band, and it’s definitely not a jam band. It’s probably best to take Nate Chinen of the New York Times’ advice, as stated in an online discussion about the group, to “take them for what they are, rather than judge them for what they’re not.”

Snarky Puppy is a collective of sorts with as many as 25 members in regular rotation. They each maintain busy schedules as sidemen (with such artists as Erykah Badu, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, and D’Angelo), producers (for Kirk Franklin, David Crosby, and Salif Keïta), and solo artists (many of whom are on the band’s indy label, GroundUP Music). At its core, the band represents the convergence of both black and white American music culture with various accents from around the world. Japan, Argentina, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Puerto Rico all have representation in the group’s membership. But more than the cultural diversity of the individual players, the defining characteristic of Snarky Puppy’s music is the joy of performing together in the perpetual push to grow creatively.
On-sale Dates
Pre-sale – 10:00 am AEST Wednesday, September 19th (9:30am ACST – Adelaide)
General On-sale – 10:00 am AEST Monday, September 21st (9:30am ACST – Adelaide)

Tour Dates
Sun 21st April 2019, Enmore Theatre Sydney (ALL ages show)
Sydney tickets via Ticketek

Wed 24th April 2019, HQ Adelaide
Adelaide tickets via OzTix

Fri 26th April 2019, The Forum Melbourne
Melbourne tickets via Ticketmaster

Also performing at Bluesfest’s 30th Anniversary

STEVE VAI’S BIG MAMA-JAMA JAMATHON TO BE LIVE STREAMED 0

Legendary guitarist and musician Steve Vai will host and serve as the musical director for “The Big Mama-Jama Jamathon” —an open, improvisational music/art event where the music doesn’t stop for 52 hours—to be held Sept. 28-30, 2018 at Musicians Institute’s brand new venue, LiveHouse, in Los Angeles, California. The Jamathon will mark the public grand opening of LiveHouse. 100% of the profits raised will benefit Extraordinary Families, a leading nonprofit foster family, adoption agency in the Los Angeles area dedicated to improving the daily lives of children and youths in foster care.

Vai is pleased to announce that Dave Navarro, Moby, Dweezil Zappa, Al Di Meola, Steve Morse, Lee Ritenour, Andy Vargas and Souleros and many others have already committed to perform at the event that weekend.  Various other professional musicians to be announced (including many of Vai’s friends) and novice musicians, along with celebrities, painters, poets, magicians, visual artists, speakers and other creative performers from all genres are invited to support each other in an “in-the-moment,”continuous 52-hour jam featuring non-stop music and other creative activity. Vai will be center stage for the majority of the event and will be directing the band and jammers in an impromptu setting. The current schedule is available here:  https://www.jamathon.org/schedule

The festivities, which will commence on Friday, Sept. 28 at Noon Pacific and conclude at 4:00 p.m. Pacific on Sunday, Sept. 30, will be streamed live worldwide via www.jamathon.org, www.vai.com, and Steve’s official Facebook page, alongside other outlets including websites, social media, and cable TV stations. The website www.jamathon.org includes more specifics about the jam-a-thon and outlines various ways to be involved and donate to Extraordinary Families.

“I currently serve on the board of Extraordinary Families and let me tell you, these folks are extraordinary, and do vital work for families and children in L.A.,”said Steve Vai. “It is such an honor to be involved with this organization, and to host something like this that will benefit so many children and families. ‘The Big Mama-Jama Jamathon’will be a ton of fun and a place where anything can happen —expect quite a wild ride!”

“Our organization is so fortunate to have such extraordinary and dedicated supporters who have demonstrated a long-standing commitment as role models for children and youth in foster care,”said Sarah Boone, Chief Executive Officer of Extraordinary Families. “And we welcome more supporters to be someone who matters to someone who matters.”

Stig Mathisen, Chair of the Guitar Program at Musicians Institute (MI) added: “MI is very honored to team up with Steve Vai and Extraordinary Families for this unique charity event and important cause, bringing together the world of music academia and the music industry, benefitting families that are doing an incredibly important job of providing support for children and youth in foster care.”

Auction items, including instruments donated by Vai, Slash, Devin Townsend, Gregg Bissonette, and online lessons open to the public donated by Steve Vai, Tommy Emmanuel, Stu Hamm, Bumblefoot, plus other unique and fulfilling opportunities to donate to Extraordinary Families are now available online at https://www.jamathon.org/donate
Various items are still coming in so please watch this page.

The store, hosted by PledgeMusic, offers upcoming CD and vinyl volumes to-be-culled from the jamathon, limited edition “Jamathon Jammies”, VIP t-shirts, a dad-style baseball cap, and much more. Visit:  https://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/steve-vai-jamathon-2018