Montana Sharp 'Greenhouse' Single - Podcast Interview

“I WISH I WAS A SLICE OF CHEESE”

"I WISH I WAS A SLICE OF CHEESE" Classically trained pop new-comer MONTANA SHARP drops her mysterious, theatrical and spine-tingling debut single 'Greenhouse' Brendan the blind guy had a chat to Montana about the single and more to make you feel like a Disney Princess!

Classically trained pop new-comer MONTANA SHARP drops her mysterious, theatrical and spine-tingling debut single 'Greenhouse' Brendan the blind guy had a chat to Montana about the single and more that’ll make you feel like a Disney Princess!

“Apart from it having the obvious humorous lyrics, it’s actually quite beautiful as far as the music goes and all in all, shows a rare creativity and talent for songwriting which I think people will love!” Brendan - ‘A Slice Of Cheese’

View the press release for ‘Greenhouse’ by Montana Sharp here.

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DIP ROAD DOGS 'Shakshuka EP' Q&A

PERFECT FOR A LAZY SUNDAY LISTEN!

DIP ROAD DOGS 
DROP NEW SINGLE ‘LAZY’ 
AHEAD OF FORTHCOMING EP ‘SHAKSHUKA’

Reemerging from that dusty dirt track deep in the Mallee are the Dip Road Dogs, who have today dropped their dreamy new single, Lazy, a comforting, hypnotic journey into Americana.  Lazy is the third taste of their new EP, Shakshuka that is set for release on May 21. 
 
Dip Road Dogs are back with some of their finest music to date. Lazy is exquisite Americana folk rock from the fun loving Aussie country boys.  For fans of The National and The Church, haunting cello, and mesmerising, deep vocals will entice the listener, but it’s the unassuming emotional force that will sock you right in the feels and keep you coming back for more.  Contrastingly, Lazy is a song about a relationship where one partner is not pulling their weight with the household chores and the other becomes fed up with this behaviour and finally leaves for greener pastures. “It’s a warning to everyone to make sure you mow the lawns and do the dishes or you will end up alone!” Jests lead singer and songwriter Dave Chirnside.
 
Recorded in Nashville, Tennessee between The Amber Sound Studio, The Secret Genius Studio and producer Josh Frigo’s home studio, and mastered by John Davis (The Killers, Gorillaz, Royal Blood, The XX) at Metropolis Studios in London, the EP is a real mixed bag, with all six tracks working as a commendable package that showcases the band’s diversity and capability.  “The EP title Shakshuka is a very apt analogy for the EP as it is a delicious tomato-based dish that can be served at dinner or breakfast and you can throw nearly anything in to make it work. Our EP is a collection of old and new ideas that have created quite a variety of genres and sounds, so it’s a bit of a mixed bag but we think the songs gel well together,” explains Chirnside. “Once we had recorded the demos we got in touch with Josh Frigo in Nashville and set a date in June 2019 to head over and start recording. Josh’s time was very tight between touring so I locked in the dates without asking Matt, Ollie and Jack - better to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission, Jack had been travelling around Australia and was in Rockhampton when I called him to ask if he would come and record in Nashville, he had to put his trip around Australia on hold, but there wasn’t a whole lot of objection!”
 
Dip Road Dogs are a group of friends who once shared a house on Dip Road in the Mallee – now living miles apart from each other all around regional Victoria, they are one of the few bands that haven’t been hugely affected by these bizarre Covid19 times.  “We have been practicing isolation all our lives, so we feel we are well placed in these interesting times. There are a lot of challenges living so far away from each when it comes to live touring, but it doesn’t affect our writing, as long as our internet doesn’t cut out!  And we have a studio in Appin where we can put our collective ideas together - demos for the next release are well underway.”

Dip Road Dogs is Jack Pay, Dave Chirnside, Oliver Close and Matthew Close.
 
Lazy is out now and Shakshuka will be released on May 21.
 
Stream: Lazy
View: Lazy lyric video
Stream: Shakshuka

DIP ROAD DOGS - LAZY (lyric video)

DIP ROAD DOGS - LAZY (single artwork)

DIP ROAD DOGS - SHAKSHUKA (EP artwork)

Q&A WITH DAVE CHIRNSIDE (LEAD VOCALS)

What’s the inspiration behind your new single & EP? 

“The EP is a bit of a mixed bag of ideas stemming back from around 6 years ago up until early last year but the main inspiration was to create music that people can enjoy, whilst challenging ourselves musically.  it sounds very cliché, but it’s pretty much all it came down to!”

Who are your greatest musical influences? 

“I’m a big Tool fan so I’d have to say Maynard James Keenan, his story is pretty impressive and not your typical “rock star” story. I also love that he’s in Agriculture as well with his vineyard in Arizona! The Brian Jonestown Massacre is another big influence for the band.”

What do you bring to the live stage? 

“The Dogs bring plenty of Fazazz to the stage that’s for sure. If you have been to any of our concerts you have most likely been on the stage with us or played an instrument for us. We love to get everybody involved!”

How was the recording process?

“The process was amazing and a little unconventional I guess. We found our producer Josh Frigo online and he liked our demos and invited us to record with him in Nashville, because of his touring requirements we had a week to get the EP done. This meant our time in Nashville was very full on but we loved every minute of it. We still managed to fit in some honky tonks of a night.” 

What was the inspiration behind the music video? 

“Nate Hill was the man behind this one and we love it, he had about 3 nights to get it done as we were very disorganised and what he came up with was terrific. He really bought our album cover to life and the video is incredibly soothing.”

How would you describe your writing process? 

“Our writing process to date usually starts off with a riff on guitar or a drum beat and then thrown to the band for input, once we have the song basically done the lyrics are usually the last thing that comes to us. With the exception of our latest single, Lazy where the lyrics came pretty early on in the writing process.”

Give us an interesting personal fact! 

“I’m a scorpio!”

Check out Brendan the blind guy’s review of Dip Road Dogs ‘Shakshuka EP’ here.

Cloning 'All Rise' Single Q&A

ALL RISE!

              CLONING ANNOUNCE NEW SINGLE & VIDEO ALL RISE

+ LAUNCH SHOW ON MARCH 13 

Emerging WA band Cloning have today released their ethereal new single All Rise, an introspective track that questions morality and is influenced by Nordic mythology.  The group have also released an impressive self-made cosmic claymation film clip to accompany the song.  To celebrate the release of All Rise, Cloning will be playing an exclusive show at the Indian Ocean Hotel in Scarborough on March 13.

All Rise pays homage to triphop auteurs Portishead while also evoking influences from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds to Radiohead.  Recorded and mixed by Dave Parkin (Gyroscope, Karnivool) and mastered by Brian Lucey (Cage The Elephant, Arctic Monkeys, Royal Blood), this atmospheric track is the perfect soundtrack to a warm, hazy summer, with shining synthesisers, ample mandolin, cinematic guitar and idiosyncratic vocals.  Speaking on the intricate meaning behind the track, guitarist and lead vocalist Felix Parker says, “All Rise is about how groups of people can think their intentions are purer than they actually are, and end up committing morally questionable acts in the name of their chosen cause.  It's also about what gets left in the wake of pursuing a goal and how noble intentions can be corrupted by the pursuit of this goal.  The imagery in the lyrics is influenced by Nordic mythology and stories about the Yggdrasil which is a mythical ash tree at the centre of the cosmos.  I read way too much as a kid and a lot of that just seems to naturally flow into my lyrics.”

Following the Nordic mythology theme, the video for All Rise was cleverly and masterfully worked in-house by the band, from conception to completion, excluding the editing which was completed by Jake Crawford (Psychedellic Porn Crumpets). From set making, to directing, to filming – the band did it all.  With over forty hours of footage filmed over one very long weekend, and after almost setting fire to Felix’s living room twice, the video was taking shape.  “We wanted to create visuals that complemented the lyrics and the myths they were influenced by. We came up with the concept first and were trying to think about how we could pull it off. We thought about hiring an animator to make an animation video at first, but we couldn’t afford it. Bevan made stop motion videos as a kid and does photography in his spare time, so we decided to make the video ourselves using Claymation,” explains Felix.  “And we are really happy that we decided to do it ourselves because we ended up making something that is way more us than if someone else had done it,” adds guitarist Bevan Green, “But it definitely pushed the limits of our sanity. We spent ages gluing fake leaves to sticks to make trees which is really finicky when you’re dealing with things this small. And we had to be careful when filming not to move the clay figures in the wrong way or knock the camera, because one dodgy photo would ruin the hundreds of photos we had already taken up to that point for the scene.” 

Cloning formed among friends Nic Rollo, Felix Parker and Jack Brett during their final years at school.  The untimely loss of a close friend and musician around this time drove them to invest heavily in their musical pursuits.  They were soon joined by guitarist Bevan Green, who grew up in the goldfields mining town of Kalgoorlie; joining the band when he moved to Perth.  Though in relative infancy, Cloning have already been notching up some impressive achievements - touring nationally and scoring a WAM Song of the Year nomination last year – it’s safe to say 2020 is set to be a big year for this talented alternative act out of Perth!  

All Rise is out February 3.

Cloning is Felix Parker (lead vocals and guitar), Bevan Green (guitar and vocals), Nic Rollo (bass and vocals), Jack Brett (drums).

Listen: ALL RISE

Watch: ALL RISE

CLONING ALL RISE LAUNCH GIG

FRI MAR 13 | INDIAN OCEAN HOTEL, SCARBOROUGH WA | 18+

Tickets from Oztix https://heatseeker.oztix.com.au/

 Q&A Interview With Felix, Jack & Bevan.

Q; What’s the inspiration behind your new single ‘All Rise’?

A; Felix - All Rise is about how groups of people can place a lot of significance on their beliefs, but be quite misguided in doing so. I was reading a fair bit about nordic mythology at the time and some of the lyrics are influenced by that. In particular the Yggdrasil which is a mythical Ash Tree was something I tried to incorporate into the imagery of the tune. 

Q; Who are your greatest musical influences?

A; Radiohead, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Portishead, The Doors, Everything Everything. 

Q; What do you bring to the live stage?

A; Bevan - I think theres something in there for everyone in our live shows. We like so much different styles of music and we try to make our music reflect that. 
A; Felix - We've spent a long time getting our live set tight so now we're just trying to have fun and give the audience a good experience. 

Q; How was the recording process?

A; Bevan - We recorded with Dave Parkin at Blackbird studios. 
Jack – Dave is great. He's so experienced and easy to work with. He fits in so well with our band band. The song took a couple days to record.
A; Felix - We spent the longest time getting the drum tones sounding nice before we recorded. They're the foundation of the song so once we're happy with how they sound everything else usually flows smoothly from there. 

Q; What was the inspiration behind the music video?

A; Felix - The video draws from nordic mythology like the lyrics. We tried to make a video which complemented the words in the song and gave some more life to the ideas they were influenced by.  

A; Bevan - In the video a traveller is attempting to find ‘The Yggdrasil’, which is a sacred ash tree that features a lot in Nordic mythology. But on the way he has to face a series of challenges designed to stop him from reaching the tree. 

Q; How would you describe your writing process?
Felix - Usually a song starts with Bevan or I recording ideas at home. If we're vibing then we get Jack and Nic to come in to flesh out the song more. 
A; Bevan - Felix started 'All Rise' when he recorded a mandolin riff and some guitar chords on his computer one night so I came over a couple days later and wrote my guitar parts for the song. We thought it was sounding cool so we got Jack and Nic involved to finish off the song. 

Q; Give us an interesting personal fact!
A; We should win an award for most pizza eaten by a band. We eat a lot when we're together and if pizza could be a muse it would be ours. 

BEACHWOOD - 'God Only Knows/Marbles' Listicle Feature

GOD ONLY KNOWS WHAT THIS HOLDS!

WHO ARE BEACHWOOD / HOW THEY STARTED OUT?

Beachwood are a Melbourne-based electropop duo of multi-platinum producer/writer Jarrad Rogers (Charli XCX, Lana del Rey, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Icona Pop) and indie filmmaker/songwriter Angeline Armstrong. They met in 2016, when Angeline, new to the buzz of Los Angeles, found herself at Jarrad’s family Christmas party. Over lamingtons and pav, they were surprised to learn that they’d both grown up in the Western suburbs of Melbourne and had also, coincidentally, both chosen the Beachwood neighborhood in LA as their first port of call. They began writing together in Jarrad’s backyard studio, Angeline’s folk-heavy songwriting style colliding with the progressive electronic beats that Jarrad has become known for. It was two years later, at the very end of 2017, that electropop outfit BEACHWOOD was officially formed and the two began writing for the project.

SONGS THEY’VE WRITTEN AND THEIR INFLUENCES:

Beachwood have released four singles to-date. Since returned to the homeland (Australia) from their respective times in LA, the newcomers quickly found favour in both local and international markets. Their debut track, ‘Miracle’, attracted critical acclaim including several awards for their boldly artistic debut music video, winning out over Aussie legends The Veronicas, Guy Sebastian & Peking Duk at the 2019 Clipped Music Video Awards. Their second single, ‘Love Me Or Leave Me Alone’, found its way onto over 30 international New Music Friday playlists and is nearing on 1 million streams. ‘Marbles’ & ‘God Only Knows’ are the most recent ‘dual single release’ track. ‘Marbles’ features the eclectic MC Tray Haggerty from Texas, securing the duo’s trajectory of making waves across international borders. Where ‘God Only Knows’ is a bold take on the classic ‘perfectly written song’ by the Beachboys.

It’s hard to pin point a list of our influences tbh. I can say what we try and do!! We strive to make honest, lyrics that loads of people can relate to. We look to make music that makes you feel good. Helps you get through the day. We love electronic elements and using technology to create something unique. But at the same time we both love organic elements. We try and combine them as often as we can. We also try and make a bunch of the elements that create our beats ourselves. Sampling ourselves hitting things for rhythmic colour etc. Oh and there’s the vocal. That’s the most important thing. That has to be front and centre and be the best it can be. Ange does a great job at that!! I guess you could look at people like Louis The Child, Flume, Drake, The Beatles, Beachboys...something like that!

PAST/UPCOMING NEWS:

Beachwood recently played a sold out show at the Gasometer in Melbourne and are currently finishing their debut EP set for release early next year. 

FUN FACTS:

• Though spending most of her time growing up in Australia - Angeline is actually half-kiwi and half-filipino, and calls all three countries home!

• Beyond the Beachwood act, Jarrad has collaborated around the world as a producer/writer with renowned artists such as: Ms. Lauryn Hill, Lana del Rey, Charli XCX, Montaigne, Luke Steele (Empire of the Sun), Icona Pop, Bea Miller, Andy Grammar, and Rachel Platten.

• As well as being a musician, Angeline is also a filmmaker whose career was kickstarted by a mentorship with Aussie legend Baz Luhrmann and a debut short film made alongside Baz & NIDA that premiered at the Sydney Opera House while Ange was still at university!

• If Jarrad wasn’t a professional musician he’d probably have a crack at being a professional athlete!! Or a baker…or maybe a swim coach. Basically he’d be lost if he wasn’t a musician!

Shelley Segal - Q&A Interview

HOLY MOLY!

Hey everyone, Brendan the blind guy Here! I Don’t Believe In Fairies, but what I do believe in, is artists who’s musical essence fills me, running through my Blood like a holy spirit, and No, I’m not a Holy Man! Ladies & gentlemen, I’ve got the distinct pleasure of catching up with an artist drawing near to the Eve of her EP launch and thus greatness! All the way from San Antonio and back, SHELLEY SEGAL!

Brendan; How’ve you been since we last spoke in November 2017 Shelley?

Shelley: Hi Brendan! What an awesome intro, hehe! I’ve been really well since then, thanks. I’ve been super busy, lots of writing, touring and recording! 

Brendan; Last time we spoke, you’d just released your single ‘Someone Like You’, a defiant, powerfully commanding track about not being able to love who you’re “supposed to”. Now, you’ve released your new track ‘No’ off your upcoming EP ‘Holy’., conveying flavours of pop, indie, rock, folk and country. ‘No’ seems to portray a wanting for an end without confrontation, is that the story behind the song lyrically, or am I way off? (likely)

Shelley: With ‘No’ you are totally right, that is definitely part of what the song describes. The song depicts different scenarios where it is hard to say “no” for different reasons. Maybe your safety or your job is at stake, or maybe you just don’t have the experience to assert your boundaries. I want the song to be part of the wider conversation that we are having around consent. In the song I am encouraging myself and others to have the strength to assert our own boundaries but also expressing the idea that sometimes it can be more complicated than that, to hopefully encourage deeper awareness, consideration and compassion. 

Brendan; ‘No’ and ‘Blood’ are the two tracks that really grab my attention on your upcoming EP ‘Holy’, with a sharp rock edge and catchy vocal hooks in both. Is this why you chose ‘No’ to be the first taste of the EP for fans?

Shelley: I’m so glad those tunes are resonating with you! Blood is one of my favourites!!! It’s hard to pick a single really because I feel like the tracks stand alone and all have something different to offer. I felt like ‘No’ would be a strong foot forward, it’s catchy and also is very directly engaging with a serious issue and I love the chance to get to talk about these kinds of things with press! 

Brendan; As I previously mentioned, there’s lots of musical flavours swirling around in the EP’s mix of styles. What was the inspiration for all the musical diversity, did the songs’ stories simply yearn for their respective sounds?

Shelley: The songs on the EP were all written since moving to the US. I think being here has really influenced me in both the content of the songs, often around political discussions present here such as consent, religious freedom, gun control, tribalism/racism and also stylistically. I’ve spent so much time on tour driving around the US listening to country radio and absorbing those sounds and styles. I think each song really called for its own sound but I can hear the influences of being here and the music I’ve been seeing and listening to in each track. I drew on the artists that I love and I don’t feel the need to stay in one sonic palette.

Brendan; I can’t help but notice, from what I can tell, you still haven’t made your way up here to Sydney *sniffle-sniffle*. Is there any plans lurking for an Aussie tour in the near future?

Shelley: I KNOOOOOOOOW!! I’m so sad that I haven’t been on a big national Aussie tour for a while. I did get to do a regional VIC tour last year. I’m hoping that next year I will be able to come up! Hopefully will see you at a show :D

Brendan; Since we last spoke, I can imagine your performances have grown immensely. So paint us a word picture of what you bring to the stages these days?

Shelley: I've been really honing my show these last few years, I've been playing with my partner Rob on guitar and added a stomp pedal to the mix which has given me a lot more drive and energy on stage. I've also been learning to have more quiet subtle moments so I feel like overall the dynamics have really grown. I love to be vulnerable and open and to connect with my audiences to give them a space to reflect on their lives and how they see the world.

Brendan; Right, I reckon it’s time we get exclusive Shelley, just me and you… and all the readers. So, what’s an exclusive fun fact about yourself?

Shelley: So one cool (I think!) fact about me is that I used to play table tennis competitively!! I love it so much - it’s the best sport hehehe!! My father, uncle and my brother play and I still play casually. But when I was younger I used to go to tournaments and I even played on the state team a few times. At one point I was ranked #9 in the country for my age group. So don’t call it ‘Ping Pong’ or you’ll get my back up :P :P :P

Brendan; Now it’s time for my favourite question of all, that’s right people, it’s WTF time! So Shelley, you being a very active musician traversing the world with your music, winning the hearts of people here in Australia and abroad. This said, you must have some pretty priceless moments on your music career, but what’s the one that takes the cake as being the most hilarious, priceless, WTF of them all?

Shelley: So back in 2015 I released my single ‘Morocco’. It was about my experiences travelling briefly in Marrakech and Essaouira, looking at my place there as a tourist and what experiences were afforded to me contrasted with how things were for some locals. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHBWr2x0rrY I touched on some difficult issues that I had seen such as child homelessness and drug tourism.

After I released the music video a blog in Morocco wrote (incorrectly) that I had denounced the kingdom of Morocco. Thousands of people read that article and then watched my video through that lens. I copped a lot of online abuse and the story was picked by the national press in Australia and also the Moroccan World News. It was a very strange and interesting experience culminating with a story on the front page of the Age Entertainment Online with a picture of me and my dad underneath the headline ‘Australian Artist Causes Drug Furore In Morocco’.

Brendan; And finally, after your EP is launched on November 1, what else can fans look forward to, give us a teaser?

Shelley: Well I have some super exciting projects in the works. I’m creating music for a documentary called 'Transmission Love’ about a young transgender girl and her family in Los Angeles. 

I’m working with my dear friend Prince Chapelle on a collaborative album. Prince is an incredible songwriter, producer and vocalist. Our album will be a meld of styles, folk and country melodies and guitars mixed with pop production and some fantastic local musicians joining us. 

I’m also working on a conservation themed EP that is very close to my heart. ‘Great Loud Sound’ will be co-written with Dan Lombardo - a biologist and science communicator and educator from Tacoma in Washington State. The project will educate people about the stunning and unique Puget Sound Watershed, the animals who live there and the issues they face.

We are currently raising funds for the project here which we will eventually share online as a free resource: https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-puget-sound-conservation-ep

I also share new music every week on my Patreon page! www.patreon.com/shelleysegal

Brendan; Thanks for your time Shelley and hope to catch you in Sydney soon!

Shelley: Thanks so much for having me, for your great questions and for helping me share my music <3