In keeping with the regular format of this show, we begin with featuring some older Australian music, this week in the form of three classics from easy-listening folk act The Seekers, who celebrated their 50 year anniversary in 2012. It shouldn’t be forgotten that this five-piece, fronted by Judith Durham, have sold millions and albums and in the mid-60s were even competing with heavy-weights like The Rolling Stones on the UK albums charts. The band broke up only 6 years after the initial whirl-wind of international acclaim that began shortly after the band’s inception.
Featured video: The Seekers – ‘Georgy Girl’ [1967]
This week the sad news broke of the passing of Jay Curley, bassist of legendary Woolongong-based stoner band Tumbleweed. Jay and his brother Lenny were two of the founding members of the band which became a much-loved and influential stalwart on the Australian music scene of the 1990s. Tumbleweed were renowned for their fuzzed out Sabbath-inspired and wah-wah guitar riffs combined with the Beatles-esq melodies of singer Richie Lewis, played at mammoth volume to legions of fans. Today we offer a tribute to Jay’s contributions to the early years of the band.
Today’s interview is with Tim Hart, drummer of Australian band Boy and Bear. He calls through from his hotel in Edmonton, AB where the band had just arrived after playing SXSW in Austin, TX. Boy and Bear have made a name for themselves internationally on the strength of their lush atmospheric pop songs, and a popular cover of the Crowded House classic ‘Fall At Your Feet’. Tim speaks fondly of his connection with Canadian audiences, as well as filling us in on the origins of the band, and his eagerly anticipating an upcoming tour of regional Australian townships.
Featured video: Boy and Bear – ‘Southern Sun’ [2013]
Local outfit Ottway, Broder, Allen are our special in-studio guests today! What makes the band unique is it’s combination of three establish songwriters, with a reputation for injecting a healthy dose of fun rock action into their live act. It’s a pleasure to have them in the studio chatting and playing three songs from their debut album ‘Decades: Reign.Liberty.Rock.’ You can download a copy of the album at http://obadecades.bandcamp.com/ and keep an eye out for local dates in the near future…
NOMEANSNO are a truely one–of-a-kind band and an alternative Canadian institution. The Wright brothers, on bass and drums, formed the nucleus of the band in 1979 in Victoria, BC and developed their unique sound and sensibility before the addition of a guitarist. Lytically they have never feared to enter taboo territory and intelligently shed light on the nature of the human condition and political topics, without being preachy. You can hear a small handful of tracks from the band’s lengthy recording career today. You can also hear me read excepts from the invaluable book ‘NOMEANSNO: Going Nowhere’ by super-fan Mark Black, which is part of the Bibliographic series from Invisible Publishing.
Also on the show are tracks from the debut release by Vancouver group Spring, as well as two Australian artists who are making the trek to the 2014 SXSW Festival in Austin, TX.
Featured video: NOMEANSNO – ‘The River’ (live) [2000]
