Introducing…Homes

Homes

Homes is a seven-piece, soul poppin’ rock n’ roll freight train of groove from Melbourne, Australia. Homes’ initial existence was as a two piece, made up of good friends and songwriters Fin Bradley and Henry Badger, who together not only passed high school, but wrote and workshopped the initial Homes repertoire before scouting some of Melbourne’s finest musicians to join the family.

The latest offering from the band, Did You Find What You’re Looking For? pits the hard hitting, fast paced live attitude and sound of 70’s surf rock with traditional hooks and grooves picked straight from the crates of soul records. Vocals dripping in Hendrix-esque swagger are teamed with axe-slaying riffs; blistering horns soar over the soulful grit of Rhodes keys, creating a track oozing with live energy. Homes’ sound is reminiscent of artists such as Saskwatch, Jimi Hendrix, The Cat Empire and David Bowie.

With irresistible groove and impeccable execution, Homes weave a bold and colourful musical patchwork that is sure not only to turn heads but also to break necks.

Introducing…The Furrs

Brisbane based rock outfit The Furrs are on a roll. Alongside a slew of live accolades, The Furrs are proud to present their latest sonic offering in their new single Money as well as a slice of retro visual to go with it.

Another offering of bluesy-rock goodness, Money follows on from the tracks that put The Furrs on the map, Get On Your Horse and Little Boy which saw them named second in triple j Unearthed’s “Best Discoveries of 2014”.

Ark Life – The Dream Of You & Me Album Review

From 2007 to 2012, songwriter Jesse Elliott led rock & roll band These United States through five studio albums and nearly 1,000 live performances in the U.S., Canada and Europe, appearing everywhere from Glastonbury to SXSW, Daytrotter to Lollapalooza and garnering praise from NPR, The New York Times, SPIN, KEXP and others.

The Dream of You & Me is the debut record from Ark Life, a new project fronted by Elliott. In early 2013, Elliott stopped in Denver on his way to a new life in New York and started making music with pianist Lindsay Giles, bassist Anna Morsett (of TUS), guitarist Natalie Tate and veteran Denver drummer Ben Desoto. The result was Ark Life, a project that has now shared the stage with Ringo Starr, The Head & the Heart, Ryan Bingham and more. Produced by Eric D. Johnson of Fruit Bats, The Dream of You & Me is made up of equal parts mischief and heartthrob, inspired by the band’s enduring love for CCR, Tom Petty, Motown and the campfire singalong.

Ark Life

Ark Life recently premiered What You Want To on Purevolume which is taken from their debut album. What You Want To has some brilliant thought-provoking lyrics, “I should have folded that letter/I should have looked for a phone/I should not smile at these strangers/I should pack up and depart/But the heaviest weight on my heart/Is not what I should do/But what I want to…” What You Want To is a little bit Jackson 5 in places; the tempo, the funk inspired keyboard and the soulful vocals all aid this. What You Want To is a marvellous blend of good and strong mind-opening lyrics, Americana, Folk, Jazz and Funk.

Contrasting this upbeat sound, You’re With Me follows What You Want To. You’re With Me is a ballad featuring female vocals to start with in a gospel inspired, harmonic setting. It’s such an angelic beginning to a song making it perfectly beautiful. The harmonies are gorgeous and silky. This track is so simple consisting of vocals and piano with the occasional help from the bass drum or an odd electric guitar chord. It’s a pure song with pure lyrics, “If they ask who snuck you in/Say me baby/If they want to know who took you in/Just say me”. You’ll fall in love with this track – guaranteed.

Molly Brown brings the beat back. It’s straight back to the upbeat Americana style. Molly Brown has an addictive melody and feel to it. It’s just a briliant, uplifting number with Elliot’s odd yet attractive vocals.

While Molly Brown is uplifting in one sense of the word, She is uplifting in a different way. There’s a very strong rock & roll feel to this track. If you’ve heard Imelda May, whose tracks feature that typical Blues guitar tone, then you’ll probably love this track. She is a little bit like the sort of sound Robert Plant and Alison Krauss brought to the limelight a few years ago with their Raising Sand album.

Rock & Roll (Take It Easy) finishes the album nicely. It has a jazzy, soft feel with an incredibly catchy chorus and blissful harmonies. Rock & Roll (Take It Easy) is simple but effective. In some ways, it could be seen as Elliot’s way of saying goodbye to the one band (These United States) and welcoming his new adventures with the next, “There comes a time in every man’s life/Shoot shoot the best of me/When they can’t dance….Has to settle down and find himself a good loot…Shoot shoot he tries/Maybe a saxophone can get him back right…”

Rock & Roll (Take It Easy) is the perfect ending track to an absolutely magnificent debut album. Ark Life’s The Dream Of You & Me will leave you speechless. You’ll be feeling uplifted, reminiscent, questioning and wondering all at the same time. The lyrics are astonishingly open, clever and worldly while the music is joyful and vintage yet fresh.

Ark Life’s The Dream Of You & Me is out on August 19 on Misra Records/Greater Than Collective.

Introducing…Aloha Radio

Local surf-soul-rock ‘n’ roll band, Aloha Radio, will be releasing a brand new music video for See You Again on July 7. See You Again will be the first single from Aloha Radio’s latest EP, Pulling Me Under. Aloha Radio will debut the new video on their YouTube channel.

Written for a struggling friend, See You Again chronicles two people losing touch through “…telephone towers and wire bends”. The ukulele “jazz” ballad feels like a confessional lullaby, especially when the singer, Lauren Mulderrig hits the lyric “Maybe I never told you how much I care…Go to reach for me now, I will always be there” with bone shaking vibrato and sincerity. “We decided to release See You Again as our first single because this song really means something to us” states Mulderrig. “When we play it at shows it creates a deep connection with our audience. Everyone finds different meaning in the lyrics and I think that’s cool”.

See You Again gets up close and personal with Aloha Radio primarily featuring tightly framed shots of each members face. The new music video will feature Mulderrig singing the lyrics into a green rotary style phone to multiple strangers using a series of early cell phones, pay phones and call boxes. This isn’t another beach bound video from Aloha Radio, although the video was filmed in various locations throughout Southern California, the settings are dry, dusty and barren; quite opposite of their wet surf inspired sound. Directed and produced in house by Chris Hori, Aloha Radio’s drummer, See You Again is cinematic, creative and unique.

Be sure to watch See You Again for yourself on Aloha Radio’s YouTube channel next Monday 7 July.

Visit Aloha Radio’s website at www.AlohaRadioBand.com for more information.

Introducing…Blackberry Smoke

Blackberry Smoke is a southern rock band hailing from Atlanta, GA. They have toured with acts including Zac Brown Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Eric Church.

The band is currently wrapping up their Fire in the Hole headline tour which sold out dozens of venues in the US and Europe.

Now they are gearing up to release their live concert CD and DVD which includes a previously unreleased track and behind the scenes footage of the making of Yesterday’s Wine. The CD and DVD combo, Leave A Scar Live In North Carolina, will be released on July 8.