Single release: 'Autumn Tempest' by Nigel Wearne

I'm lucky enough to be listening to folk/country singer-songwriter Nigel Wearne's album Drawing Circles before its release next month. Spoiler alert: it's incredibly good, and I don't want to wait until November to talk about it. So in lieu of the full review - which will appear later - here's a link to the single, 'Autumn Tempest', so you can listen on Soundcloud.

Nigel is doing a tour that's mainly private house concerts, but Queenslanders can go to one of two upcoming public shows:

18th Oct: The Bug – Brisbane Unplugged Folk/Acoustic Music Night, Brisbane QLD www.brisbaneunpluggedgigs.org

21st – 23rd Oct: Tablelands Folk Festival, Yungaburra QLD www.tablelandsfolkfestival.org

www.nigelwearne.com

This Crazy Life tour: Christie Lamb

Christie Lamb is already an experienced performer, having been picked by Lee Kernaghan to join his tour in 2015/16. Earlier this year she received a very significant Golden Guitar award, and she's about to join The Wolfe Brothers and a host of others on the This Crazy Life tour. The first time I interviewed Christie we had a bad phone line - she kindly agreed to answer questions by email instead.

This tour is going to be high-energy - are you ready to match the Wolfe Brothers at their own game?

Haha! I am used to being on tour with The Wolfe Brothers as we all open, and are part of the band for Lee Kernaghan. We are very good mates and the energy bounces off all of us when we play together, so I'm excited to start the tour.

You won CMAA Best New Talent earlier this year – what did that award mean to you and does it bring any pressure?

Winning the Golden Guitar 'Best New Talent' meant the world to me! It is the highest honour and biggest deal to all country music performers. It was my tenth year at the festival and to receive it from Lee Kernaghan was an absolute dream come true. The only pressure I have is from myself. I am in the process of releasing a new album and as an artist usually does, I would like this one to be bigger than the last!

You've played to huge crowds at festivals, and you've played in clubs and pubs on tours such as that with Aleyce Simmonds and Amber Lawrence. Do you have a preferred size of audience?

I think its really hard to beat the vibe of a festival – I love festivals!! Although every size show has its advantages from being intimate and acoustic to a full rocking band. I just try to adjust my set to fit the show venue and size and connect with each audience the best I can.

Which do you prefer: performing or recording? And why?

I would have to say each of the above is VERY different! I love rocking out with a big band to a festival crowd and feeling the vibe of the crowd, to be honest you can't beat it. With recording I am always thinking of the emotion of the song and trying to give a good technical performance also, but I do love the results and trying new things and vocally stretching myself. Hearing my songs 'come to life' is very special, but seeing people's reactions live I think wins!

  

What can your This Crazy Life tour audiences look forward to – any new songs?

The audience can look forward to a great show with a different taste of country genres from 7 acts, a mini festival of fun modern country. I will be singing a couple of favourites plus something brand new from my upcoming album.

christielamb.com

THIS CRAZY LIFE TOUR DATES

Friday 7 October 2016 | 8pm

Wrest Point Entertainment Centre, HOBART TAS

1300 795 257 | www.tixtas.com.au

Saturday 8 October 2016 | 8pm

Hotel Tasmania, LAUNCESTON TAS

1300 795 257 | www.tixtas.com.au

Friday 14 October 2016 | 8.30pm

Kay Street Entertainment Complex, TRARALGON VIC

(03) 5176 0463 | www.kayst.oztix.com.au

Saturday 15 October 2016 | 7.30pm

The Palms at Crown, MELBOURNE VIC

136 100 | www.ticketmaster.com.au

Friday 21 October 2016 | 8pm

Evan Theatre, Penrith Panthers, PENRITH NSW

(02) 4720 5555 | www.penrith.panthers.com.au

Saturday 22 October 2016 | 8.30pm

Wests New Lambton, NEWCASTLE NSW

(02) 4935 1200 | www.westsnewcastle.com.au

Friday 28 October 2016 | 8pm

Twin Towns Services Club, TWEED HEADS NSW

1800 014 014 | www.twintowns.com.au

Saturday 29 October 2016 | 8pm

Empire Theatre, TOOWOOMBA QLD

1300 655 299 | www.empiretheatre.com.au

Album review: Eyes Still Fixed by Amarillo

While Melbourne band Amarillo is billed as a four-piece, at its core are songwriters Jac Tonks and Nick O’Mara, who mostly split songwriting duties on their new album, Eyes Still Fixed, with only one shared song, opening track and single ‘All I Can See’. And each of the songs sounds like a glorious pas de deux between Tonks’s vocals and O’Mara’s guitars, each bringing out the best in the other as they dance.

Some of the songs on Eyes Still Fixed were written in the Northern Territory and the top end of Western Australia; some were written in Europe. Distance is a theme and a characteristic of all the songs: in the lyrics, distance from home and other people; in the music, each element is given space so that it can be properly heard and appreciated.

Amarillo’s style draws from Americana, with the occasional echo of laid-back Australian rock. This is not an album that’s made to play in the background of a pub, though – it demands to be listened to, and it makes for very lovely listening. The songs evoke a range of emotions; the overall impression left by Eyes Still Fixed is bittersweetness, a fairly exquisite tension. I also had the sense of familiarity, in a good way, particularly with Tonks’s voice – but after trying and failing to work out where I’d heard her before, I realised I hadn’t: it was the songs themselves invoking some kind of nostalgia, perhaps for the Australian outback, perhaps for lazy summer days. If art is meant to stir emotions and memories – to make us feel and think – Eyes Still Fixed is a piece of art, and deserving of that label.

Eyes Still Fixed is out now.

www.facebook.com/amarillobandmelbourne

Single release: 'The Best That They Could Do' by Matt Henry

Matt Henry has been a quietly building force in Australian alt-country, programming and hosting Late Night Alt during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, in addition to crafting and releasing some wonderful songs. His debut album, Love Without Co-dependency, will be released during the next Tamworth festival, in January 2017. In the meantime, enjoy the first single from the album, 'The Best That They Can Do' either by listening on Soundcloud or watching the video below.

And you can find Matt on Facebook.

Single release: 'F U Cancer' by Catherine Britt and friends

Golden Guitar-winning singer-songwriter Catherine Britt is on the bright side of her treatment for breast cancer, and she's enlisted some friends to help her say, emphatically, 'F U Cancer'. The new single of that name was written by Britt with powerhouses Beccy Cole and Lyn Bowtell, who both sing on it, along with Kasey Chambers, Josh Pyke, Wes Carr and Wendy Matthews.

Anyone expecting a gloomy tune, however, should adjust their thinking as this is quite a catchy, upbeat number.

All proceeds from the single go to the McGrath Foundation. 

Visit Catherine's website for all the retailer purchase links: https://catherinebritt.lnk.to/FUCancer

Single release: 'Who I Am' by Shannon Noll

True confession: I have a soft spot for Nollsie. When he appeared as a finalist in the first season of Australian Idol, an expert from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music assessed the voices of the final four contestant and said that Shannon Noll had a better range than Guy Sebastian. That made me pay closer attention - and Noll does indeed have a fine voice, and he's used it to fine effect on 'Who I Am', the new single from his forthcoming fifth studio album, set for release in early 2017.









You can listen to the song below (lyric video only).



 

He also has some tour dates:

Saturday 15 October 2016

ST KILDA FORESHORE, VIC

Sunday 16 October 2016

WINGHAM SHOWGROUND, NSW

Friday 28 October 2016

WARWICK RSL MEMORIAL CLUB, QLD

Saturday 29 October 2016

GOODNA JACARANDA FESTIVAL, QLD

shannonnoll.com.au

Single release: 'About To' by Adam Sanders

For a while I've kept coverage of country pop and country rock at a minimum on this blog, mainly because a lot of it comes from the USA and this blog is mainly dedicated to Australian country music. Except I keep being sent news about American country music and, well, for many years before I discovered country, I was very fond of pop and rock. So my resistance is down, and, therefore, please have a listen to Adam Sanders's 'About To', which is a great example of the country pop genre that Nashville does so well: expertly produced, tightly written, and very catchy. 

Before Sanders started recording songs he was writing them for Luke Bryan, Cole Swindell and Dierks Bentley, amongst others, which makes him sound more bro-country than this song suggests. 

Listen to 'About To' on Spotify.

For American readers, here are some tour dates:

October 19th - Tulsa, OK @ Cain's Ballroom w/ Eric Paslay

November 3rd - Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues w/ Eric Paslay

November 4th - Tiffin, OH @ Ritz Theatre w/ Eric Paslay

November 5th - Carlisle, PA @ Carlisle Theatre w/ Eric Paslay

November 6th - Columbus, OH @ The Bluestone w/ Eric Paslay

Find Adam on Facebook.

www.adamsandersmusic.com