HOTTER THAN HELL RETURNS TO TURN UP THE HEAT THIS OCTOBER + NOVEMBER ANNOUNCING MASSIVE FESTIVAL RUN FOR WA, VIC, SA + QLD FEATURING REGURGITATOR, LESS THAN JAKE (US), UNWRITTEN LAW (US), JEBEDIAH, LITTLE BIRDY, THE BENNIES, ADALITA & THE KICKONS
Grab a pair of Vans and your best mates, and get set for some classic summer festival vibes like the good old days; this October and November, the hottest ticket in town will be Hotter Than Hell, with the Aussie festival celebrating all things rock returning later this year for a monster 2024 edition with one stage, no clashes and affordable prices with tickets from $85. Bringing the old-school vibes off the beaten track to outdoor venues in Western Australia, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland, Hotter Than Hell will feature unforgettable performances across five days from familiar and new favourites, including the likes of Regurgitator, American icons Less Than Jake (performing in SA and QLD only) and Unwritten Law(performing in WA and VIC only), along with Jebediah, Little Birdy, The Bennies, Adalita, and The Kickons. Once again bringing a monstrous lineup truly blessed by the rock gods down under, Hotter Than Hell is here to kick off summer festival season with a bang!
From just $85, tickets for Hotter Than Hell go onsale to the general public on Wednesday July 24 at 12pm local time from hotterthanhelltour.com.au, fans can register for presale tickets now from hotterthanhelltour.com.au, with the presale kicking off Monday 22 July at 12pm local time.
An undisputed and unstoppable force on the Aussie alternative landscape, Hotter Than Hell’s 2024 headliners Regurgitator need very little introduction. Forming in Brisbane in the early 90s, the group have gone on to take home multiple ARIA Awards, tour the globe across Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the UK, Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East, playing with Weezer, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Prodigy and Silverchair, and obliterate festival stages, from the iconic days of Big Day Out through to their recent appearance as part of 2022’s Good Things Festival. Armed with ten studio albums under the Regurgitator moniker, including their groundbreaking 1996 debut album Tu-Plang, through to their recent 2024 opus Invader, Regurgitator remain a cultural force to be reckoned with. Boundlessly inventive, and armed with everything from rock, rap, funk, and thrash (and even a kid’s album for good measure), Regurgitator’s live show remains to this day as infamous as their genre-defying earworms; and Hotter Than Hell was the perfect lure to get the band back on Aussie stages again, as the band share, “We were pretty set on taking a decent break after the high paced energy of making our latest album INVADER. As we rolled along over this great land and saw how much you poured your hearts into enjoying our Invasive tour performances, the Hotter Than Hell folks reached out wanting us to continue the momentum for another run of their festival dates end of year. We took a deep breath and said what the hell… let’s keep the heat on eleven. Great lineup, and great locations… one more run around the continent this year. So here we go, thick and fast as we rampage into another summer season… and it just gets hotter every year!”
Set to perform at Hotter Than Hell in South Australia and Queensland this year, Florida ska rockers Less Than Jake have unleashed nine studio albums, ticked off performances at Warped Tour, Hellfest, and When We Were Young, and performed with NOFX, Bowling For Soup, MxPx andNew Found Glory. With a legion of global fans and a sweltering streaming presence, including 59+ million individual streams and counting for their smash single All My Best Friends Are Metalheads on Spotify alone, Less Than Jake are also revered for their enigmatic live shows, where you’re guaranteed to head home with their infectious songs ringing in your head and a smile plastered on your face. Recently releasing a new single Broken Words, Less Than Jake will be down under for their headline run kicking off in October alongside their Hotter Than Hell appearance, set to play Hello Rockview in full, and all their hits. “Can’t believe it’s been six years since we’ve partied with our friends down under! Way too long!” shares Less Than Jake’s Matt Yonker. “Australia is one of our favourite places to play. Other than just being a beautiful place to visit, I’m always amazed at how attractive the people are down there, must be the water! We also all appreciate just how on point the coffee game is. No joke, you get an A+ on coffee consistency, I’m not sure I’ve ever had bad coffee there! Aussie audiences easily hang with the rest of the world. I think they may even be a touch crazier. And that’s a compliment, I’m really looking forward to the mayhem.”
Exclusively performing in Western Australia and Victoria this year as part of Hotter Than Hell, punk rock mainstays Unwritten Law emerged onto the scene in the early 90s welding classic punk with melodic hardcore elements. Finding chart and global success via their breakthrough 1998 self-titled record, Unwritten Law have since released seven full-length albums, toured extensively at home and abroad, including as part of Warped Tour, and generated millions of streams and video views along the way. Having only toured one other country more times than Australia (their own), it’s no stretch to declare Unwritten Law as genuine honorary Aussies, with the group hitting our shores repeatedly since 1996. And 2024 certainly won’t be Unwritten Law’s first Hotter Than Hell rodeo, as the band shares, “With the last Hotter Than Hell being the last tour we did before the world shut down, it holds a special place in our hearts. We’re thrilled to come be a part of it again! We’ll be playing the Black album in full and that’s always been a good time. What’s not to love about Australia? Grab some twisties, get a pub feed, down a VB and have a surf! Honestly though, we love the people. It’s no joke that it’s our second home. We even have a full-blooded Aussie in our band now! We just feel so accepted in the culture, it’s a crazy thing to have that kind of connection to someplace that’s so far away from where we’re from. Music is magic.”
For any Australian of a certain vintage, the name Jebediah likely conjures memories of endless summers and riff-soaked good times in the 90s, stemming from the band’s explosive shift from Perth teenagers to an integral part of the fabric of Australian rock’n’roll. Immediately snatching attention with their 1996 hit Jerks of Attention, the group swiftly cultivated heavy airplay on triple j and ticked off performances at both Homebake and Big Day Out, before solidifying their legendary status with their debut studio album Slightly Odway, boasting the beloved anthem Leaving Home. Appearing at all five Hotter Than Hell events later this year, Jebediah will also arrive armed with their hit new 2024 album OIKS.
Storming onto the Aussie alternative radar back in the early 2000s, Perth rockers Little Birdy packed a punch throughout the decade, including three albums, 2004’s BigBigLove, 2006’s Hollywood, and 2009’s Confetti, five ARIA Award nominations, and tours with R.E.M and onstage at Falls Festival, Big Day Out and Great Escape Festival, while their gutsy pop and rock fare also tickled the alternative airwaves with gusto, particularly via singles Relapse, Beautiful to Me and Tonight’s the Night. Also primed to perform at all five of the Hotter Than Hell editions this October and November, this will mark the Little Birdy’s first return to a festival stage in well over a decade, with BigBigLove set to be performed in its entirety! “It’s been a long time since we played those youthful songs as a band so we are all excited by the idea of revisiting them,” shares Little Birdy vocalist and guitarist Katy Steele. “I also love the concept of us playing the record in its entirety. These shows should be so much fun!”
A psychedelic storm of reggae, ska, and beyond, The Bennies have been brandishing their boisterous wares since the release of their 2011 debut album Party! Party! Party!. A band who certainly knows how to get the party started in any setting, The Bennies kicked off 2024 supporting TISM in Frankston, Victoria, with the group locked and loaded to perform at Hotter Than Hell in Gepps Cross, Townsville and Brisbane this October and November. Renowned for their voracious live energy and an adoration for genre-defiance, there ain’t no party like a The Bennies party; strap in and enjoy the ride.
Founding member of Australian rock royalty Magic Dirt and an all-round Aussie icon, Adalita will be wowing Hotter Than Hell fans in Mt Evelyn, bringing her acclaimed solo work to the stage this October. With her highly respected solo career launching in 2011, Adalita has gone on to support Blondie and The Pretenders and also perform for His Holiness The Dalai Lama, with her most recent 2022 solo album Inland showcasing her enduring songwriting prowess and magnetic delivery.
Hailing from Perth, indie pop rockers The Kickons channel raw authenticity into their sonic creations. Releasing their new single In the Cold earlier this year, the group wield a formidable social media following, with 3.2 million likes on their TikTok channel alone, and their live shows also proving to be nothing short of a cathartic experience. The Kickons will appear at Hotter Than Hell this year in Dunsborough. “This is our first big festival, and to be on the Hotter Than Hell lineup is just unreal,” shares The Kickons. “We can’t wait to get out there and show everyone what we’ve got.”
Taking place in areas often not tread by touring routes or destination festivals, Hotter Than Hell is ultimately flying the flag for glory days of Homebake and Livid, summer fun and best mates once again with a truly scorching lineup in 2024.
Tickets for Hotter Than Hell go onsale to the general public on Wednesday July 24 at 12pm local time from hotterthanhelltour.com.au.
HOTTER THAN HELL 2024
Tickets available from hotterthanhelltour.com.au
SAT 12 OCT | DUNSBOROUGH TAVERN, DUNSBOROUGH WA | TICKETS
Featuring: Regurgitator, Unwritten Law (US), Jebediah, Little Birdy, The Kickons
SAT 19 OCT | YORK ON LILYDALE, MT EVELYN VIC | TICKETS
Featuring: Regurgitator, Unwritten Law (US), Jebediah, Little Birdy, Adalita
SAT 26 OCT | COOPERS ALEHOUSE, GEPPS CROSS SA |TICKETS
Featuring: Regurgitator, Less Than Jake (US), Jebediah, Little Birdy, The Bennies
SAT 2 NOV | KIRWAN TAVERN, TOWNSVILLE QLD | TICKETS
Featuring: Regurgitator, Less Than Jake (US), Jebediah, Little Birdy, The Bennies
SUN 03 NOV | CHARDONS CORNER HOTEL, BRISBANE QLD| TICKETS
Featuring: Regurgitator, Less Than Jake (US), Jebediah, Little Birdy, The Bennies
RADICAL SON RELEASES POWERFUL NEW ALBUM BILAMBIYAL (THE LEARNING)
A stirring and powerful celebration of cultural connection alongside masterful performances, Kamilaroi and Tongan artist Radical Son unveils his sophomore album Bilambiyal (The Learning), out now via Wantok Musik. Boasting 13 tracks that swell with dynamic meaning and gripping arrangements, Bilambiyal (The Learning) also offers a deeply powerful statement of devotion to country, armed with harmonious traditional and modern sonic hues.
Releasing via Wantok Musik, and following on from his debut release Cause ‘N Affect, Bilambiyal (The Learning) was also crafted alongside a powerhouse team, including Full Circle Audio, Marcus Longfoot, Andy Robinson, David Bridie, Frank Yamma, Emma Donovan and many more lending their magic to the end result. Heralded by its lead singles Elder, Until You Call My Name, and Yuluwirri Wandabaa (The Rainbow Dreaming), Bilambiyal (The Learning) delves deep into Radical Son’s passion and advocacy for culture and connection in the modern age alongside themes of reflection, growth and, ultimately, learning. “I remember how much it meant to me to finally have a voice,” shares Radical Son of his new album. “I am so grateful to be releasing our album Bilambiyal” (The Learning). I am very proud of this work, and I am so grateful to those who have collaborated with me to bring it to life. I believe we have created a work that we can all be proud of. I absolutely love the songs on this album, and I know you will too. Even though I wish I’d had a stronger connection to Culture and Country. Even though there was a real disconnect and Culture and Country was not something I had a deep understanding of, still so much of my music is about my mob, my culture, my heritage. With almost 20 years now as an artist, I’ve stayed true to the game. I’ve stayed true to my mob. I’ve stayed true to myself. I really do hope that that message comes through in my songs.”
Opening with the starkly intimate Elder Reprise, Radical Son instantly conjures goosebumps as his almighty vocals soar, akin to standing on a mountaintop proclaiming: “I wish to be an Elder”. A short yet instantly gripping introduction to the power lying in wait throughout Bilambiyal (The Learning), Elder Reprise transitions seamlessly into How Long Must I Wait, a warm blend of soul and urgency, followed by the glowing ambience and captivating vocals lying in wait on All My Life. From a magnetic reflection on gratitude (Until You Call My Name) to a striking spoken word interlude (Cultural Contract), Bilambiyal (The Learning) rises to even greater heights via the commanding Elder; a spellbinding outing that also pays tribute to Radical Son’s cultural legacy seeking to inspire potential future Elders of this land. And journeying between elements of reggae (the buoyant Only One Life), moody and glossy ambience laden with vulnerability (The Learning (Bilambiyal), aka the album’s hypnotic title track), and potent lyricism fused with driving delivery (Yuluwirri Wandabaa (The Rainbow Dreaming) featuring Emma Donovan and Frank Yamma), Bilambiyal (The Learning) closes out with heady swoon (Dhuwan Baraay Yuligi), another haunting spoken word interlude (The Same Game), sleek soul complete with intermittent strings and layered harmonies (A Golden Age), and, ultimately, a track that simultaneously dazzles with Radical Son’s honeyed delivery and potent yet sparse instrumentation on The Fall. Declaring “I’m looking for a change, I’m ready for a change”, The Fall closes Bilambiyal (The Learning) on a pensive yet uplifting note, showcasing Radical Son’s stunning craftsmanship alongside his own personal and creative learning, as well as his unwavering connection to culture and country.
One of the most compelling artists in the Australian cultural scene, Radical Son, the son of an Aboriginal woman and Tongan man, channels his experiences from his past into immense power and resolve, with his trademark sound pulsing with the urgency of hip hop and emotionally charged soul. A festival favourite, cemented by his show-stopping cover of his mentor Uncle Archie Roach’s Walking Into Doors in 2022, Radical Son has performed to standing ovations at Bluesfest, St Kilda Festival, VIVID, the AFL Dreamtime 2022 game, and the official Uncle Archie Roach memorial in Melbourne and Sydney.
A highly skilled concert artist, with performances alongside classical ensembles and high-profile collaborations under his belt, Radical Son’s artistry also expands to film and TV, with credits including Defining Moments, a six-part NITV documentary exploring life-defining experiences, and theatre work, including the lead role of Pemulwuy in I am Eora at the 2012 Sydney Festival.
Studying as a musician at The Eora Centre for Visual and Performing Arts in Redfern, as well completing a Bachelor of Music from Newcastle Conservatorium, Radical Son’s creative prowess and steadfast substance is only matched by his otherworldly stage presence that repeatedly transfixes; and this fact is only set to heighten with an upcoming performance in later this month as part of QPAC’s Warriors Concert for 2024’s Clancestry Festival in Brisbane armed with Bilambiyal (The Learning).
“This record is something I can be proud of,” shares Radical Son. “It’s an example to me of how I’ve grown and done better in my creative work. It’s my favourite album of mine so far.”
“Music has made me a better person. We hold the key. Within ourselves we can change things for ourselves and make the lives of others better in the process. I hope my songs have a positive impact on you.”
Bilambiyal (The Learning) is out now, via Wantok Musik.
RADICAL SON – UPCOMING SHOWS:
WED 31 JULY | QPAC, BRISBANE QLD| ALL AGES
Tickets available from https://www.qpac.com.au/whats-on/2024/clancestry-warriors
QUINNY SHARES ABSORBING NEW SINGLE + VIDEO SETTLERS
Scottish-born, Melbourne-based artist Quinny weaves warmth into wistful, driving indie folk via his brand new single Settlers out in the world today. Previously renowned for his tongue-in-cheek Christmas sonic creations, as well as strangers frequently mistaking him for Ed Sheeran in public, Quinny’s brand new single showcases his absorbing creative flair, as does the accompanying video for Settlers also out today.
Penned in rural Maine in America during 2022 alongside friends Marie Collins (The Vegan Leather) and Hannah Daman, Settlers was given its finishing touches courtesy of Graham McCusker, a composer for BBC’s His Dark Materials and lead artist in Glasgow/Manchester bands KAZE and Marouli. Recording in Scotland with Robin Evans (Dodgy & The View), Settlers embraced many of Quinny’s musical muses while also capturing the poignant heartache that accompanies disappointment, as Quinny elaborates, “This song is about confronting those you rely on most when they have let you down. There’s a sort of stadium-folk feel to it. I wanted to have big chords, but also some delicate verses. If you listen to the piano, you’ll hear a bit of Sigur Rós influence, and I like to think I go a bit Billy Corgan at the end too.”
Featuring Quinny himself, aka Peter Quinn, on vocals, guitar and bass, Settlers also incorporates Graham McCusker on piano and vocals, Martin Tormey on drums and vocals, Marie Collins on vocals, Hannah Daman on vocals, Martin Quinnon vocals, and additional production by Nathan Cable. Also amplifying the track’s compelling subject matter and instrumentation, the visual accompaniment for Settlers features a relatable narrative, with director and filmmaker Conor Reilly working alongside Quinny and the clip’s actors Martin Quinn and Stephan Buchanan to bring the Settlers creative vision to life, along with some stunning landscape visuals shot in Quinny’s home country. “The video is about anxiety,” sharesQuinny. “It features a young man going about his daily business, constantly being interrupted by someone else – a manifestation of his woes. He tries to just ignore it, until finally starting to take some action and getting out and about in the Scottish Highlands. Because of the nature of the sound, I thought some wide shots of Scottish mountains would be quite fitting, and it’s worked really well. Martin and I workshopped the concept and story with a few people before landing where it did. After a point, I left Martin to it as he was on a roll! Originally, the video was set to a different song from the album, No Place to Die, but after a few edits, it was clear Settlers was the right choice.”
A talented singer and songwriter hailing from Scotland, Quinny’s musical endeavours has seen him fuse his burgeoning flair alongside his four influential B’s, namely Biffy Clyro, Blink-182, The Beatles and Bombay Bicycle driving behind Quinny’s ultimate trademark sound. With tours in the UK and North America under his belt, the multifaceted creative shifted to Melbourne in early 2020, with his newfound hometown sparking creative excitement in true rock’n’roll fashion. “I love it, honestly,” says Quinny of the Melbourne music scene. “Compared to Glasgow and London, Melbourne has remained rock’n’roll through and through. Less bands with backing tracks and more bass players jumping into the crowd at a packed out 100 cap show.”
Alongside performances headlining shows at The Gaso, Last Chance, Retreat and Fitzroy Pinnacle in Melbourne, Quinnyalso won the 2020 Darebin Songwriters’ People’s Choice Award shortly after moving down under for his single Found & Lost. Described by Tenement TV as “an enthralling mix of the raucous and sentimental with witty lyricism and poppy charm”, Quinny had spent the past few years releasing older material and flippant Christmas songs, with One Foot In The Grave’s Richard Wilson making an appearance in one of Quinny’s Christmas videos.
Set to perform next week at Fitzroy Pinnacle armed with his latest track, the brand new Quinny chapter is already shaping up to be one to remember. “Generally, at my live shows I talk too much! I saw Georgia Knight at the Forum supporting Blonde Redhead recently and she hardly talks…I aspire to be that cool,” Quinny concludes. “No one can understand what I’m saying anyway. This will be the first outing for a few of the songs of my upcoming album, so I’m looking forward to starting to get them on their feet with the full band. If nothing else, the backing vocals will be amazing, Estelle and Naomi always do such a great job.”
Settlers is out now.
QUINNY – UPCOMING SHOW:
THU 18 JUL | FITZROY PINNACLE, FITZROY NORTH VIC | 18+
Tickets available from Oztix