GAVIN MAC SHARES NEW SINGLE + VIDEO ‘MAKE YOU FEEL’ + DEBUT ALBUM ‘MAKE YOU FEEL’ DUE OUT SEPTEMBER 5
Combining glistening modern alt-country with sentimental hues, the upbeat new single Make You Feel out today with an accompanying music video from Sydney country sensation Gavin Mac is an utterly effervescent glimpse into Mac’s impending debut full-length of the same name, with the album Make You Feel officially set for release on Thursday September 5.
A buoyant outing anchored by infectious melodics, lustrous instrumentation, and lashings of country charm, Gavin Mac’s new track Make You Feel saw the talented artist team up with Ben Butler on lead guitar, Melinda Jackson on backing vocals, and Josh Schuberth on drums, along with mastering courtesy of William Bowden. Simultaneously nostalgic and joyful, Make You Feel ultimately also reflects Mac’s driving musical mission statement threading throughout his debut studio release, as he reveals, “Make You Feel was, first and foremost, my mantra when I was thinking about song selection and production. I felt that success, for me, was eliciting an emotion, taking the listener to a time or place, and opening them up to some kind of reflection. In today’s fast paced life, we’re always ‘more’ and ‘what’s next’. I’m as guilty of this as anyone.”
Make You Feel also arrives today with a charming accompanying music video that seamlessly expands the underlying lyrical content. With its 1980s setting, empowering storyline and sentimental cues, Make You Feel is equally relatable and aspirational, with Mac choosing to not take centre stage in the visual setting. “I wanted to tell the song’s story, through the experience of my intended audience,” shares Mac. “I’m a terrible actor, which doesn’t help either. Funny given my younger brother Blair McDonough, forged a pretty successful career as an Aussie actor on Neighbours. Based in the 80s, a decade synonymous with excess, the story revolves around an uber-successful businesswoman, who, having reached burn-out, flees the city to reunite with her childhood bestie. En route, she breaks down in the middle of nowhere, and with no means of modern communication, she is forced to walk until she finds help. As she clambers through the countryside in high-heels and a white power suit, our hero’s exacerbation with work and life in the city melts away, and the sights and sounds around her reignite her nostalgia for simpler times. She is reminded of a similar car breakdown with her best friend, and their journey to find help. From despair comes a journey of re-discovery, which results in the two reuniting with a warm embrace. “
Serving as the title track for Gavin Mac’s forthcoming new album Make You Feel, Mac’s latest single opens proceedings into the 10 tracks lying in wait across his maiden full-length, flowing between sharp and driving empowerment (Live Your Life), swooning contemporary twangs (Getaway and How Much Better), airy countrified love songs (Angel In A Black T-Shirt), and poignant, heart-rending odes (Bushfire and Forever Changing You). Spanning influences ranging from John Mayer through to Chris Stapleton, Eric Clapton and Midland, Make Them Feel also boasts Mac’s time-travelling single Sideswiped, with the crisp tune first penned and demoed by Mac as a teenager before catching the attention of Sony Music Australia earlier in his career. “Although this collection of songs was written over a long time span,” shares Mac, “I tried to unite them by singing them, cleanly. By that I mean, not leaning into any style, just singing them straight. I also chose to work with a renowned country music producer to unite the songs through honest, earthy production techniques and instrumentation. My goal was to present a polished set of modern contemporary songs, that each incorporate a nostalgic cue, be it the narrative, instrumentation, or driven. In absence of these recordings being easily boxed into a popular genre or genre subset, my hope was to ‘make you feel’ something.”
Discovered at the age of 16 by Sony Music’s Denis Handlin and John Watson, Gavin Mac quickly gained the title of being Sony Music Australia’s youngest-ever Australian recording artist at the time. Evolving his music industry skills and knowledge in the years to follow, Mac worked alongside both international and iconic Australian artists, including previous work with Nickelback, Queens of the Stone Age, Linda & Vika Bull, and Alex Lloyd. And from managing A&R duties for Roadrunner Records to stepping back from the industry to raise his family, Mac still kept his creative fires alive, co-founding the award-winning brand experience agency Urban, conceiving and delivering marketing campaigns for Electronic Arts, Airbnb, and Netflix.
With years away from music, a fortuitous 2019 road trip to the Tamworth Country Music festival provided the very kindling that would ultimately turn Mac’s gaze firmly back to his passions, songwriting and storytelling, with the Melbourne-hailing singer-songwriter emerging from his musical hiatus with gusto in 2023 balancing renewed purpose, perspective and the powerful drive that comes with unfinished business. In 2023, Mac released his debut solo singles Getaway, Live Your Life and Bushfire, amassing over 300K streams and counting, with 2024 also garnering Mac his first industry nod, taking home the Tamworth Music Association’s 2024 New Songwriter of the Year. Now poised to release his long-awaited debut album this September, Make You Feel may be Gavin Mac’s first official full-length release, but it’s been a labour of love many years in the making, with many incredible experiences also along the way. “Make You Feel is a debut album 30 years in the making,” says Mac. “Do I qualify for some kind of Guinness Book of Records nod?! It’s been a long time in making, but hopefully the first of many to come. I’m already well into my follow up album, which I’m planning to release a little quicker than the first. I take a quiet satisfaction in defying convention. It’s when you know you’re being different, brave and beating to your own drum. So bring it on.”
“The album is like an old photo,” Mac concludes. “I’ve extracted my favourite photos and then digitized them for perpetuity. But not to dwell on the past, instead it’s presentation to the market blends old and new, to ensure it is true to its promise of delivering a ‘modern nostalgia’ experience. I feel the same as I’m sure any artist does when releasing a debut album: excited and nervous. Releasing music into the public domain is also cathartic for any artist. Regardless of how it is received, it’s liberating to hang your music in the public domain for people to hear and hopefully, enjoy in perpetuity.”
Make You Feel is out today.
Gavin Mac’s full-length album Make You Feel is due out Thursday September 5.
THE CORONAS SHARE NEW SINGLE + VIDEO ‘THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT LOVE IS’ FEAT. GABRIELLE APLIN + NEW ALBUM ‘THOUGHTS & OBSERVATIONS’ + DUE OUT SEPTEMBER 27 + TOURING AUSTRALIA THIS NOVEMBER
A stirring new single out today from Dublin’s finest The Coronas, That’s Exactly What Love Is blends the trio’s knack for poignancy and indie pop and rock in charming fashion, with the group’s friend and collaborator Gabrielle Aplin also featuring on this latest release. The second single taken from The Coronas’ upcoming eighth studio album, Thoughts & Observations due out on Friday September 27, That’s Exactly What Love Is also arrives today accompanied by a brand new music video, with the track also destined to feature in the trio’s upcoming Australian live shows this November.
Opening with the beautifully wistful vocals of frontman Danny O’Reilly, serenely crooning “I’ll start with sorry / And please believe me / Kills me to see you cry”, That’s Exactly What Love Is burgeons as Alpin’s crystalline vocals fuse with O’Reilly into a heart-rending duet, echoing at times the sublime collaboration from Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush on the track Don’t Give Up. Driven by the group’s trademark pensive pop and mature songwriting with a modern twist, That’s Exactly What Love Is reflects its vulnerable lyricism through astutely simplistic instrumentation and warm tones, and the end result is ultimately one of hope rather than misery; a fact which carries across the broader upcoming album Thoughts & Observations. “Thematically, the album deals with love, loss and growing older,” shares The Coronas. “It’s possibly us fully embracing our man-band status. After seven albums we’re probably a little more cynical now than we were when we started! In saying that there’s still an optimistic feel to this album that The Coronas albums tend to have.”
Filmed in Glastonbury with longtime videographer and The Coronas friend Johnny Stewart (Hozier, Kodaline, Gavin James), the accompanying music video for That’s Exactly What Love Is effortlessly mirrors the track’s moving thematics, with the clip, filmed at a picturesque field near Glastonbury Tor. “That’s Exactly What Love Is was the first song I wrote after our last album came out,” vocalist Danny O’Reilly reveals. “I wrote it as a conversation between two people going through a breakup, and as soon as I wrote the female part, I had Gabrielle in mind to sing it. In fact, I bumped into her at a festival a week after I wrote it. I immediately told her about the song and, over a year later, it was amazing to have her in studio bringing her own character to the song. She’s so talented and professional she blew us away when she came to London to record her part.”
Teaming up with longtime collaborator and Grammy Award winner George Murphy (Mumford and Sons, The Specials, Ellie Goulding), The Coronas inject a gamut of captivating moods and emotions throughout Thoughts & Observations, with their powerful and melodic eighth studio outing ultimately taking an incisive look at life, relationships and art. Alongside the talent and chemistry at the core of each member, with O’Reilly on vocals, piano and guitar, Graham Knox on bass, and Conor Egan on drums, Thoughts & Observations also embraces the talents of The Coronas’ touring supergroup, boasting Lar Kaye (All Tvvins) on guitar, Cian MacSweeney (True Tides) on saxophone, and Roisin O on backing vocals. And balancing moments of delicacy with soaring anthems, Thoughts & Observations captures The Coronas unbridled authenticity and passion, with the album originating not long after 2022’s Time Stopped had released into the world. “We’re so excited to be sharing new music,” says the band. “To be honest we didn’t really take a break after the last one, as soon as the touring and promotion of Time Stopped slowed down, we were already working on Thoughts & Observations”
In the ever-evolving landscape of the modern music industry, The Coronas have continued to independently thrive without sacrificing their creative vision along the way. A multi-platinum group who can claim supporting Bruce Springsteen in Hyde Park, playing for President Biden, and a burgeoning global fanbase, The Coronas’ last three albums also went straight to #1 in the Irish Charts, with recent sold out tours in their wake spanning North America and Australia further showcasing the trio’s successful and ever-growing legacy. Renowned for their magnetic live shows, having also been previously voted as the #1 Live Act of the Year by Hot Press, The Coronas have been headlining their own shows and festivals in Ireland for almost 15 years, with their regular Christmas performances at The Olympia Theatre in Dublin becoming the stuff of legend. And set to return to Australia this November following their acclaimed down under run late last year, The Coronas will arrive armed with their trademark magic as well as their hotly-anticipated album Thoughts & Observations.
“Every album we make is with a view to improving our live show,” explains O’Reilly. “We still feel like we have something to say.”
That’s Exactly What Love Is is out today, Friday July 5.
Thoughts & Observations is due out on Friday September 27.
THE CORONAS – UPCOMING TOUR DATES:
THURS 21 NOV | CROXTON BANDROOM, MELBOURNE
Tickets available from https://thecroxton.oztix.com.au/outlet/event/9b2e8104-0fc7-4f60-bf75-65ee6f8aa049
FRI 22 NOV | SELINA’S, SYDNEY
Tickets available from https://moshtix.com.au/v2/event/the-coronas/168917?skin=SelinasVenue
SAT 23 NOV | MAGNET HOUSE, PERTH
Tickets available from https://tickets.393murray.com.au/outlet/event/2f8576da-c523-4c8e-87dc-e0dcc38b3511
Stream: THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT LOVE IS
DALLAS FRASCA ANNOUNCES NEW SOLO ALBUM ‘FORCE OF NATURE’ OUT JULY 19 + SHARES NEW LYRIC VIDEO ‘ELECTRIC DAYS’ + HUGE NATIONAL TOUR AUG-NOV
A fierce and authentic collection of songs from the dazzling mind of Melbourne roots rock icon Dallas Frasca, the upcoming new solo album Force of Nature is set to truly be a genuine sonic force to be reckoned with, journeying between towering highs and glossy reprieves with unbridled power and passion. Officially set for release on Friday July 19, pre-orders for Force of Nature are now live, with each pre-order automatically securing a free ticket to an upcoming Dallas Frasca secret listening party, with pre-orders also offering the chance to win a prize pack from D’Addario and a Cole Clark guitar. And if the confirmation of a solo Dallas Frasca album today isn’t enough, a brand new lyric video has also unveiled, with some fittingly electrifying visuals out now to accompany Dallas Frasca’s recent single Electric Days, as well as a horde of live shows to come, starting this August.
The third offering from the upcoming Force of Nature full-length, Dallas Frasca’s recent single Electric Days follows on from Stand on My Shoulders (#1 AMRAP Charts) and River Queen (#2 AMRAP Charts), with Electric Days erupting with fuzz, guitar-fuelled hooks and explosive 60s Motown-driven percussion. Stemming from Dallas Frasca’s songwriting exercises undertaken during her involvement with the 2018 Commonwealth Games, the explosive track takes on new life with real-world performance vision driving the track’s accompanying lyric video alongside a firm and empowered DIY ethic behind the scenes, as Dallas reveals, “A fan sent me a video of me performing Electric Days for the first time I played it at Blues on Broadbeach in May this year. My music business is a fiercely run and very proud one-stop ‘independent music shop’. I edited the video myself and my friend Raymond J Evans put the lyrics on for me. I think too many young artists get deluded by a ‘fantasy’ of a music career. I feel like the music industry model has crumbled and has a long way to go before it finds its way again. Until then I’ll be still connecting with real fans that love the experience of going to shows and supporting artists by buying their merch. My philosophy is that you build your music business one person at a time, however, this is not just my business, this is my/our community. There are opportunities to have a sustainable living from a music career, and what we want our versions of success to look like varies from artist to artist. I have a clear idea of what I want my success story to look like and I feel fortunate to be able to be living my dream. I’m building my little empire and along with that comes hard work and learning the many facets of your own business (and a shit tonne of work, editing videos, designing merch, content creation). I love it. I’d much rather be doing this than a 9-5.”
Self-described as “like a cheer squad from the sideline hyping up against the naysayers, a self-manifestation and that feeling when you eventually achieve the things you set out to do despite all the noise, it’s the moment”, Electric Days is a stellar step forward into a brand-new creative chapter for Dallas Frasca as she approaches the release of Force of Nature. Spanning influences from Lisa Kekaula of Basement Jaxx through to Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, Larkin Poe, and Led Zeppelin alongside the gravitational pull from blues-influenced music that has so adamantly punctuated her prior releases, Force of Nature is Dallas Frasca at her most potent and engaging self to date; a fact made even more impressive by her ongoing legacy since first emerging onto the Australian music scene back in the mid 2000s. An album four years in the making and inspired greatly by time spent in nature as well as finding her own true self along the way, the result is a spellbinding journey deep into the soul of one of Australia’s genuine songwriting greats. “A couple of years ago I had an enormous epiphany where I was overcome with an overwhelming feeling that it was the right time to put a solo record out, barebones, ME as an artist, with no other influences,” shares Dallas. “It was kind of like a moment, I truly found my own voice, and the fire was lit. It grew as I obsessively picked up the guitar every day and began to write. Recording Force of Nature was an intense and deeply personal process, I recorded it across six different studios in Melbourne including the piano for The Wind Blows in my loungeroom aka ‘Lady Luck Studios’, and you can hear the birds chirping outside throughout the recording. Real and raw. It’s the third record I’ve made with my dear friend and collaborator, L.A Based, Andy Baldwin. It was tricky figuring out how to record the album when it was only me, and Andy’s playful and adventurous spirit brought a touch of genius to the plate every day. He pushed me far beyond what I thought I was capable of. I could not have achieved this without him. He is such a generous collaborator, when I heard the mix for the opening track on the record, I cried. I couldn’t believe what we had accomplished together. The album’s quieter moments hint at a new, more compelling frontier for me, maybe suggesting an evolution in my sound and songwriting. You’ll hear the combinations of my love for traditional blues elements with modern influences.”
Opening with driving stomp and swagger via Pray, Force of Nature journeys between the simmering might of Let It Rain, coated in raw vocals, modern gospel hues and a magnetic vocal delivery, through to uplifting and bold waves of acoustic guitars and glimmering harmonies (You Are Glorious (Unborn Unicorn) and River Queen), poignant ballads draped in warmth (The Wind Blows and May The Bridges We’ve Burned Light The Way), stomping gems laden with country charm and blues (I’ll Be Here When You Wake), and modern rock (Electric Days), with all tracks powerfully helmed and woven together throughout by Dallas Frasca herself. “Force of Nature is a musical homecoming of sorts and in retrospect was a time of healing and growth for me,” Dallas reveals. “My producer Andy and my vision was to treat each song like its own universe to make a multi-dimensional piece of art. It’s massive, gutsy and raw. I think the element I’m most proud of, is it doesn’t sound like anyone else but me.”
Garnering praise with a career spanning close to two decades, Dallas Frasca has been named everything from “the most powerful female voice in Australian rock” (RockPit) through to “one of the best frontwomen in the business” (Upside Down News) and scored the seal of approval from Guns N’ Roses’ very own Slash along the way. Renowned for her electrifying onstage presence and guitar slinging prowess, the new era for Dallas Frasca as a solo artist has only heightened her sonic might, now also arming her with both electric and acoustic guitars, a live loop pedal and staggering vulnerability and authenticity that flows throughout her brand of roots/rock. Whether placing in the top three of the International Songwriting Competition, snagging a theme song and worldwide sync on the popular TV series Bondi Ink, collaborating with Ugly Kid Joe or charting internationally, Dallas Frasca has also enamoured onstage at the likes of Bluesfest, Falls Festival, Woodford, was invited to fill in the shoes of Peter Garrett and fronted Midnight Oil for an Amnesty International event and also wowed at the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony in front of 1.5 billion viewers in 2018. And while critical and fan acclaim has followed Dallas Frasca throughout her career, it’s in 2024 that this talented creative has leant into the unknown and emerged triumphant, armed with the aptly titled Force of Nature. “Growing my wings as a solo artist has been the most challenging, vulnerable, raw, and empowering endeavour I have embarked on to date,” shares Dallas. “Hats off to all the solo artists out there. It’s given me an unwavering purpose and direction. This new body of work is by far the proudest achievement of my life thus far, I’m so excited to share it with everyone. There is so much to come, and I look forward to revealing a showcase of my growth as an artist and songwriter.”
Fans can catch Dallas Frasca on the road later this year following the release of Force of Nature, kicking off on Friday August 2 in Scarborough, Western Australia, with tour dates spanning across the country well into November.
Electric Days is out now.
Force of Nature is due out on Friday July 19.
DALLAS FRASCA – FORCE OF NATURE NATIONAL TOUR:
Tickets available from dallasfrasca.com
FRI 02 AUG | INDI BAR, SCARBOROUGH WA
DUO w/ Abbe May
SAT 03 AUG | THE RIVER, MARGARET RIVER WA
DUO w/ Abbe May
SUN 04 AUG | MOJO’S, FREMANTLE WA
DUO w/ Abbe May
SAT 17 AUG | MILTON THEATRE, MILTON NSW
DUO w/ James Van Cooper
SUN 18 AUG | LONGSTOCKING BREWERY, PAMBULA NSW
DUO w/ TBC
23 AUGUST | HABA, RYE VIC
BAND w/ Queenie
24 AUGUST | NORTHCOTE SOCIAL CLUB, MELBOURNE VIC
BAND w/ Georgia Rodgers
25 AUGUST |WHEATSHEAF, ADELAIDE SA
DUO w/ Fazz and Mannix
20 SEPTEMBER | MOYHU HOTEL, MOYHU VIC
DUO w/ Jo Jo Smith
21 SEPTEMBER | SMITH’S ALTERNATIVE, CANBERRA ACT
DUO w/ James Southwell
17 OCTOBER | BRUNSWICK PICTURE HOUSE, BRUNSWICK HEADS NSW
TRIO w/ CC The Cat
18 OCTOBER | WOLVI STOMP FESTIVAL, WOLVI QLD
TRIO w/ Line-Up: Frank Sultana, Owen Campbell, Jesse Redwing & more.
19 OCTOBER | MO’S DESERT CLUBHOUSE, GOLD COAST QLD
TRIO w/ CC The Cat
20 OCTOBER | IT’S STILL A SECRET, BRISBANE QLD
TRIO w/ Blues Arcadia
02 NOVEMBER | TANK ARTS CENTRE, CAIRNS QLD
DUO w/ Lady Valiant + Stu Harcourt + Mas Minimals
15 NOVEMBER |CAMELOT LOUNGE, SYDNEY NSW
DUO w/ Roshani
16 NOVEMBER | CHIEFEST FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE NSW
DUO w/ Line-Up: The Urban Chiefs + Good Corn Liquor + Piper Butcher + L.R. Marsh & more.
17 NOVEMBER | FLOW BAR, OLD BAR NSW
DUO w/ Felicity Dowd
29 NOVEMBER | REPUBLIC BAR, HOBART TAS
DUO w/ The Bad Dad Orchestra
30 NOVEMBER | ISLAND STATE BREWING – THE PIER, ULVERSTON TAS
DUO w/ The Bad Dad Orchestra