MAISON HALL SHARE NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO MONTREUX ALONGSIDE EAST COAST SHOWS
Indie Aus rockers Maison Hall have today shared their new rambler Montreux, a love letter to the connection between the left and the right sides of the brain. The duo, made up of Ben Byron and Joe Kneipp, have also announced a colourful, eccentric video to accompany the track. This is Maison Hall’s first release since their 2017 debut album It Was Never About Me, and will be celebrated with an east coast tour playing Black Bear Lodge Brisbane on February 3, The Retreat Hotel Melbourne on February 11 and Gang Gang Café Canberra on February 13.
Contemplative and upbeat, Montreux is classic indie rock evocative of The Kooks and Catfish and the Bottlemen, with sparks of innovation unique to Maison Hall throughout. Guitars thrash amongst steady, driving drums; lead vocalist Joe Kneipp’s voice feels right at home amongst the chaos, commanding attention with thoughtful lyrics and strong melodic hooks. Speaking on the inspiration behind the anticipated return single for the duo, Joe reflects, “Montreux is celebratory. Not just because we’re still doing this, but because we’re still doing this despite our ‘real-life’ obligations, the distance between us, the total absence of pecuniary success, etc. We are so divorced from any external validations – the simple fact is, I love making music, and I love making music with Ben. And we’re gonna keep fucking doing it!”
The video clip for Montreux is as considered as it is amusing – a never-ending, ever-cycling job interview is consistently interrupted by a vigorous visual artist, determined to be acknowledged by the two men in their meeting. It’s a clever commentary on the push and pull of a working artist’s time and headspace, caught between creation and survival in capitalist society, as Joe sums up the video, “The concept of the clip is pretty on the nose – the juxtaposition between the left and right brain, the creative and the pragmatist, the poetic and the prosaic. If you’re a musician, or any creative for that matter, who’s not lucky enough to make all their money from creative endeavours, you’ll understand these tensions. I workshopped it with Ben and then James Cooney, who stars in the clip as the ‘right-brain’ and is part of our live lineup.”
After almost six years since their last live show together – during which time the two members of the group have been exploring other musical projects – Maison Hall are thrilled to return to the stage to celebrate the launch of Montreux in Brisbane and Melbourne and Canberra. Despite both moving through several different cities since the guys met and formed Maison Hall back in college in Brisbane, the band are stronger and sharper in their songwriting than ever before, as demonstrated in the tight brilliance of Montreux.
Maison Hall is Ben Byron (Drums, Backing Vocals) and Joe Kneipp (Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Keyboard)
Montreux is out today.
THUR 3 FEB | BLACK BEAR LODGE, BRISBANE QLD | 18+
Tickets available from https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/maison-hall-montreux-single-launch-tickets-219745323177 | All Eventbrite Outlets
FRI 11 FEB | THE RETREAT HOTEL, MELBOURNE VIC | 18+
Tickets available from https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/maison-hall-tickets-242537585447 | All Eventbrite Outlets
SUN 13 FEB | GANG GANG CAFE, CANBERRA ACT | 18+
Tickets available from Oztix | All Oztix Outlets
ANNOUNCES APRIL 2022 EVENTS FOR ROCHFORD WINES YARRA VALLEY AND ROCHE ESTATE HUNTER VALLEY
Iconic mainstay festival Sunset Sounds has announced it’ll be delighting audiences and celebrating Australian singer songwriters at Rochford Wines Yarra Valley and Roche Estate Hunter Valley in April 2022. Set to take over the exquisite wineries on April 9 and 23 next year, the festival features an impressive haul of some of the country’s most prized singer songwriters, including; Xavier Rudd, Pete Murray, The Whitlams, Josh Pyke, Tex Perkins & The Fat Rubber Band, The Beautiful Girls, Busby Marou, Ash Grunwald, Kyle Lionhart, Charlie Collins, Little Green and Amber Rose.
Tickets go on sale at 9am local time on Thursday 2 December, with a 48 hour Sunset Sounds presale live at 9am local time on Tuesday 30 November.
Excited to be headlining, Xavier Rudd says, “I’m stoked to join the lineup for Sunset Sounds festival and to share some new music on stage. It’s an exciting time for people, a time to reset, a time for gratitude, a time to remember how lucky we are that we can celebrate life, love, music etc so freely in this magical country that we get to call home.”
“This is a cracking line up, I can’t wait to share the stage with these artists again,” says Pete Murray.
“This is a show that must go on! There’s been reshuffling and rescheduling, but I’m so excited to be a part of this event, and can’t wait to play for you all!” adds Josh Pyke.
“The searing sizzle of the cicada is a sunset sound. So is the soothing seductive sombre of the songs and smiles of some of the south’s songmen and women,” enthuses Tex Perkins, “Sunset Sounds summons us all!”
Excited about the return of the live scene, Empire’s Marc Christowski says, “After almost two years of no activity, we are super excited to bring this world class line-up including Xavier Rudd, Pete Murray and The Whitlams to the stunning wineries in the Hunter & Yarra Valley.”
After an unprecedented write off for live music in 2020, don’t miss this opportunity to celebrate the return of live music with some of Australia’s most beloved live acts at some of the country’s finest outdoor music venues.
Tickets go on sale at 9am local time on Thursday 2 December
Sunset Sounds will be held with a commitment to a COVID Safe environment. Festival organisers will work closely with and comply with all requirements of the public health authorities. If the show is required to be postponed, a postponement date will be announced and punters will be eligible for a full refund if they are unable to make the new date.
SUNSET SOUNDS | SAT 9 APRIL | ROCHFORD WINES, YARRA VALLEY| VIC | 18+
Tickets available from www.ticketek.com.au | 1300 364 001 | All Ticketek Outlets
SUNSET SOUNDS | SAT 23 APRIL | ROCHE ESTATE, HUNTER VALLEY | NSW | 18+
Tickets available from www.ticketek.com.au | 1300 364 001 | All Ticketek Outlets
BOO SEEKA ANNOUNCES HYPNOTIC NEW SINGLE ‘DREAM’
Aussie festival fave Boo Seeka has just dropped another perfect, sun-soaked new track, Dream, a song for escapists, for daydreamers, for those hoping, wishing for a different world, out today, December 2. Dream is a stunning return to Boo Seeka’s electro-pop roots, and follows the versatile artist’s most recent single, the affecting, melancholy, acoustic track Tripwire. Both singles are set to appear on the new Boo Seeka LP, scheduled for release in 2022. Boo Seeka will be hitting the road to play Byron Bay Beach Hotel, Queens Wharf Hotel Newcastle and Beyond The City in Melbourne through December, and will be jumping on the For The Love lineup that’ll take in Gold Coast, Wollongong, Melbourne and Perth in Feb and March 2022.
Dream sparkles, glistens; it demonstrates such a nuanced and impressive knowledge of pop songwriting paired with classic electronic production – Boo Seeka quite literally has it all. His soft, assured vocals offer hook after hook atop a sharp, shining bed of metallic beats. It’s easy to imagine this track going off at a summer festival, crowd heaving, moving in sync towards the drop. Speaking on the conception of the track, Boo reflects on some of his influences: “Given that the world is now stranger than it probably ever has been, indulging in the obscurities of life has been super important for my writing process. A world created by my imagination whilst sleeping is what inspired Dream, and was something that felt very easy to write down on paper. Also, I don’t usually listen to a lot of music when I’m creating, but for this song it was different. Hide and Seek by Imogen Heap was playing when I first started putting pen to paper, and I found myself putting the song on repeat while I wrote the whole track. This was the start of everything for this track.”
There certainly is a clear nod to Imogen Heap and her iconic production in Dream, but it also evokes the likes of James Blake, RÜFÜS DU SOL, Glass Animals, even fans of Tame Impala will find something to like in this beauty. It’s the kind of chill, hooky electro pop that feels universally appealing – irresistible, impossible not to tap your feet along to. It’s just another example of Boo Seeka’s uncanny ability to capture emotion – whether it’s an acoustic, guitar-driven song or a pumping electro hit, he hits the nail on the head every time. Reflecting on his own versatility, Boo says, “I love the fact that people can recognise a previous Boo Seeka track as soon as it’s being spun. However, I think the development of my songwriting has been exploring different ideas, different emotions that are created with different sounds. The diversity in the production of the record that is coming in 2022 is something we are really proud of, and can’t wait to share it.”
Lucky fans will be able to hear Dream live at Boo Seeka’s December shows in NSW, as Boo gives audiences a taste of what to expect from the tour: “Typical of a Boo show, there is a whole lot of energy on stage, and we just hope that we can provide the best time possible for people that pay their hard-earned money to be there. SHOWS ARE BACK!!! LET’S GO!!!”
Dream is out now on Disrupt Music Group.