DIP ROAD DOGS DROP NEW SINGLE ‘LAZY’ AHEAD OF FORTHCOMING EP ‘SHAKSHUKA’
Reemerging from that dusty dirt track deep in the Mallee are the Dip Road Dogs, who have today dropped their dreamy new single, Lazy, a comforting, hypnotic journey into Americana. Lazy is the third taste of their new EP, Shakshuka that is set for release on May 21.
Dip Road Dogs are back with some of their finest music to date. Lazy is exquisite Americana folk rock from the fun loving Aussie country boys. For fans of The National and The Church, haunting cello, and mesmerising, deep vocals will entice the listener, but it’s the unassuming emotional force that will sock you right in the feels and keep you coming back for more. Contrastingly, Lazy is a song about a relationship where one partner is not pulling their weight with the household chores and the other becomes fed up with this behaviour and finally leaves for greener pastures. “It’s a warning to everyone to make sure you mow the lawns and do the dishes or you will end up alone!” Jests lead singer and songwriter Dave Chirnside.
Recorded in Nashville, Tennessee between The Amber Sound Studio, The Secret Genius Studio and producer Josh Frigo’s home studio, and mastered by John Davis (The Killers, Gorillaz, Royal Blood, The XX) at Metropolis Studios in London, the EP is a real mixed bag, with all six tracks working as a commendable package that showcases the band’s diversity and capability. “The EP title Shakshuka is a very apt analogy for the EP as it is a delicious tomato-based dish that can be served at dinner or breakfast and you can throw nearly anything in to make it work. Our EP is a collection of old and new ideas that have created quite a variety of genres and sounds, so it’s a bit of a mixed bag but we think the songs gel well together,” explains Chirnside. “Once we had recorded the demos we got in touch with Josh Frigo in Nashville and set a date in June 2019 to head over and start recording. Josh’s time was very tight between touring so I locked in the dates without asking Matt, Ollie and Jack – better to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission, Jack had been travelling around Australia and was in Rockhampton when I called him to ask if he would come and record in Nashville, he had to put his trip around Australia on hold, but there wasn’t a whole lot of objection!”
Dip Road Dogs are a group of friends who once shared a house on Dip Road in the Mallee – now living miles apart from each other all around regional Victoria, they are one of the few bands that haven’t been hugely affected by these bizarre Covid19 times. “We have been practicing isolation all our lives, so we feel we are well placed in these interesting times. There are a lot of challenges living so far away from each when it comes to live touring, but it doesn’t affect our writing, as long as our internet doesn’t cut out! And we have a studio in Appin where we can put our collective ideas together – demos for the next release are well underway.”
Dip Road Dogs is Jack Pay, Dave Chirnside, Oliver Close and Matthew Close.
Lazy is out now and Shakshuka will be released on May 21.
KIT ANNOUNCES DEBUT SINGLE AND VIDEO ‘GOOD GUY’
An integral part of the beloved Australian group All Our Exes Live In Texas, Kit (otherwise known as Katie Wighton) has today announced her debut solo release, Good Guy. A gritty, guitar-led powerhouse of a single, Good Guy calls out every dude who’s ever gotten away with bad behaviour. Kit has also released a stellar clip to accompany Good Guy, created in collaboration with Gina Somfleth of Pop Candi Films (Merpire, Peach Noise, Press Club).
Following the outbreak of COVID-19, Kit has had to be creative with her single launch shows. After performing at ISOLAID on March 22 she was inspired to do her single launch show live on Instagram. With support from Bonnie Songs , Nancie Schipper & Hannah Blackburn, Kit will perform live from her livingroom on Friday April 17 at 7pm AEDT. She will have a Bandcamp set up with the idea that people can buy the single and donate what they may have paid to come to the show, and a percentage of the proceeds from the night will also go to Support Act to help those who are seriously suffering in our musical community.
“I find it very interesting that at the moment the things we seem to be talking about are our healthcare workers and hospitals, schools and universities and The Arts. In a crisis, these things become the most important and I hope that when we get through this awful time we will remember that.” Kit remarks. “Being creative can sometimes be a burden but right now, it’s our biggest asset. I’ve been doing the crossword on Instagram live and also have started an insta-choir – which is so much fun. I was sitting in my room playing a Hank Williams song and really missing the harmonies, so I chucked it up on my socials and asked people to send in their harmonies. The second week has really taken on a life of its own – we did Two Strong Hearts and had drums and bass and even a wine bottle solo! It’s so beautiful to connect with people safely and bring a little smile to people across the interwebs!”
Co-written with Ali Barter (also featured on backing vocals) and created with producers Dave Symes (Boy and Bear, Sarah Blasko, Missy Higgins) and James Seymour (Merpire, Eaglemont), Good Guy is a sharp, hard-hitting track with a vital message. One for fans of rockers Alex Lahey, Angel Olsen and Ruby Fields, Good Guy leads with its heart on its sleeve; with amps cranked and driving percussion alongside clever and playful melodies, this track is impossible to ignore. Speaking on the inspiration behind the track, Kit explains, “I wrote this song with Ali Barter last year after having one too many conversations with amazing women about men in the entertainment industry getting away with bad behaviour. There is a long and specific story behind it, basically I was tired of hearing sad songs by incredible women about other remarkable women who were wronged – I just wanted to get mad about it. The chorus is kind of a G-rated ‘fuck the patriarchy’. One of the lyrics is ‘it’s bigger than us both’. The conversations stopped just being about my own sadness, anger, disappointment and horror and turned into ‘What the actual shit is going on around us? How can we fix this?’”
The clip for Good Guy reinforces the message behind the track wholeheartedly. Reflecting on the video, Kit says, “It’s kind of alluding to the experience of someone seeming like a lovely person at first and lulling you into a semi-false sense of security. Then bam, they do something shit and you’re all confused. And I feel like it’s so common now. Sometimes it’s not even something that bad. Ghosting and not replying to texts, not going straight for a condom, not being honest and open about where they’re at. Anyway, it’s that. In a film clip. You’ll just have to watch it to get the full scoop! And it’s shot in Melbourne at some of my favourite spots! The patriarchy is giving me a lot of creative fodder, ha!”
Good Guy is a far cry from the exquisite folk stylings of All Our Exes Live In Texas that fans might know Kit best for, but it’s all a melting pot of influences as she explains, “I’ve been listening to different music – more rocky, raw stuff. We played folk songs for a long time and I got to a point where I wanted to yell a bit. Get my punk on! And have my own voice too. The band has definitely been a part of KIT, even if it isn’t conscious. Those women are a really important part of my music and emotional history and it would be naïve to think it hasn’t influenced KIT.”
Good Guy is out now through Believe.
FRIDAY 17 APR @ 7pm AEDT | LIVE ON INSTAGRAM WITH BONNIE SONGS, NANCIE SCHIPPER & HANNAH BLACKBURN
GRANT MCLENNAN FELLOWSHIP WINNER JACK BRATT ANNOUNCES NEW SINGLE + VIDEO ‘SPADES’
Hot off the back of winning the prestigious Grant McLennan Fellowship in 2019, beloved Aussie rocker Jack Bratt has today announced his brooding new single Spades, a study in over-thinking, out now, and accompanied by an intimate live video.
Spades is a dark, moody track, and will be an exciting release for fans of anthemic legends The War On Drugs, Kingswood, Holy Holy, The Rubens et al. Expert guitar reigns throughout, while Jack’s unique, cutting vocal sits within the bed of sound, with sharp, affecting lyrics. Speaking of the inspiration behind the track, Jack explains, “I’m a classic overthinker, and Spades is a bit of a snapshot of me over-analysing everything. It’s a lot about comparing where I’m at in my life to my friends and family, thinking about whether or not I’m where I should be compared to, say, when my parents were at the same age.”
Such a close, vulnerable track requires careful treatment when it comes to live performance, and the accompanying video for Spades will give goosebumps to anyone who presses play. Directed by Clint Lewis of Red Tape Pictures (Tim Rogers, The Church), the black and white, artistic video depicts a solo rendition of the track, which allows Jack to accurately portray the significant nature of the subject matter in this song, as he says, “I just wanted the video to be simple. Playing this song solo, not in a band setting, is a pretty vulnerable thing. When I walked into the room for the first time and saw the pillars and the stained-glass windows, I knew it was going to be perfect for the song.”
Jack Bratt, who still hopes to head to New York City in June for a three month artist residency thanks to his recent Grant McLennan Fellowship accolade, also holds high hopes that he’ll be able to play a run of intimate shows while over in the US. With a lot of uncertainty around Covid19, Jack’s plans are a little up in the air, but he’s got a great attitude about his year ahead, enthusing, “While this is obviously a pretty distressing time for all of us, I’m using the time wisely by writing a lot of music which I’m excited about. And I’m planning on still heading to New York as soon as the travel bans have been lifted.”
Spades is out now