MARVELL ANNOUNCE NEW SINGLE & VIDEO NEEDLE NEW EP COMFORT IS KING OUT DECEMBER 9 PRE-SAVE NOW
Sydney rockers Marvell have today announced their most powerful single to date – Needle, a true journey of a song that describes the hardships, trauma and impossible hope that accompanies a cancer battle, released today. Accompanying the track is an equally affecting video, made in collaboration with Brae Fisher (Dear Seattle). Needle precedes Marvell’s new EP, Comfort Is King which is set for release on December 9 – fans can pre-save the record now and Sydneysiders can check out the band’s dynamic live show when they play Avalon RSL on December 4.
Needle is one of those songs that sticks with you long after the first listen. Bold, raw, defiant and brave, the track begins with a soft acoustic guitar and vocalist Max Marvell’s sole voice before interchanging vocals with his brother Tom in the second verse – symbolic in that cancer can be a lonely road, but a second voice joins in to support – then builds into a massive, full band climax, mimicking the often startling, always affecting journey that follows a cancer diagnosis. For Marvell, the song is deeply personal, as Max explains, “We wrote Needle when our then-drummer BJ was battling testicular cancer. We wanted to write about how we felt, imagining ourselves in his shoes and really trying to understand what he was going through, rather than just telling his story. The track starts as something contemplative, going through the fear and the uncertainty then quickly evolving into a more powerful song, daring at the possibility of hope. We wanted to blend the visceral, contradictory feelings of such a devastating situation with the sterile, procedural reality that we saw BJ going through. All in all, this track aims to capture that feeling of staring down the barrel of something terrible, when all the odds are against you, and saying fuck it – I’m going to give all I’ve got to make it through.”
The video for Needle is a deeply rare experience – all the emotion of the song is beautifully, respectfully reflected in visual form through the story of a man trying to escape a bad situation. Speaking on the conception of the clip, Max explains, “The video tells a symbolic story that relates to the lyrics and BJ’s battle with cancer, but also depicts the themes of struggle in a more general way. We bounced around ideas and initially wanted to paint a very raw picture of cancer specifically, but decided that representing the themes in a more abstract way would allow the audience to dig a little deeper to find their own meaning. We wanted people to empathise, rather than just be told a story. We let Brae Fisher take the story and put his own spin on it, writing and directing a film that depicts a nameless man escaping from unknown captors. We wanted to capture the desperation and panic of the escape as the man runs away from something that is unknown to the audience.”
Evocative of Australian rock legends Powderfinger, Paul Kelly, and modern influences such as Catfish and the Bottlemen and local heavy act Ceres, the EP, Comfort Is King, is demonstrative of a band in their element. Secure in their sound, confident in their songwriting skill, the EP shines from start to finish – from the contemplative, emotional Needle, to the upbeat Ratalatat, to the sweet organ sounds of Honey and the stunning, gentle closer All Of It, this is true brilliance in the form of rock/pop songwriting. Crunchy guitars pair perfectly with acoustics, pounding drums marry with the Marvell brothers’ harmonies – Comfort Is King has it all, as Max says, “Ultimately, we wanted to make a fun, energetic record, despite some of the other stuff that life had thrown at us and our mates, so that we could address all the painful parts that led up to this record while not letting it take us over completely. We wanted to try and find the fun and the life amongst it all to keep us going and that’s what this record is about; acknowledging the shitty times but also remembering why we play and make music – because it’s a blast and brings us all together despite anything else.”
Needle is out today. Comfort Is King is out December 9 and available to presave here.
Marvell is Max Marvell (Vocals/Guitar), Tom Marvell (Vocals), Jesse Gaupset (Lead Guitar), Dylan Mitchell Frost (Bass), Theo Henry (Drums).
PETE MURRAY’S NEW EP ‘THE NIGHT’ RELEASED TODAY + ADDED TO BLUESFEST 2021 LINEUP
The quiet achiever of Australian music, Pete Murray has today released his anticipated new EP, The Night, and this week announced he’ll be joining the Bluesfest 2021 lineup alongside Tash Sultana, The Teskey Brothers, Ocean Alley and more. After impressing with Found My Place, his driving song about offering wisdom to your kids, and backing it up with the tenderness and beauty of the introspective If We Never Dance Again, Pete is ready to share his masterful six track EP.
“It’s always exciting releasing new music, especially when you are super happy with the way the record sounds. I have really enjoyed the writing and the recording process of this record,” Pete says.
Taking sonic inspiration from artists such as JJ Cale and Frank Ocean, The Night is uplifting, affecting and loved up, showcasing this exceptionally gifted and seasoned songsmith at his very best. The Night sees Pete trialing new techniques seven albums deep in his career, revelling in co-writing abroad.
Pete explains, “I had only done co-writing once before, so this was still a new experience for me and one that I was quite nervous about. I went to LA, Nashville and England and I knew I would be writing with experienced writers, so I didn’t want to let anyone down. It all turned out to be an amazing experience and I was really happy with the songs that were written over there.”
Recorded in Pete’s own Kicks Iron Studio in Byron Bay with his good mate Garrett Kato (Kyle Lionhart, Ziggy Alberts, Pierce Brothers), The Night exudes contentment and warmth and is a hugely personal offering from the notoriously private family man. Inspired by his family and home life, Pete explains, “When I’m in writing mode, I tend to write about real life situations that people can relate to and also take motivation from.”
Additional to his newly announced Bluesfest performance, Pete will be playing the new tracks, as well as crowd favourites at the upcoming By The C Festival dates, Sunset Piazza and Crowd Surf through March. For more dates and details on where you can hear him live, visit: https://petemurray.com/#shows
The Night EP is out now via Sony Music Entertainment Australia
THE NIGHT EP TRACKLISTING
1. Found My Place
2. If We Never Dance Again
3. Because Of You
4. We’ll Be The Fire
5. The Fall Apart
6. Waiting For This Love
PETE MURRAY SHOW DATES
SAT 6 MAR | BY THE C | CRONULLA
SUN 7 MAR | SUNSET PIAZZA, SYD
SUN 14 MAR | BY THE C | ST KILDA, MELB
SAT 20 MAR | CROWD SURF | SANDSTONE POINT
SAT 27 MAR | BY THE C | CITY BEACH, PER
MON 5 APR | BLUESFEST, BYRON BAY
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.