BOB EVANS ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM ‘FULL CIRCLE’ SET FOR OCTOBER 5 RELEASE, PRE-ORDER HERE FEATURING NEW SINGLE ‘DROWNING’ & SHOWCASING AN EXTENSIVE BODY OF WORK + NATIONAL TOUR FOR OCT / NOV
Five studio albums down the track and the distinguished career of Bob Evans receives the Best Of treatment via new album, Full Circle, to be released on October 5. Full Circle features a brand new single, Drowning and is accompanied by a video filmed in studio by Arlo Cook during the recording of the track. To celebrate the release, Bob Evans will hit the road for a national capital cities tour kicking off at Black Bear Lodge in Brisbane on October 19, and moving through to Sydney, Adelaide and Perth, before finishing up at Northcote Social Club in Melbourne on November 3.
Discussing Full Circle, Kevin Mitchell explains, “I didn’t want to approach this like a traditional Greatest Hits or Best Of. I like the idea of it being presented more like an introduction to my work if you had never heard of me. This would be the record for that person. So I didn’t want to just bundle the singles together or present the songs in the order they were released. Some singles didn’t make the cut, in favour of album tracks that have grown legs of their own and found some kind of special place of significance without ever necessarily being on the radio or anything. Wintersong, for example, off my third album, was never on the radio or well known but I just love it so much I wanted it on there. There were a few songs I felt like that about but obviously I couldn’t put them all in. It was quite hard actually, trying to narrow 5 albums down to 14 tracks. But I’m happy with how it looks. I’m proud of what I’ve managed to create.”
Mitchell was already under the Australian music spotlight as singer/guitarist for indie-rock-darlings Jebediah when in 1998 he found a t-shirt in a Perth op-shop with the number 15 on the back, and the name ‘Bob Evans’ printed on the front. Coincidentally at this time he was embarking on his first solo shows in Perth and a random name on someone’s discarded basketball shirt took hold. He may have grown out of the t-shirt, but the name fit and has stayed for an impressive solo career.
“This Bob Evans guy has been hitching a ride in my life for 20 years,” Mitchell laughs. “It’s an unusual relationship to have with something that isn’t real.”
Five years into playing solo shows, the first Bob Evans album, Suburban Kid, emerged in 2003, released via Jebediah’s own Redline Records label. While it didn’t receive much attention outside of WA, it started a new momentum for Mitchell’s solo career, with EMI signing him up for his second LP, Suburban Songbook, recorded in Nashville. Led by the much loved single, Don’t You Think It’s Time?, it set a new career path in motion.
“When Suburban Songbook came out and it was embraced and was successful, I had this whole new kind of career,” Mitchell recalls. “It really saved my arse because at the time Jebediah were kind of just burnt out and taking a break, and I… can’t do anything else.”
With Suburban Songbook winning Mitchell an ARIA Award for ‘Best Adult Contemporary Album’, 2009’s Goodnight, Bull Creek! saw him return to record the last of his ‘suburban trilogy’ in Nashville. He recalls moving on from Suburban Songbook being on par with Jebediah following up Slightly Odway, their smash hit 1997 debut LP. “It was an unexpected success, certainly more than I had expected,” he says. “It’s a strange mental game, making music after that and all of a sudden you’ve got this massive audience you’ve never had before.”
2013 saw the release of Familiar Stranger, with Mitchell wanting to make a record “that sounded nothing like any other Bob Evans record I’d made. I didn’t want to make an acoustic or singer/songwriter album, none of those labels. I felt creatively and artistically very confident in that record. I’m very proud of that record, but I had such a grand concept for it that I think I got a little bit lost in it and couldn’t quite deliver it the way that I imagined I would.”
As a result 2016’s Car Boot Sale was about going back to basics. “It was very much a return to the first couple of records that I made,” Mitchell notes, “digging into that singer/songwriter thing that I’d tried to get away from.”
With Full Circle finalised and ready for release on October 5, Mitchell is taking stock of what’s next, saying, “Looking forward, I guess I’m trying really hard to be keenly aware of what I want to do. It’s such a game to keep creatively stimulated and excited.”
‘FULL CIRCLE’ TRACKLIST
CD 1 (CD, Vinyl & Digital)
1. Don’t You Think It’s Time?
2. Someone So Much
3. Nowhere Without You
4. Don’t Wanna Grow Up Anymore
5. Happy Tears
6. Wintersong
7. Pasha Bulker
8. Friend
9. Hand Me Downs
10. Matterfact
11. Don’t Walk Alone
12. Sadness & Whiskey
13. Turn
14. Wonderful You
15. Drowning **new track
CD 2 (CD & Digital)
1. Ever Fallen In Love (Buzzcocks) (Double J Live Recording)
2. In Spite Of Ourselves (John Prine & Iris Dement) (Recorded with Kirsty Lee Akers)
3. Not Fair (Lily Allen) (Live for JJJ Like A Version)
4. Come To This (Sleepy Jackson)
5. Disparate Youth (Santigold) (Live for JJJ Like A Version)
6. Wide Open Road (The Triffids)
7. Beautiful To Me (Little Birdy) (Live for JJJ Like A Version)
8. See Through Dress (Red Jezebel)
9. Liar (Eskimo Joe)
10. Two Of Us (the Beatles) (Recorded live with Josh Pyke)
BOB EVANS NATIONAL ‘FULL CIRCLE’ TOUR
FRI 19 OCT | BLACK BEAR LODGE, BRISBANE QLD | 18+
Tickets available from www.bobevans.com.auor www.oztix.com.au | 1300 762 545 | All Oztix Outlets
SAT 20 OCT | LEADBELLY, NEWTOWN NSW | 18+
Tickets available from www.bobevans.com.auor www.leadbelly.oztix.com.au
FRI 26 OCT | THE GOV, ADELAIDE SA | 18+
Tickets available from www.bobevans.com.auor www.oztix.com.au | 1300 762 545 | All Oztix Outlets
SAT 27 OCT | THE ROSEMOUNT HOTEL, NORTH PERTH WA | 18+
Tickets available from www.bobevans.com.auor www.oztix.com.au | 1300 762 545 | All Oztix Outlets
SAT 3 NOV | NORTHCOTE SOCIAL CLUB, NORTHCOTE VIC | 18+
Tickets available from www.bobevans.com.auor www.eventbrite.com.au
PERCH CREEK ANNOUNCES NEW SINGLE + VIDEO GOLD SHOP + NEW SELF-TITLED ALBUM + EXTENSIVE NATIONAL TOUR
Energetic folksters Perch Creek are back with a mischievous new single Gold Shop, a thrilling car-chase of a track, out March 23. The family band have also announced a hilarious, vintage-inspired clip to accompany Gold Shop, directed alongside Honey Editorial. This single is the second taste of Perch Creek’s new self-titled album, which is an eclectic and innovative collection of harmony-driven folk, evocative pop and offbeat soul, set for release on April 13. To celebrate the album, the group will be heading out on an epic national tour, kicking off on May 31 at Fly By Night in Fremantle, WA, then swinging through regional and metropolitan cities in NSW, ACT, QLD, SA and VIC.
Gold Shop is a serious groover – funky as all get out, but still hitting that pop song bullseye. It’s not only the irresistible music, but also that enjoyably perplexing storyline that makes you want to watch it over and over again. Perch Creek’s bassist and token non-sibling, James Chandler, explains, “It’s about [lead singer] Eileen’s moustachioed male alter ego bemoaning the woes caused by his own alter ego (a shady female) who is committing crimes and getting him/her into big trouble. Are we confused yet? It was inspired by the multitude of gold ‘souks’ in the world’s capital of bling, Dubai, where we spent a week performing at a shopping festival. It wasn’t exactly Golden Plains but we managed to have a great time nevertheless.”
The clip for Gold Shop is an out-and-out winner – imaginative, fun, and channeling the best bits of those brilliantly corny 70’s action flicks. The audience are kept on the edge of their seats, following the escapades of the group as Eileen tries her best to avoid the cops who are chasing her for a crime she didn’t commit. There’s dancing, bands in vans, bikini girls, court trials and clever chase scenes – all coming in at under five minutes! Reflecting on the clip, James says, “We came up with the general concept of a 70’s style action chase (inspired by the classic Beastie Boys film clip for Sabotage) featuring our Kingswood, maybe a fake moustache and the backdrop of the North Coburg industrial zone [in Melbourne’s north]. It wasn’t until we met Sasha, who directed and shot the film with Honey Editorial, that the screenplay really took shape. They capitalised on our comic acting and made full use of our vintage car and bike collection to create an epic, hilarious and at times confounding 4 and a half minute action flick. It’s definitely the coolest video we’ve done yet.”
Gold Shop is almost an anomaly on this diverse new album from Perch Creek. Recorded and produced by J. Walker (Paul Kelly, Jen Cloher, Machine Translations) and mixed in collaboration with Andy Stewart (Gotye), stunning arrangements and glorious harmonies abound, soaring particularly high across the divine album-closer Belle. Opening track Why Won’t You Come Home features brooding rock organ over lamenting vocals in the verses, breaking into a head bopping major-key chorus. The song is driven by pulsing bass lines that continue to groove their way through Mama Sings and the rest of the album. While vocal duties are shared amongst the group, and stylistic elements vary from track to track, there’s still a definite sense of cohesion throughout this intriguing release – these are clearly very skilled musicians, and their shared musical childhoods is evident in the way they can turn any genre into their own sound. In keeping with the creative process honed on previous albums, all the music and lyrics on this release were written in a five way collaboration beween band members. This album has been a long time coming and marks a distinct change in direction for the band, as James explains: “After our last album we felt that our folk/roots/jugband phase had come to a natural conclusion so when it came to writing this album we just jammed and let the music come naturally. Lyrically there’s some themes of disillusionment, a lot of reflectiveness plus a random song about a gold heist…” “(Finally releasing the album) feels like a Baywatch-style slow motion run toward the ocean that has lasted more than three years, but has finally reached the point where we are diving in and beginning to taste the salt water…”
The group are set to play a massive run of shows to celebrate the release of the album – expect to see and hear multiple lead vocalists, lots of sibling vocal harmonies and a lot more electric guitar than old fans may be used to, while still maintaining the band’s trademark mix of intensely high energy songs interspersed with atmospheric ballads.
Perch Creek is Camilla Hodgkins on keyboard and vocals, Lear Hodgkins on drums and vocals, Eileen Hodgkins on guitar and vocals, Christi Hodgkins on trombone, saw, harmonica and vocals and James Chandler on bass and vocals.
Gold Shop is set for release on March 23, and Perch Creek will available through MGM distribution on April 13.
PERCH CREEK AUSTRALIAN TOUR
With special guest Jumpin’ Jack William (excluding *) plus more TBA
All tickets available from www.perchcreek.com
APRIL 20-22 | FAIRBRIDGE FESTIVAL | ALL AGES
THU 31 MAY | FLY BY NIGHT, FREMANTLE WA | 18+ *
SAT 2 – SUN 3 JUN | DENMARK FESTIVAL OF VOICE, DENMARK WA | ALL AGES *
THU 7 JUN | LIZOTTES, NEWCASTLE NSW | ALL AGES
FRI 8 JUN | THE METROPOLE GUESTHOUSE, KATOOMBA NSW | ALL AGES
SUN 10 JUN | SMITHS ALTERNATIVE, CANBERRA ACT | 18+
SAT 9 JUN | ST STEPHENS HALL NEWTOWN, SYDNEY NSW | ALL AGES
THU 14 JUN | BLACK BEAR LODGE, BRISBANE QLD | 18+
FRI 15 JUN | MIAMI MARKETTA, GOLD COAST QLD | ALL AGES * FREE SHOW.
SAT 16 JUNE | STAR COURT THEATRE, LISMORE NSW | ALL AGES
SUN 17 JUNE | PELICAN PLAYHOUSE, GRAFTON NSW | ALL AGES
THU 21 JUNE | THE WORKERS CLUB, GEELONG VIC | 18+
FRI 22 JUNE | THEATRE ROYAL, CASTLEMAINE VIC | 18+
SAT 23 JUNE | THE EVELYN, VIC | 18+
THU 28 JUNE | COOEE ARTHOUSE, ALDINGA SA | ALL AGES
SAT 30 JUNE | JUMBUNNA HALL, GIPPSLAND VIC| ALL AGES
FRI 29 JUNE | JIVE BAR, ADELAIDE SA | 18+
SUN 1 JUL | THORNBURY BOWLS CLUB, MELBOURNE VIC | ALL AGES
FRI 6 JUL | MAJOR TOM’S, KYNETON VIC | ALL AGES
SAT 7 JUL | SANDY POINT MUSIC CLUB, SANDY POINT VIC | ALL AGES
FRI 13 – SUN 15 JUL | BELLO WINTER MUSIC, BELLINGEN NSW | ALL AGES
MAYA ANNOUNCES NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO BLACKOUT
After a massive 2017, neo-soul vocalist Maya is back with a stellar new single Blackout, about a moment forever lost in time, out now. Produced by the renowned Joel Quartermain (Eskimo Joe, Meg Mac, British India), Blackout is an exciting addition to Maya’s impressive discography. The young artist has also dropped a video to accompany the track, directed by Grace Moore.
Blackout is ominous, and intuitive – as though Maya knows something we all don’t, and she’s trying to let us know. Her flawless vocals sit atop a motivated rhythm section with urgency and skill, as her lyrics persuade the listener to pay attention. Joel Quartermain’s expert touch has propelled Blackout into a whole new dimension for Maya, and as her star begins to rise one can only wonder what’s to follow. Speaking on the creation of the track, Maya says, “Releasing this single has got to be one of the most exciting times of my career. Blackout means so much to me lyrically and I feel like the production is the next step sound that really represents my aesthetic…Most people have ‘blacked out’ before, whether it’s when they drink, if they black out a bad memory, or if they just forget certain things. This song takes you through my perspective and how I felt when it happened to me – it was inspired by so many moments of blackout in myself that I still fight everyday.”
The video is as striking as the track itself. Dramatic lighting cloaks Maya and her sisters, as Maya tries to navigate her own personal blackout. Maya was specific about her goals for the video, as she reflects, “The Blackout video shows a cross between the dark reality and positive space. It captures a representation of the dark energies that are felt in those fragile times, juxtaposed with a bright, welcoming space that leads to happiness. The video, set the morning after the night before, features the Blackout Girls chasing me out of my dark memories until finally I arrive at a space where there is no black. There I’m free from the watchful eyes of the blackout, and surrounded by positivity and light.”
With three hometown shows coming up, these intimate gigs are Maya’s element, and fans are lucky enough to be able to catch her before she jets off to New York City to continue writing with world-class musicians over there, as she enthuses, “I have been working with many writers and producers in NYC on my next project, and I’ve been writing a lot and am now just doing the final touches on some seriously felt and fresh music. I’ll be doing more writing in Australia, and working on production of the tracks I already have written in New York. Some more release this year, and an EP toward the end of the year, with a full insight into my new sound.”
Blackout is out now.