HOLY HOLY ANNOUNCE NATIONAL ‘WHEN THE STORMS WOULD COME’ ALBUM TOUR
One month out from their anticipated debut album release, nostalgic Aussie indie rockers, Holy Holy have today announced an extensive national ‘When The Storms Would Come’ album tour set for August/September. Kick starting at the Darwin Festival on August 13, the tour will then venture on to Bunbury, Perth, Fremantle, Gold Coast, Brisbane, Launceston, Hobart, Adelaide, Geelong, Ballarat, Melbourne, Thirroul, Newcastle, Canberra and finishing up in Sydney on September 19.
“We’ve played a lot of shows in the last two years and have played with some of our favourite bands and in some incredible venues along the way,” explains lead vocalist Tim Carroll. “During that time we have come up with a sound that represents us, a sound we’re proud of and a style of music that we love to play. With our debut record now complete and having just played a run of shows overseas, our homecoming album release tour is something we’re really looking forward to.”
Having only recently returned from their first tour of Europe and the UK after wowing audiences at iconic festivals The Great Escape, Liverpool Sound City, Dot To Dot, London Calling and Primavera, Holy Holy are excited to return for headline shows later in the year to promote their European album release. “We hit the autobahns and motorways with our sat nav and splitter van and had an awesome time playing soo many amazing festivals,” guitarist Oscar Dawson enthuses. “The highlight was hitting Barcelona at the end of the tour where we played Primavera Sound. Playing to a Spanish crowd, looking out across the Mediterranean as the sun went down, what an experience, we can’t wait to get back there!”
With classic songs, huge supports, extensive radio play, an overwhelmingly positive response from press and blogs both here and overseas, sold-out headline shows and international gigs under their belts, Holy Holy have already achieved so much. And now their debut full-length album is finally here and it is vaster and wilder than anything they’ve released to date. Recorded in Brisbane with Matt Redlich (Emma Louise, Ball Park Music, The Trouble With Templeton), the album unveils the band pushing in to new sonic territory with daring & classic guitars, driving rhythms and even bigger vocals.
Holy Holy is fronted by the songwriting team, vocalist/composer Timothy Carroll and guitarist/composer Oscar Dawson. They are joined on the road by permanent drummer Ryan Strathie (Hungry Kids Of Hungary, Andy Bull), touring bassist Graham Ritchie (Airling, Emma Louise), and Brisbane-based producer Matt Redlich as their touring keys player.
Holy Holy are also delighted to announce that Melbourne’s Fractures will be joining them for a large part of the tour. Other supports include Methyl Ethel, Violet Swells, The Lulu Raes, Edward R, Glass Skies, and more to be announced soon. They have also just released a new range of tshirts and merch packs including signed CDs and vinyl. They are available via preorder from www.holyholymusic.com now.
Tickets to the national ‘When The Storms Would Come’ album tour are on sale now.
HELEN SHANAHAN ANNOUNCES NEW SINGLE, ACROSS THE SEA, NEW EP, FINDING GOLD & NATIONAL TOUR DATES
Having hit the ground running after winning Songwriter of The Year at Telstra Road to Discovery, Perth acoustic folk artist, Helen Shanahan has announced the release of her new single, Across The Sea (June 12) lifted from her third EP, Finding Gold, set for release on July 3. The story telling performer will celebrate her new releases with shows at Mojo’s in Fremantle on July 9, The Newsagency in Sydney on July 14 and The Spotted Mallard in Melbourne on July 17.
First single, Across The Sea is inspired by Helen’s personal struggle with anxiety and her day to day challenges of feeling overwhelmed and trying to overcome these hurdles. “The song is calling out for someone to help guide me through the times of hardship,” Helen explains. Helen’s warm, lush vocal is perfectly complemented by nostalgic slide guitar that is dappled throughout the song, showcasing the delicacy of this poetic, uplifting folk country work of art.
Reflective of the song’s metaphor, the clip for Across The Sea takes the viewer through different landscapes of Helen’s journey, making her way through a forest and finally ending up at the sea. ‘Can’t cross the water on my own, so who will build a ship for me, who will help me, across the sea,’ Helen sings. The stunning clip was shot and directed by local Perth filmmaker Brendan Joel (Sam Perry, Jacob Diamond, Rainy Day Women) on location at the picturesque Cape Peron in WA.
Recorded across Melbourne, Nashville and Perth, Helen’s new EP, Finding Gold was produced by AIR and APRA winner Pip Norman (Dan Sultan, Ash Grunwald, Daniel Merriweather), with the exception of Love Lost, which was produced by Neilson Hubbard in Nashville. Offering hope to listeners, Helen says, “The main message throughout the EP is that you can still find moments of calm or ‘gold’ in everyday life.”
Excited to perform her new music live around the country, Helen says, “Although I still feel a lot of nerves and anxiety about performing and sharing my music, the love of it keeps me going, and I love the feeling of connecting with the audience and sharing my stories.”
HELEN SHANAHAN SHOWS
THURS 9 JULY| MOJO’S BAR, FREMANTLE WA | 18+
Tickets available at the door, 237 Queen Victoria Street North Fremantle
TUES 14 JULY | THE NEWSAGENCY, MARRICKVILLE NSW | 18+
Tickets available at the door, or www.thenewsagencyvenue.com
FRIDAY 17 JULY| THE SPOTTED MALLARD, BRUNSWICK VIC | 18+
Tickets available at the door, or www.spottedmallard.com
HOLY HOLY ANNOUNCE NEW SINGLE ‘YOU CANNOT CALL FOR LOVE LIKE A DOG’ ALONGSIDE UK/EU TOUR DATES, PRIMAVERA FESTIVAL & SPLENDOUR IN THE GRASS
Nostalgic Aussie indie rockers, HOLY HOLY have treated us to a second taste of their anticipated debut record with the release of the exquisite new single, You Cannot Call For Love Like A Dog, alongside Splendour In The Grass and Primavera Festival announcements and UK/EU tour dates set for May, hitting London, Brighton, Manchester, Nottingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Amsterdam, Cologne, Berlin, Ghent and Barcelona.
Recorded in Brisbane with Matt Redlich (Emma Louise, Ball Park Music, The Trouble With Templeton) at the helm, You Cannot Call For Love Like A Dog unveils the band pushing in to a darker sound with atmospheric swells ebbing under sharp glassy guitar breaks, soaring vocal harmonies and driving bass. An extended instrumental outro has given space for guitarist Oscar Dawson to play in a way that has only been heard in a live setting, showcasing a developed sound that the band has embraced while on the road.
“I always imagined that I wouldn’t be allowed to play guitar in the way that I used to practice, in the privacy of my own room, as a spotted teenager. But somehow Tim, Matt Redlich and the other guys not only allowed me, but encouraged it as well. So, I figured, better give it to them. And that’s why there is a two minute guitar solo at the end of the song,” explains Dawson. “And yet still there is a part of me that thinks – ‘is this allowed…? Surely, guitar solos aren’t the done thing these days…’. But, I actually don’t believe that. I hope that we can hear more of this sort of thing; people really playing their instruments.”
The fundamental premise of the song is that love is fickle. “We try in our lives to do all kinds of things to control it and manage it and bend it to our wills, but sometimes you just wake up one day and it’s gone…and that’s that. Like ice melted,” says lead vocalist Tim Carroll. “And the point of that is, if you do find yourself in the enviable position of being ‘in love’ and feeling love – fucking enjoy it. Treat it like a good scotch. Breathe it in deep and wash it round your mouth and take in the bath and get drunk.”
A true visual masterpiece from beginning to end, the video clip was directed by Charlie Ford and Ford Sarhan from Wildchild Pictures (Courtney Barnett, Vance Joy) and shot over four days near Carroll’s home in picturesque North East Tasmania. “The landscape in Tasmania is really striking and powerful. Even living there, you never get used to it and we were keen to allow as much of that as possible to come through in the clip,” explains Carroll. “We shot footage in an abandoned miners shack that lies in a valley at the foot of Mount Arthur. We ran a generator for power, cranked the amps, set up the kit, and played for a couple of hours as the sun disappeared below the horizon… Being in the middle of nowhere, playing with a full band to a crowd of four people was strangely enjoyable.”
The band is fronted by the songwriting team, vocalist/composer Timothy Carroll and guitarist/composer Oscar Dawson. They are joined on the road by permanent drummer Ryan Strathie (Hungry Kids Of Hungary, Andy Bull), touring bassist Graham Ritchie (Airling, Emma Louise), and Brisbane-based producer Matt Redlich as their touring keys player.
Offering some insight in to the band’s long awaited debut LP and most comprehensive national tour yet, due to be announced mid-2015, Carroll radiates, “It’s pretty diverse… there’s laid back piano, heavy slow jams and long 70’s guitar breaks. There are some psychy bits and some sing-alongs. It’s also meant to be coming out on vinyl and that is going to be a real moment for us.”
UK / EU TOUR DATES
May 14 Daytime | The Great Escape (Komedia) | Brighton UK
May 14 Evening | The Great Escape (Spiegel Tent) | Brighton UK
May 17 | London Calling Festival | Amsterdam NL
May 18 | MTC Club | Cologne GER
May 19 | Cafe Video | Ghent BEL
May 20 | Comet Club | Berlin GER
May 22 | Dot to Dot Festival | Manchester UK
May 23 Daytime | Liverpool Sound City | Liverpool UK
May 23 Evening | Dot to Dot Festival | Bristol UK
May 24 | Dot to Dot Festival | Nottingham UK
May 26 | Old Blue Last | London UK
May 29 | Primavera Pro (The Aussie BBQ) | Barcelona SPN
May 30 | Primavera Sound (H&M Stage) | Barcelona SPN
What the media are saying about You Cannot Call For Love Like A Dog::
“A banger of a tune.” NME
“Urgent and epic is the only way I can describe the killer new single from Holy Holy.” Dom Alessio, Triple J
“…Confusion, aggression, frustration; that’s the vibe pulsing through the unrelenting rhythm of the song. Lead singer Timothy Carroll’s vocal, usually so warm, sounds perfectly cutting and snide. So searing and scorching, this track makes dog lovers want to take puppies by the collar and kick them to the curb.” Semplesize
“You Cannot Call For Love Like A Dog, is their latest mastery dropped that is a full paced track that has you begging for more. Opening with a groovy bass drive and catchy riff on the electric guitar, this one is a beautiful crescendo that shows off just how well the band work together. Layering piece and piece of each other onto each other, they mesh together drums, guitar, vocals and some produced elements to create a seamless creation. But watch yourself at the end, as the piercing electric guitar solo comes flying through.” AAA Backstage
“…one of the best songs to emerge from the Australian music industry so far in 2015.” Aphra Magazine
“With driving drums and distinct vocals the track sits on the long side, at five and a half minutes, but it could easily run twice as long and I doubt many would complain. I’ve got to be perfectly honest, this one has been on rotation since its release and all we want to do is hear it again.” Casual Band Blogger
“Whatever bar they had set for themselves last year has not just been raised by this track, but completely obliterated and rebuilt miles above.” Howl & Echoes
“The real highlight of this single — the moment that made me stop in my tracks — kicks off at 3:50. Oscar Dawson’s guitar solo just roars. It climbs and climbs, with a totally Pink Floyd vibe.” Indie Shuffle