BULLY HAY SHARES UPLIFTING NEW SINGLE + VIDEO ‘WASH OFF THE WORLD’
Undulating and revitalising, the brand new single Wash Off The World out today from Tasmanian singer-songwriter Bully Hay drives home a message of empowerment and inspiration, topped off with the addition of The Tea Party’s Jeff Martin on production, recording and mixing duties. Also armed with an accompanying music video, Wash Off The World marks Bully Hay’s first single off his forthcoming debut album, Black Dogs and Songbirds due out later this year on Wednesday October 30.
“I want to get inside the ocean and wash off the world” declares Bully Hay, aka Jonathon Coleman, in the opening buoyant lines of Wash Off The World. Mimicking literal waves with its rolling and receding verses and choruses, Wash Off The World glistens with a wash of guitars and immersive textures, beckoning you to revisit time and time again with its fluctuating elements and flavours. “The sound is reminiscent of the early Powderfinger albums but has this (John) Bonham solid drum sound powering through,” shares Bully Hay. “And Jeff Martin’s influence throughout lent itself beautifully to really fill out certain sections. Often, it’s a process where the sound is shaped kind of unconsciously throughout the songwriting and recording process. I have never written a song with an artist or influence in mind and try hard not to. It’s not until after its finished, I start to recognise: ‘This sounds a little like Powderfinger or Something for Kate here and there’. And of course you can’t deny Jeff Martin’s influence across the sound. I’ve been a huge fan of Jeff and The Tea Party for over 20 years.”
Teaming up with his musical hero Jeff Martin to bring Wash Off The World to fruition, Bully Hay also channelled notions of enlightenment and awakening into the uplifting track, with Bully Hay penning the song almost a decade ago before ultimately jumping in with Martin to unleash it into the world in 2024. “Working with Jeff would be up there in the top memorable times of my life!” says Bully Hay. “I’d met Jeff through a mutual friend one night in Hobart after he played a solo gig down there. We ended up having a few drinks and sharing a few songs with each other. Jeff offered to produce a record of my songs. I let him know it was a deal as long as he played some guitar on the record, and we shook on it. At the time I thought it was just booze talking, but sure enough the next day it was all confirmed that it was going to happen. Throughout last year Jeff and his wife Melissa welcomed me into their home where I lived for about a month throughout the year and really got stuck into the songs in the studio. At first it was pretty nerve wracking as I really didn’t know what to expect. Jeff and I didn’t know each other apart from hanging out for a few hours one time after his show. And he knew nothing about me, so was most probably hoping I wasn’t some kind of psycho coming to live at his house! But as the days passed and the music was taking shape, we found we had a lot in common and became really great friends. The actual recording process was really fascinating for me. As Jeff has recorded so many albums, solo and with The Tea Party, I was just soaking it all in like a sponge. The highlights for me would be when Jeff would pick up a guitar and come up with these amazing lines to accentuate or soup up my guitar parts. I am not a lead guitarist, so to have Jeff Martin play lead on my record was pretty bloody awesome. The luck factor here is not lost on me.”
“As a producer it’s an incredible experience when you’re working with a singer and don’t have to use any of those evils like Autotune because the guy has perfect pitch every single time,” shares Jeff Martin of working with Bully Hay. “And the harmonies he comes up with…I couldn’t even do that! What Jono has accomplished – which is very rare – is that he can go from tender ballads in the style of Jeff Buckley, to country rock which reminds the listener of vintage Eagles, to these epic rock opuses.”
Engineered by Paul Pilsneniks (Silverchair, The Whitlams, Boy & Bear, Dope Lemon), Wash Off The World was also mastered by the Grammy-nominated extraordinaire Joe Carra (The Teskey Brothers, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard) at Crystal Mastering. The accompanying music video is an affecting piece that brings together powerful live performance as well as a moving narrative throughline. “The song to me is about breaking free of the walls imposed on us by our day-to-day grind and focussing on the important things in life.” says Bully Hay, “I used some of the lyrics of the song to create a visual representation of this, by having our protagonist literally run to the ocean to cleanse/reset his life.”
A proud Tassie boy currently based in Southern Tasmania, Bully Hay’s upbringing saw him immersed in music, with his musical family helping to ignite his lifelong passion at an early age. Ultimately inspired to become a musician by his father, who introduced him to some chords on the guitar at the age of 14, the rest well and truly was history, with the self-taught Coleman going on to learn music by ear, and performing in bands and as a solo artist for the years to follow. Settling on the moniker Bully Hay for his solo endeavours, the name was inspired by Coleman’s uncle who was one of “The Rats of Tobruk” in World War II. And now with his gaze firmly fixed on the upcoming release of his debut album, Bully Hay once again proudly flies the flag for Tasmania, with The Apple Isle intrinsically permeating through his captivating creations. “Living in Tasmania has really shaped me in my life, and very much so within my music,” Bully Hay reveals. “There’s a thread there behind a lot of songs of mine where I end up visualising certain places there, mainly coastal regions, which is why I often catch these kind of elemental lyrics (water, fire, etc.) creeping into my songs.”
“Wash Off The World is the first single from my debut album Black Dogs and Songbirds which is a full length, 11 track album I’ll be releasing later this year,” Bully Hay concludes. “Working with Jeff Martin on this album as my producer was a huge honour. He was able to draw these songs out of me and make them the best that they could possibly be. Listening to these songs, you’ll hear influences like Paul Kelly, Crowded House, Powderfinger, Soundgarden, Jeff Buckley and The Tea Party coming through, but the album now has its own Bully Hay sound. We’ve created something really special. Sharing the album will be my absolute pleasure. I can’t wait to get it out there.”
Wash Off The World is out today here https://gyro.to/WashOffTheWorld
PRESLEY DAVIS JR SHARES THREE TRACKS FROM THREE DIFFERENT GENRES RELEASES SINGLES HEART OF MY HEART, SHOWDOWN + CONVINCING ME TAKEN FROM NEW PROJECT ECLECTA TRIFECTA DUE OUT JULY 23 COMPRISING THREE ALBUMS ROADSIDE MAGNOLIA, TORANA AMERICANA + BIRDLIFE
A sentimental jazz song, a country ode to heartache and a sultry soul gem collide today in another trifecta single release from singer-songwriter, actor and creative cauldron Presley Davis Jr. Balancing various genres across his brand new tracks, Heart of My Heart, Showdown and Convincing Me, all out today, Presley’s eclectic prowess grows to new heights as he steps ever-closer to the upcoming release of three simultaneous albums; Roadside Magnolia, Torana Americana and Birdlife, with these albums forming into the amalgamated Eclecta Trifecta collective, due out on July 23.
Kicking off in swoon city, Presley’s first new single out today, Heart of My Heart, doles out the charm with ambling brass and tinkling keys as Presleyeffortlessly channels classic jazz with hints of barbershop charm throughout. A time-travelling delight that hastens you back to the golden age of Bing Crosby and poetic lyricism, Heart of My Heart also beckons another snapshot into Presley’s upcoming full length album Roadside Magnoliadropping this July as part of the Eclecta Trifecta project. “Heart of My Heart is a classic old jazz number,” shares Presley. “I love this song because of the beautiful sentiment in it. Modern pop music lyrics don’t have phrases like “I know a tear would glisten, if once more I could listen”. This was a pop song back in the day, just think about that for a moment. It’s definitely influenced by classic singers like Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby and Dean Martin. I used to sing a lot of barbershop music when I was young and if you’re at my favourite pizza bar on a Tuesday you might hear the local barbershop group rehearsing at the next table.”
Next up, throwback country meets modern bliss via Showdown; the latest single from Presley’s forthcoming Torana Americana album as part of Eclecta Trifecta. With its crooning lyrics and sunny twang, Showdown bustles with warm instrumentals and poignant vocals, tapping into the past and the future simultaneously, as Presley explains, “I really like older country music like Willie Nelson and Hank Williams. I also like alternative country and roots artists like Gillian Welch and Anders Osborne. In this song you can hear the old with a bit of the new mixed in. This song was inspired by some of my past relationships. Sometimes you break up because it isn’t working, but then you get lonely, so you go back. Wash, rinse, repeat. We’ve all been there, haven’t we?”
And completing today’s simultaneous single release from Presley Davis Jr. is Convincing Me; a sumptuous and sleek concoction of funk and soul that could easily find itself at home soundtracking a salacious piece of cinema with its swaggering bassline and lush sonic backdrop. “I often write songs by playing a different instrument for a while,” shares Presley of conjuring Convincing Me. “Toying around with bass guitar often results in a song for me and that is what happened here. The original “scratch” lyrics for this were about going outside of your normal parameters for who you would sleep with – “you’re not my type, but…you’re convincing me.” When I revisited it, I thought that was a tad offensive so I rephrased it as “we shouldn’t go there, but you’re convincing me”. I can see this being included on a soundtrack because there is so much cheating and shagging going on in TV and movies these days. I love listening to Prince, Stevie Wonder, James Brown and I think you can definitely hear some of those influences on this track.”
The task of simultaneously creating three full-bodied and stylistically diverse albums saw Presley dive into a horde of personally meaningful genres, with the Eclecta Trifecta project also evolving from his experience during the pandemic years. Evaluating himself both personally and professionally at the time, Presley’s soul searching ultimately led to him settling on the idea to release a three-album project, with all three albums in three different styles set to release on the same day. Consisting of Roadside Magnolia, Torana Americana and Birdlife, Eclecta Trifecta spans everything from old-timey jazz to country, bluegrass, funk and soul, with all three diverse but focused albums beating at their core with Presley’s passion and deep understanding for each musical realm. Of his upcoming three albums, Presley shares, “Roadside Magnolia is a tip of the hat to my father and his lifelong dedication to performing that style of music. Torana Americana is me celebrating my love of playing and singing the music I grew up playing. Birdlife continues my obsession with all things soulful and funky. Funk has a history of including comedic tracks and there are certainly a few of those on there as well.”
Opening with the jangly Shine On Harvest Moon, Roadside Magnolia bustles with timeless whimsy and a sharp understanding of the traditional jazz genre, steadily doling out arrangements and lyrical delivery that would happily sit alongside the likes of Cole Porter (Nevertheless), alongside upbeat speakeasy vibes (Five Foot Two, Eyes Of Blue – In A Shanty, In Old Shanty Town and Sin To Tell A Lie), a stellartwist on a classic made famous by Willie Nelson and Patsy Cline (Crazy), a velvet-clad jazz take on a classic love song (It Had To Be You), and a standout adaptation of a longtime jazz staple (Lazy River).
Switching gears to an album made to be consumed on road trips or accompanied by a shot of whiskey, Torana Americana hurls a jubilant spotlight on all things country, from the toe-tappin’, string-fuelled opener Petunia through to a countrified version of a 1996 hit from The Monkees (Last Train to Clarksville), a cosy twist on a country and gospel favourite (Seven Spanish Angels), energetic bluegrass (Friend of the Devil – Blue Moon of Kentucky and A Full Time Job) as well as a stirring love song fuelled by glistening banjos (Sugarcane), and a modern alt country closer in the form of Bigger the Debt.
And from classic jazz and country licks to sleek scintillation, the third album from the Eclecta Trifecta series finds Presley embracing rhythm and blues with soul through a simultaneous vintage and contemporary lens, with seven songs lying in wait on Birdlife. From the tempered sensuality of its opening number How Can I, Presley effortlessly oozes through steamy funk (My Escape), upbeat gloss (Where You Be At), disco-ready beats (Cause I’m Rich), undulating soul (10 Shades of Blue), and an effusive celebration of tongue-in-cheek lyricism alongside breathy flutes and catchy hooks (YASWOM).
With Roadside Magnolia, Torana Americana and Birdlife all self-produced by Presley, the end result for all three full-lenghths was also cemented alongside mixing and mastering by Presley’s long-time collaborator and great friend Jason Torrens for Birdlife and Torana Americana, with Roadside Magnolia mixed in Argentina by Alejandro Rosenblat and mastered by Lucas Gomez. “I produce everything myself and can be pretty insistent on what I want based on what I hear in my head,” shares Presley. “Birdlife and Torana Americana were mixed and mastered by Jason Torrens, he owns Debasement Studios in Ferntree Gully, Victoria and has worked with Bodyjar, You Am I, Slipknot, as well as being Senior Program Leader at Collarts (Australian College of the Arts). I ended up getting Roadside Magnolia mixed in Argentina by Alejandro Rosenblat and mastered by Lucas Gomez. It is hard to find someone to mix jazz as it’s pretty niche and these guys did a great job. Be wary of mixers who say they can mix jazz without hearing an example of what they did first.”
A jack of all musical trades and adopting his stage name to honour Sammy Davis Jr., it seemed predestined that Presley Davis Jr would find himself immersed in the arts. Receiving his first guitar and tenor banjo at the age of eight from his father, a member of the Nicky Capodice Banjo Band, Presley was contracted to sing old jazz favourites six nights a week by the age of 17 and was touring North America by the age of 25, performing with different bands in different styles spanning bluegrass, blues, soul and rock. Eventually moving to his wife’s hometown of Melbourne, Presleywould find himself hemmed in by the world’s longest lockdown during the pandemic years; but rather than dull his creativity, Presley turned to his work and aspired to conjure something entirely for himself. And it’s via his upcoming trifecta album release and the independent process that Presley Jr has found the long-awaited return of full and unbridled creative fulfillment, as he explains, “This has been a real learning experience for me. I am feeling fulfilled for the first time in a long time. A lot of musicians have these dreams of doing new projects but get overwhelmed by the work involved that isn’t music related like admin and promo. Doing it yourself is genuinely hard but once you get through the first time it becomes easier. My current working theory is to record what you want, have fun and explore your creativity wherever it takes you. The music “industry” is in shambles so why not set your own goals?”
And after successfully mastering multiple genres across the space of three insatiable albums all at once, just where will Presley Davis Jr. turn his creative gaze to next? “A blues record is in the pipeline,” Presley concludes. “I am toying with a hip-hop-ish record, or at least a beats-based record followed by a rock record. Then I might retire and take up lawn bowls full time – I’m actually pretty good on the green already.”
Heart of My Heart, Showdown and Convincing Me are out today, Tuesday June 25
Roadside Magnolia, Torana Americana and Birdlife, aka the Eclecta Trifecta, are due out on Friday July 23 exclusively on Bandcamp.
| Listen: HEART OF MY HEART
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Listen: SHOWDOWN
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Listen: CONVINCING ME
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JOIN THE WORLDWIDE CELEBRATION OF MUSIC-MAKING THIS WEEK ‘MAKE MUSIC DAY’ RETURNS THIS FRIDAY JUNE 21
All the world is a stage, and this week the joy of music-making is stepping into the spotlight at home and abroad. Come and join the worldwide celebration of music this Friday June 21 with the return of Make Music Day, a global day dedicated to celebrating all things music-making. Make Music Day is a chance for musicians and artists to come together to perform and showcase creativity with their peers and communities, with free public concerts set to take place both live and online worldwide.
Presented in Australia by the Australian Music Association and the NAMM Foundation, Make Music Day originated in 1982 as Fête de la Musique in France before evolving into a global event that encapsulates over a thousand cities and places across 120 countries. A day long musical free-for-all celebrating music in all its forms, all ages and levels of skills are welcome, with communities also encouraged to get involved and support their local artists. A full list of events and information is available at https://makemusicaustralia.org.au/.
Proudly heading up Australia’s Make Music Day endeavours in 2024, Australian Music Association CEO and ARIA Award-winning musician Alex Masso shares, “Music making is something that resonates with people from all walks of life, all over the world. We think there should be a day to celebrate the way music making brings us together and gives us an outlet for expression, connection and so much else.”
“We know that professional musicians left the industry due to the challenges of the pandemic,” Masso adds, “but the interest in making music remains strong in the community at about 17% of the population. We saw a spike in sales of instruments such as guitars during the pandemic, it’s something that people turn to for fun, for a challenge and for creative expression and there are endless opportunities for musical expression from creating something by yourself at home to playing with a band or orchestra, singing in a choir, or going along to a jam session.”
Following the pandemic years, a recent report from Creative Australia found that in 2022 the number of professional musicians almost halved as proportion of the labour force since 2015, but a separate study of participation in the arts found that the proportion of people playing music has remained stable during the same period.
In a stunning display of solidarity and celebration, rock bands, songwriters, ukuleles, community bands and choirs, even flowerpots will be part of the musical offerings at Make Music Day Australian events in 2024. As part of the upcoming festivities, Billilla Gardens in Victoria will come to life this week with the ringing sound of flowerpots. Composed by Elliot Cole, Flowerpot music is a composition celebrating the unlikely beauty of the humble flowerpot played with mallets.
Elsewhere, South Regional TAFE Margaret River and Arts Margaret River have taken the opportunity to combine musical performance with technical training, with TAFE students learning the inner workings of the world class sound system at Main Theatre then performing their original works on stage.
Suburban and regional centres will also come alive with music this week, including Parramatta’s ‘Best of the West’ battle of the bands, a musical picnic in Grafton (NSW), and a travelling Impromptu Choir in Clare, SA, moving from a park to the library and a café.
Additionally, Make Music Make Friends is a project bringing together schools from Australia and nine other countries, who will collectively share songs and introduce themselves to each other through music. And breaking global barriers, My Song Is Your Song connects songwriters from different countries to perform a version of each other’s songs, with prizes on offer for the global music song swap spanning a ukulele from famed Slovenian-based company Flight, a Scarlett 2i2 4th gen audio interface from Focusrite, and a Novation Launchkey 37.
At the Curious Rabbit in Wagga Wagga (NSW) there will be a series of ukulele workshops and a jam that is open to everyone keen to participate, with ukuleles also on the menu at Merewether Ocean Bath in Newcastle (NSW) for hours of singing and strumming, and as part of a flash mob event called The Other ‘Lithgow Flash’ (Mob), a reference to Olympic legend Marjorie Jackson-Nelson who set six world athletics records and won multiple gold medals in the 1950s.
Make Music Day is presented in Australia by the Australian Music Association and the NAMM Foundation and takes place this Friday June 21.
For information further information on events, visit https://makemusicaustralia.org.au/.
VIEW: MAKE MUSIC DAY PROMOTIONAL VIDEO
MAKE MUSIC DAY AUSTRALIA 2024
SELECTED EVENTS – FRI 21 JUNE
CITY CONCERTS
Challis Singers at Gordon Library (Gordon, NSW)
Make Music Day Celebration at Bernie’s Music Land (Ringwood, VIC)
Jazzscape Trio at Paddington Library and Woollahra Library
Winter Concert – Music for Canberra Orchestras (Canberra, ACT)
CITY – OUTDOORS
Canada Bay
Make Music Day Parramatta – Best of the West (Parramatta, NSW)
CITY – PARTICIPATE
Sing Australia Gordon (Gordon, NSW)
REGIONAL – CONCERTS
Make Music Day ORC (Orange, NSW)
Groove is in the Heart (Margaret River, WA)
WollCon Voices Sing! (Wollongong, NSW)
REGIONAL – PARTICIPATE
Cobar Seniors’ Singalong (Cobar, NSW)
Make Music Day at Kitten Vintage (Mackay, QLD)
Music Mayhem (Dalyston, VIC)
Make Curious Music (Wagga Wagga, NSW)
Open Floor Jam with Two Up Music Show (Shorncliffe, QLD)
REGIONAL – OUTDOORS
Make Music Day Clarence Valley (Grafton, NSW)
Impromptu Singing (Clare, SA)
Uke by the Beach (Newcastle, NSW)
The Other “Lithgow Flash” Mob (Lithgow, NSW)
SCHOOLS
Grovedale College
NBSC Cromer Campus
St Xavier’s Gunnedah
CREATIVE AUSTRALIA STATISTICS:
In the Creative Australia report ‘Creating Value: Results of the National Arts Participation Survey’, the proportion of the Australian population actively participating in music (playing, singing, composing) was 17% in 2022. The previous comparable reports showed 18% in 2019,15% in 2016, 20% in 2013, 15% in 2009. Source: https://creative.gov.au/advocacy-and-research/creating-value/.
In the Creative Australia report ‘Artists as Workers: An Economic Study of Professional Artists in Australia’, the proportion of professional musicians in the Australian Labour Force was 0.07% in 2022. The previous comparable reports showed 0.12% in 2015, 0.11% in 2008, 0.13% in 2001, 0.13% in 1993, and 0.17% in 1987. Source: https://creative.gov.au/advocacy-and-research/artists-as-workers-an-economic-study-of-professional-artists-in-australia/.
The Australian Music Association’s Annual Market Report, which tracks imports of music products using data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, found that 2021 had the highest number of guitar products of the past 10 years, followed by 2020. For pianos and keyboards 2020 was the strongest year, followed by 2021. Source: https://australianmusic.asn.au/market-report/