Dark Thorn - An experienced band of guys that play rock with a global feel and influence...
The Band...
Chris Hillis - Drums
Tom Houston - Guitar & Vocals
Andrew Macdonald - Bass
Terry Howlett - Guitar & BV
Phillip Slink - Vocals
Discover all the shades of Pastel Vespa. Imagine a Latin blonde with the charm of Judith Durham and the silky voice of Claudine Longet surrounded by musical maestros that could be re-incarnations of Bacharach, Jobim or Tony Hatch. Think of a cabaret star from Australia , a real Queen of Easy Listening, a groovy and cheesy Shirley Bassey. OK? Then put the best bossa nova and easy listening moods and camp cover versions of hits by The Sex Pistols, Astrud Gilberto, Kiss, Chumbawamba, Ian Durie or Alanis Morrissette. This is The Experience. Enjoy the unique sounds of Pastel Vespa Exotica? Lounge pop? Mambo Pop? Anarchy Cha-cha? Odd kind of nostalgia? Time for action.
Pastel Vespa is the voice of Spring, a fresh daisy in dappled sunlight, but just as comfortable après-ski after an Audrey Hepburn-style day on the slopes. Sports cars, impossibly long white scarves, knitted daisy dresses. This is the world of Pastel Vespa .
"L'Anarchie" (siesta 162), the first full-length album and testament to the talent of this new star. Armed with unforgettable songs by Messrs. Lynott, Morrisette, Dury, and Rotten, amongst others and aided by the rhapsodic musical direction of Mr. John Thorn, Pastel takes you on a journey into exciting new musical terrain. Mariachi bands strum where electric guitars once howled, smooth lounge blows the angst from Chumbawamba and "Ironic" gets the torch song treatment it always craved. Pastel slows the KISS classic "I Was Made For Lovin' You" down to a bedroom purr, "Teenage Dirtbag" goes adult-contemporary and "Evie Pts 1, 2 & 3", the quintessential Australian 70's rock anthem, becomes a melding of lounge, The Carpenters and Latin disco! Yes the boys are back in town, but this time they're packing marimbas! And as for Pastel's singing, suffice to say it's as warm as the sunlit waters of Bahia .
“Takin’ The Back Roads” (siesta 192), is an extraordinary second album that only takes a few spins to blossom. Essentially when Pastel sings, nations meet nations, her vocals glide - Metallica meets Kaempfert, The Cure meets The Four King Cousins, Nakamura meets Joao Gilberto, Prince meets Tito Puente, The Angels meet Brigitte Bardot and New Order/ Joy Division meets Herb Alpert, just to name a few. Think of the United Nations of Pop or the majestic Tower of Babel and the integrating capacity of art. All the cover versions from this chanteuse are appealing and replete of singalong hooks.
Fiona and John Thorn are prolific, mobile and versatile artists. Their fecund imagination has generated from spontaneous and improvised Broadway Musicals “every night” to theatre plays of great success not to mention their musical restlessness of different sources and latitudes. They have played in Thailand , Emirates and Indonesia , always with great recognition and pleasure. They have been recently commissioned for the first moon festival in 2015. Let’s fly!
A young indie folk artist hailing from south west Victoria, Joey Brady’s solo project “Roy Brady” began during COVID lockdown, where he started writing and recording in his bungalow. Since then, he’s released 4 singles and an EP, playing these at a number of venues since the beginning of 2021 - most notably - two sold out headliner shows at the Workers Club in Fitzroy. He and his band have also performed at St. Kilda’s Espy, the Northcote Social Club and the Retreat Hotel in Brunswick. Roy’s latest track ‘Sue Me’ had success on the indie charts, reaching the top 20 in the triple j unearthed charts. Brady combines aspects of psychedelic indie rock, as well as his roots in folk, to create a new and exciting sound, drawing influence from artists such as Bon Iver, King Krule and Boy & Bear.
New album coming 2022. EP "Stylo Curiae" & album "Purekiller" soon for re-release. Rock on!
A swirl of soaring guitars and searing vocals, supported by the tightest of rhythm sections, the boys from Sienna Wild play it their way. Born and bred in Melbourne, Sienna Wild is Louis Goutos (bass and vocals), Jonathan Giokas (lead guitar) Lewis Ciavarella (rhythm guitar and backing vocals) and Lucas Manitta (drums).
Rob Snarski is a singer and songwriter and a founding member of The Blackeyed Susans.
Garage Rock
Matt Martin - Vocals
Lachie Reynolds - Guitar
Walter Clayworth - Guitar
Scott Urwin - Bass
Brrendan Seibring - Drums
Ballarat/Melbourne
Forged deep in the fiery pits of the underworld, the Battlesnake rises up to take the earth by storm.
So many great rockabilly bands have sprouted up over the globe since the style first took root in the ’50s. Hank’s Jalopy Demons are proud to be a part of such a tornado of musical wildness and take their inspiration from the countless masters of this genre over the past 60 years. In fact, what may make Hank’s Jalopy Demons a hip band is their total immersion in this music, as well as their energetic enthusiasm for playing rockabilly the best they can – trying to emulate the best, while creating their own unique authentic interpretation.
On this exciting musical journey, Hank’s Jalopy Demons started out by doing the hard yards of the musicians’ ordeal – playing in rough dingy bars on the wrong side of the tracks (in fact, they still do). From there, the small, increasingly loyal, audience grew. From those early hard days, they added inspired new original numbers to their repertoire and formed a tight musical outfit that had people really rockin’ with their frighteningly authentic and wild renditions of rockabilly.
Of course, a band is more than just the sum of its members – the quality of a band in a non-linear equation. This dynamic output is the result of the input of the following vigorous personalities.
First, there’s Andrew Lindsay on drums. He has extensive experience in the hippest of hipness. Many will be familiar with Benny and the Fly-by-niters in which he provided the rhythm, as well as the respected western-swing/hillbilly-bop outfit the Starliners. Secondly, there’s Dave Cantrell on the lead guitar and vocals, who’s been playing and recording rockabilly since a school-boy, still wet behind the ears. He played in such renowned Melbourne bands as the Roadsters and Stringbusters, plus the Starliners too. Next, there’s Til Vex on bull fiddle. He’s been honing his skills for many moons in Melbourne rockabilly bands, such as the Straight 8s and the Roadsters. You may be familiar with all of the of bands mentioned above from the infamous and acclaimed Preston Records label. In addition, Andrew, Dave and Til backed both Scotty Baker and Kieron McDonald, among others, on their excellent recordings. Lastly, Hank Ferguson, lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and composer, is known for his singing with the Starliners, as well as other Preston Records releases dating back over two decades. He’s been playing this music since he was knee high to a grasshopper.
And that, amigos, is Hank’s Jalopy Demons – dig it!