We had the pleasure of chatting to Australia’s own Jayne Murphy, formerly of Lime Spiders, about her current solo work, tour and latest single! Check it all out below!
How would you describe your sound?
I would say my sound is a blend of pop, rock and punk delivered in an Aussie pub rock fashion. Raw. Unfiltered. Honest.
You’re currently in the middle of a tour, how’s it going so far?
Having a bunch of fun! Punters have really taken to the new single and the new line-up in a positive way. We’re sizzling right now performance wise.. There was even conga-line dancing at one gig! A lot of people are also interested in seeing me play being a former member and lead guitarist of the Lime Spiders.
You’ve put out a new single ready for the shows, what can you tell me about it?
‘Pocket Superman’ is about denouncing violence – denouncing domestic and family violence. In Australia, it’s a curse. It’s on the rise. Metaphorically, a Pocket Superman is a “personal safety plan”. It could be a preloaded text message calling for help, a whistle to gain attention or even a siren type device to attract the attention of others, to deter a stalker. I was careful to ensure the lyrics weren’t gendered, because domestic violence affects everyone.
Had another single this year, are they both standalone or are we building to another album or EP?
Yes, ‘Greedy Rich Boys’ was released in April 2026. It is on the drawing board that ‘Pocket Superman’ and other recent singles will appear on a physical album format in the future. Like a best of the singles since 2019. I’m hoping to have it released on vinyl through my distributor MGM Distribution (Australia) sometime in 2027!
What is the writing process like for the band?
I’m the principal songwriter for the band project. I write 100% of the lyrics and titles, and come up with the main ideas for the compositions. I don’t have a particular “formula” for writing songs. It might be a title, a melody line or a rhyming couplet that might come to my mind and underpins the structure of the song. Sometimes a song will just spill out of my mind completely finished. It’s quite bizarre when that happens. The quickest fully written song I crafted was in 9mins. During recording pre-production I’ll send a “skat track” (my term for a loosely recorded acoustic version of the song) to the bass player and drummer. They’ll usually write their own parts and then as producer I’ll make suggestions to them about their parts and how it applies to my vision for the arrangement of the song.
Do you have a busy rest of the year and into 2027 with gigs and studio stuff?
Gigs in September and October. Sometimes I do solo gigs in record stores and small bars. Heading into the studio late November/early December to record a new single. Another tour is slated to run from 12th to 28th February 2027. Then another recording session to probably lay down the beds for another three singles. And as I mentioned earlier, I am looking to put together a single compilation in physical form, as a lot of the singles are only available in digital/streaming format!
You’re pretty up on the whole social media game, any advice you could give for a band just starting out?
Hmmm, social media can be quite a “hit and miss’ affair when you want to ride that algorithm, haha! I guess the best advice for bands starting out on socials is to be “strategic”. Research “best times” to post content. Collaborate with like minded bands. And even if you’re not getting the volume of likes and interaction you were expecting, persistence is the key. Don’t be shy to get family and friends involved. Quality content is important. Brush up on those Canva and Adobe Express skills!
Do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Any bands you’d want to support or friends you’d want to bring along with you?
Good question. Big question. I think my dream tour lineup would be Foo Fighters, The Runaways, Green Day, Placebo, Blur and Flowers For Jayne. There’s quite a few bands I’d like to invite to tag along. So many talented younger bands out there as well. Might have to “draw straws” for that decision, haha!
If you could have written one song from history, what would it have been and why?
Ahhhh! Wow! Just one song?? Tricky! I guess it would have to be, “I Am Woman’ by Helen Reddy!
We chatted to the rising stars of Japanese heavy metal, Fireflame, about their debut full-length and future plans. Check it all out below!
How would you describe your sound?
We define our sound as Modern Heavy Metal, which strives for a seamless fusion of classic 80s heavy metal and modern metalcore. We dislike being boxed into a single specific subgenre. Rather than simply mimicking the past or sounding overly modern, we pursue a style where both worlds are perfectly balanced and blended.
The album’s been out a couple of months now, it seems to have gone down really well! Is there a particular theme or story behind the album, or is it more that each track is its own story?
The album is actually built as a cohesive concept! Excluding the bonus tracks, all 12 main songs are interconnected, telling one continuous story from start to finish. Central to this narrative is the overarching theme of “the persistent inner fire within those who continue to fight for something they cannot give up.” Through this story, we wanted to convey a powerful message about facing adversity and refusing to bend, no matter what obstacles stand in your way!
What is your songwriting process like?
The main process usually begins with Connie Flames (Ba) and myself (FireRay, Gt) putting together rough demos. Once we have those initial demos, we bring them straight into the rehearsal studio.
We jam and play through the songs together as a full band, shaping and refining the arrangements and details on the spot. It’s through this hands-on studio session work that everyone’s ideas and energy come together to give the final song its full form.
Is there more writing going on already?
Yes, absolutely! We’ve actually already completed 3 brand new tracks, and we have several more demos in the works!
Even though our 1st album Force Against The End was just released, we’re already focused on and excited about the next album. We can’t wait to push our sound even further!
Do you have a busy rest of the year and start of 207 planned with live stuff?
Now that our debut album is finally out, we’re currently planning a tour and getting ready to hit the road. It’s definitely going to be a very busy and exciting time for us!
What is the heavy metal scene like in Japan? I feel like I’m starting to see more and more bands from the country!
Compared to its peak, heavy metal definitely isn’t in the mainstream spotlight here anymore, and honestly, our hometown scene in Osaka has declined quite a bit.
However, we have amazing bandmates of our generation who share the same passion, as well as inspiring seniors who support us. Because of that, I truly believe we can rebuild and reignite the scene from here and we want to be the band leading that charge!
You’re quite active on social media, do you have any advice you could give bands just starting out, in that regard?
Honestly, we don’t really have advice to give because we’re still just a starting-out band ourselves! Haha.
But if there’s one thing, it’s simply to keep doing it over and over again. Just put content out there constantly, stay active, and keep pushing without overthinking it!
Do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Anyone you’d want to support or friends you’d want to bring with you?
Supporting heavy metal legends like Loudness, Judas Priest, or Bullet For My Valentine would be an absolute dream come true and it’s something we are determined to make happen!
As for who we’d bring with us, we want to bring everyone who has supported us on this journey. It sounds like a big dream, but we’re going to make it reality!
If you could have written one song from history, what would it be and why?
That’s a tough one! But the first song that came to my mind is “Painkiller” by Judas Priest. To me, it’s the ultimate heavy metal anthem from the legendary drum intro to the relentless riffs and twin guitars, it completely defines what heavy metal is.
We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing country duo’s Ryan and Rory at the Long Road the other week! Check out as we chat about the UK scene and their new album plans!
We chatted about a year ago now so, essentially, how’s the last year gone?
Ryan: Man, it’s crazy. It’s been pretty crazy. We’ve recorded an album!
Yes. I remember you kind of teasing it when we chatted!
Rory: Yeah, may or, maybe not be coming out next year. May, maybe not be early next year. I mean, I don’t know what we can say, but…Yeah, we’ve been playing a lot of shows. We’ve been, like we said, working on new music. We put the single out this past Friday, ‘Beer Wants Me’.
Yes, of course. Yeah!
Rory: We knew we were coming over here and we were like, this is the best way to celebrate this, to give it a turn and push that boat off the dock here in the UK for ‘Beer Wants Me’. Exciting!
Is that going to be on the album then? Is that the first single from that?
Ryan: Yeah, it’ll be on the album. It’s the beginning of our new chapter!
You’ve got two sets today as well, right? You’re on there and then the afterparty!
Ryan: Yeah, Main stage at 11 O’clock.
Long day.
Rory: It is what we’re here for. Long days. Exactly. Long Road, long day!
What can we expect from either? Is there going to be some differences between the sets? I feel like tonight’s is a bit shorter, right?
Rory: It’s shorter. It’s going to be like probably a little more high energy for the second set, but the first set is going to be all gas, no breaks. First set’s just, a good mix of you know, our songs that are out and then we have some new tunes coming out, a lot of new ones, which is nice!
I was talking to Zandi Holup yesterday about how country seems a lot more accepting of playing unreleased stuff than a lot of the other genres I’ve noticed. Like it’s really cool that people will dry run a new song live!
Ryan: We noticed that! So our first trip over here like six months ago or whatever, I mean, almost all that music is new to the people we’re playing for and it didn’t feel that way! It felt like they were listening with arms wide open.
Rory: Yeah, it was wild by the third set I was like, man, they know the words to some of this!
What can you kind of make comparison-wise from the scene back home compared to out here? Are there any similarities or differences?
Yeah, I mean there’s definitely some similarities and differences. The difference I’ve noticed is like here, we mistook the very first time for the attentive listening. We thought like maybe the energy wasn’t high energy. Because it was such attentive listening, and then by the next song everyone loves it. They don’t hate us. They were just really listening. So, that difference is pretty key, I’ve noticed!
Yeah, I have had a few people say that, actually. I feel like I need to head out to you guys and catch a country show now just to see the differences!
Oh, definitely. Have you been to Nashville?
No, I really want to!
It’s, it’s worth it. It’s rowdy dude!
It’d definitely be cool. I’ve done a few shows in the US, but not country, so that’d be cool.
You’ve kind of touched a little bit on the album. Is there anything more we can expect? Are there any interesting twists and turns on it compared to the stuff you’ve put out so far?
Rory: Yeah, so the record we feel like is the most complete picture of music we’ve been able to put together. We shot the video for ‘Beer Wants Me’ here on this trip, so we’re still filming it!
Oh wow, you’re getting some clips today? That’ll be cool.
Yeah! You guys are going to be in it today and tonight! It’s going to be a UK exclusive ‘Beer Wants Me’ video, which is very cool. But the record is… it almost picked itself. We’re so proud of all the songs and there wasn’t a disagreement about which one should be on there!
Have you guys got quite a busy year after you get home then? Are there any shows coming up?
Yeah, we do, for sure. We’re going to be putting out some new music, one more before the new year and then a lot of new stuff next year. We’re going to be going to radio, so the full, the whole nine yards.
Nice busy year, then!
Ryan: Yeah, it’s going to be busy as it gets!
Is there anyone you’d want to collaborate with in a writing room?
Yeah, for sure! Our dream collab is Lainey Wilson, for sure.
That’d be cool!
I think she’s like triple threat artist. Definitely one of our dream collabs. We already had a dream come true with Jamie Johnson, we have a song out with him. That was, that was pretty damn cool.
Thomas Rhett at the board. And we might want a song with Kenny one day.
And we’ll just say it, we’re Ella Fellas! She’s cool!
I guess that probably leads quite nicely to our next question of if you had a dream tour you’d want to be a part of. I imagine at least like Ella, Lainey maybe?
Yeah, I think either one of those, I’d be like, I don’t know if I’d believe it’s real. But that, I mean, man, the thing about country is we love so many artists, like there’s a lot of dream tours, like there’s a lot of them. Whoever we can have a good time with, honestly, who we’d enjoy to hang out with. We love, you know, getting to hang out after the show, going golfing before soundcheck, and you know, going and exploring a new town, meeting new people, that kind of thing, so wherever it gets us out and about! The hang is everything!
Then are there at least tentative plans to come back out next year, I imagine?
So, just like last time, we immediately started working on this trip the last time we were here, so we’re already talking about it. We’ve been kind of checking around for what would we be able to do show-wise and what cities and what not. But no, the plan is always to come back, because we’ve just had such a great time!
Ryan: And yeah, the move would be maybe putting out a new record and then come back over here! You know, one after the other.
We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing metallers Hippie Death Cult between tours about said adventures, their potential upcoming new music, and much more! Check it all out below!
How would you describe your sound?
Rock n’ Roll. Not as a static genre, but as a living, evolving entity. It’s a synthesis and celebration of everything we love about music. Bridging the gap from the birth of rock ’n’ roll, through early R&B, soul, and funk, into 60s psychedelia, 70s heavy blues, 80s thrash, and 90s metal and grunge. There is a common thread that tied those eras together, regardless of how broad the expression became. I feel like the tether to that thread got lost somewhere in the late 90s personally, and a lot of music that came after was either lacking deep roots or just copying an already played out formula. We aren’t trying to “revive” anything; we’re just picking up that thread and trying to keep it moving. We’d rather be a band that’s hard to define than one that’s easy to categorize but lacks soul and vitality.
Recently signed with Blacklight Media, what’s that been like?
It’s been a great experience so far, everyone we are working with over there and at Metal Blade Records have been great partners and I feel there’s a strong trust between us that goes both ways. It feels like a great match so far, and I’m excited to see how the rollout of the new record pans out!
I saw you’re teasing some new music coming next year too, right? How does it compare to your previous stuff?
We’re always digging for something deeper, and this new material is a reflection of that. We took the foundation we’ve built, and just made it nastier. It’s got more of everything. Groove, soul, passion and fury, but it’s focused. Laura’s hitting notes and intensities that we haven’t heard from her before and it’s really cool. It’s the sound of us getting out of our own way.
Just finished touring the US, how was it?
The real highlight was the connection with the people who showed up, honestly. It feels like we have family everywhere we go, and it’s amazing feeling that energy exchange while we perform every night. It was also a grind, but in the best way possible. Dealing with daily chaos, long van rides and lack of sleep and then stepping on stage mustering everything you’ve got night after night to deliver the same level of intensity and passion is really a thing. There’s a magic on a soul level that sustains you. We just did about 25 shows in a row, and we are about to go play about 60 more here in October and November.
Back over to Europe next month too. How would you compare the scene out here compared to back home?
It’s tough to compare, because the vibe really changes city to city rather than country to country. You find places in both the US and Europe where people are incredibly appreciative that you’re there, and then you hit other spots that just don’t seem as supportive of the arts. We’ve encountered both extremes, and everything in between, every time we’ve been out on the road. We’ve stopped trying to generalize it; we’re just grateful that our music is the reason we get to travel and experience all those different places firsthand!
You’re quite well-versed on social media, do you have any advice for bands just starting out, in that regard?
I don’t know if I’m any kind of authority on this, but my advice would be simple: whatever you put out there, make sure it actually aligns with who you are. Don’t do things just to chase attention, that stuff is so cringe to me. Once you find a way to present your music that feels authentic, just be consistent. Post quality content and actually engage with the people who are listening. If you’re genuine with your community, they’ll stick with you.
Do you have much planned for 2027 already?
Yes, there’s a lot of plans for 2027. We have a new record coming and a lot of tour dates piling up. This is shaping up to be probably the busiest year we’ve ever had. And we’ve always been pretty busy!
Do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Anyone you’d want to support or any friends you’d want to bring along?
Honestly, we are taking part in a dream lineup tour this coming November with The Sword and Corrosion of Conformity. Stoked for that! Let’s go Pantera and Metallica next. All of our friends are invited!
If you could have written one song from history, what would it be and why?
‘Black Sabbath’ by Black Sabbath maybe? Something like that, something that just changed the game. Changed music as we know it. For the (way) better.
We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing Jason Scott & the High Heat ahead of their set at The Long Road the other weekend, not long before their amazing new album dropped! Check it all out below!
You guys are right slap-bang in the middle of the tour now in the UK. How’s it been so far?
So far so good, man! It’s great to be back. Away from home for a little bit!
Is it your first time in the UK or have we done a couple of visits before?
Yeah, that’s our first time. It’s pretty crazy!
How are you finding it compared to back home?
Much nicer!
Apart from the rain, obviously, yeah.
Yeah, I don’t mind it! It’s cool. Maybe after a couple of weeks it’ll go?
Yeah, true. At least apparently we’re not going to get any rain after Monday now, so it’s isolated to just this weekend!
Yeah, yeah. We’ll enjoy it. At least it hasn’t deterred anybody?
No, true. It’s been pretty busystill!
Are there any comparisons you can make from the scene out here compared to back home?
The roads don’t compare at all. You guys drive on little tiny roads!
Very true. It’s rather thin, yeah!
But there’s an appreciation for the countryside and you know, it’s pristine, just some of the way… it’s just older here too, you know what I mean?
Very true, yeah.Someone was telling me, I think it was last year, that the house here is like six, seven hundred years old, or something like that!
Yeah, we don’t have that back home.
No, exactly. But I feel like the rest of the setting has been picked out quite well. They look at least vaguely like something you’d have back home, I imagine?
We passed that church. Yeah, I mean, maybe up in the Northeast of America there’s some old, a church on every corner!
We’ve heard a fair bit of the album so far through singles. I assume we’re getting a lot of that tonight?
Yeah, absolutely. Not all of it, but we’ll play as many as we know!
Can we expect anything else from the set? I assume some old favorites?
Yeah, we’ve got some surprises. A choice cover tune in there that you may know!
In terms of the album, what can we expect from the rest of it? Is there some different stuff compared to the singles in there?
Yeah, I think there is actually! There’s some there’s some kind of more group-sing-along kind of vibes on it that I’m really excited about, and also a couple of real just slow kind of intimate songs that didn’t feel like they had enough room to be a single, but are some of my favorites.
What went into the decision to do another album? I know the algorithm and all this nowadays is singles or EPs. Like, I feel like it’s quite a big undertaking these days to do a full release!
I don’t know why we would do it any other way. You know, maybe there might be some EPs in the future or something, but to me a body of work is space and time and era. The sound is what it is because we’ve been out on the road playing, and and you know it’s just an expansion on that. I don’t know, I like making records! And now with Leo’s help, previously it’d take three years because I’d have to go work for a month to pay off to go record, so we’re moving through that process quicker. But yeah, I love to do it!
You guys have got quite a busy rest of the year planned after you get home, right?
We do. We do get to go home…I don’t think we get to go home. Yeah, it’s like three or four days off and then back on the road, so yeah!
That’s intense. But I imagine it’s good fun!
There’s no AC in the van, guys…
What! Still? I feel like this is a prank. You can’t hurt me.
Yeah, you’re stuck now!
Hey, but this is getting us used to being over here with no AC!
Yeah, true. The last three months have been pretty killer with the heat over here and no AC, so the rain is at least a little bit nicer than that.
It’s between 30 and 40 degrees Celsius at home. We haven’t decided what the degree is yet!
You guys are pretty kind of well-versed on the whole social media kind of aspect of it all. Have you got any advice you could give artists just starting up in that regard? I feel like it’s quite a daunting thing to jump into!
Yeah, I don’t know. Just put shit out. See what sticks. I thought you were going to stop that sentence after you said “we were pretty-“
Oh, you are! Yeah, that was it. It’s just a nice compliment!
Nice.
I don’t know. What do you think? Like, try to find something that you don’t hate doing, because you have to do something, so find a niche that that works, but you also enjoy doing it because it’s got to be done.
Yeah, it’s like 80/20.
Be born with rich parents, which we weren’t.
That would be nice, pump it all into marketing!
Do you guys have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? I imagine you’ve probably supported some awesome bands, but if there’s anyone else..?
Yeah, of course! They’re not really country bands. I would love to play with Medium Build. I think that would be sick. I mean Tyler Childers would be awesome as well!
Yeah, pretty much just support, right? Stones? Ronnie Wood, love to play with Ronnie.
I feel like any of them you’d probably fit in really well with.
Yeah, well our music has a little bit of that—we’ve kind of straddled the fence with country and rock and roll. I’m probably leaning more on the rock and roll side of things nowadays, but, I don’t know, it it gets us—we opened for Morgan Wallen the other day. I think we could fit not world and we could open for Ruby Wolf, or Phoebe Bridgers, and Ben Bill would be so sick!
Then if you could have written one song from history, do any immediately spring to mind?
Anything Dolly wrote.
That’s fair. Very good choice!
ABCs. That shit slaps. Get the alphabet LMNOP’s going!
See, I get “Happy Birthday” quite a lot as well, you know, get some royalties going in.
We had the pleasure of having a quick chat with the wonderful Zandi Holup ahead of her set at The Long Road the other weekend. Check it all out below!
Firstly how was it coming out with Steve Earle yesterday?
It was incredible. I love Steve, and I love the festival, I love the humans, I love the UK. It was fabulous!
Have you done many collaborations with him before, or was it more of a spur of the moment thing?
So Steve and I actually wrote that song about a year ago, and we’ve been performing it on tour and stuff, but we’re going to be recording it soon. Super excited about it!
It’s the first time you’ve been over here in a couple of years, right? Black Deer was the last time?
Yeah, I was at Black Deer Festival, yes.
How would you compare the the scene over here compared to back home? Is there any differences or similarities around it?
I would say one of the biggest differences is people’s attention span and how people don’t really speak during the performances. Where as in America, it’s pretty normal to kind of speak and party during a musical performance, here, if somebody talks, people look at them with like daggers in their eyes! And I kind of loved how people were like riding for me in that sense. I was like, ‘thank you so much for caring so much!’
I’ve had that a few times now, yeah. People have been like, I was really nerve-wracking the first song, because no one made a noise, and then after you finished playing everyone clapped, and it was like, yeah, that’s fine. Everyone enjoyed it!
That was the first thing that did happen to me coming over here! I thought everyone hated the music, but then afterwards they embraced me and made me feel like I was good. So I was like, thank the Lord!
You’ve got quite a busy month or two when you go home as well, right?
I do, yes. I’m fixing to fly straight from here to another tour in the states. I’m opening up for Waylon Wyatt!
Oh wow. Yes, I saw that. That’ll be very cool as well!
Yes, I’m excited!
It’s been a couple of years now since the album, right?
Yes, it’s been…I released it about a year ago.
Yes! It seemed quite a meteoric rise from the single straight to that. I imagine it was quite a whirlwind for a year or two!
Oh, absolutely! And I think, you know, anytime you’re recording music and putting it out, you’re getting into your own little whirlwind of a sort. I think it’s a vulnerable thing to release music, you’re afraid, are people going to listen to it, are people going to like this, are people going to still want me? It’s many, existential, emotional questions you start to ask yourself. But I’m just proud that I was able to put something out that people can relate to and like!
It was quite a bold move these days as well, going pretty much straight into an album. Was that your decision or a label thing?
I think it was a collaborative decision. But I mean, I can be pretty hard-headed, so I think even if I don’t think it’s my decision, it probably was, because I can sway people with my intense nature! So yeah!
And are we expecting new music soon? Have we been working on some stuff?
Yes, I’m going to be releasing multiple singles in the coming months, and I am working towards another album!
You’re pretty active on social media and stuff like that. Have you got any advice for a new artist just starting out in that regard? I know it’s quite a daunting task to first take on!
Gosh, I need someone to give me advice! I think if I could give anyone advice, including myself, honestly, I think you have to not get discouraged and keep posting. Anytime I’ve had a lull in my engagement, I think you have to keep powering through, and sometimes I’m even guilty of getting kind of depressed, like nobody wants to listen to this, but in reality, you just need to keep going, keep persevering, and being yourself. Being honest, don’t pull some fake shit, just be yourself!
You’ve had a crazy couple of years touring, but do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Anyone you want to support still?
Oh, my gosh, there’s so many people I’d like to support. I mean, I would love to support Stevie Nicks one day. She’s a dream of mine. I obviously would have said Dolly, that was… she’s like my number one girl.
Yeah, that would be a really good fit as well!
Yes. I mean, there’s plenty of people that I would love… I’d love to support Bob Dylan, massive fan.
That’d be cool as well!
Yes, so I could go on and on, but those are some of my greats.
Yeah, that’d be cool. Just a big old tour with everyone, then.
Yes, please, with all the greats!
If you could have written one song from history, do any immediately spring to mind?
Oh, my gosh, it is so difficult. I don’t even know what to say to that! Oh, lord, uh, that’s a difficult question. That’s a really hard one. Maybe I’m going to go ‘Don’t Think Twice, it’s All Right’, Bob Dylan.
And then what can we expect from the set later?
You can expect new songs from the set. I love to perform all of my new songs and not tell anybody I’m doing it. So yeah, I’m going to be performing new songs and songs off the record. But yeah, songs that are coming off my next record, too!
That’s very cool. I feel like that’s a bit more of a country thing than anything else, as well. I feel like a lot of like rock and pop artists seem a bit more hesitant to play new music that’s not released, as opposed to like, coming here the last few years, everyone’s more than happy to just throw out a song that no one’s really heard of, which is very cool!
I think it’s cool because I’d like to get feedback from the people that are listening to my music. I want to know if they like it, you know? I ask them, I’m like, if you don’t like something, tell me!
We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing country duo Smithfield at The Long Road the other weekend. Check out as we chat about their set at the festival, their UK tour and plans for the year!
P.S. their album drops tomorrow!
This is the first stop on the tour, right?
Yep! First show period on the tour!
Is this the first time you’re in the UK for a couple of years, right? I know you did C2C at some point.
Yeah, we did C2C in 2023. Played three stages there, and then tried to figure out the next few years. How do we get back over here?
So honestly, the festivals, The British country Music Festival’s kind of what started it all. So we got booked for that and then we were able to book all around that. And then Long Road came in last minute. We were like, ‘well?’ and we were like, ‘oh yeah!’
I thought you guys were announced a bit later than a lot of the bands. I didn’t realize you were booked a bit later on!
Like a third announcement.
How would you compare the scene in the UK and Europe to back home?
We always talk about how attentive the audiences are here. And, you know, they know the words to the songs that aren’t on the radio, aren’t the singles, and that kind of freaks us out sometimes, because we’re just like, “How do you know this?”
I thought the first time I was like, “Are they… Do they like us?” Because they were so quiet. I realized after, it’s because they’re so attentive and they’re really taking it in, even if they don’t know the music. They’re so, like, appreciative. Not that America’s not, it’s just a different culture. You know, it’s a little more rowdy, you know, fights and beer drinking, it’s just, it’s wild and it’s fun, but it’s wild. So it’s very different audiences.
I’ve seen a few people say that it’s very daunting playing to a crowd for the first song and it’s nothing and then that you finish and suddenly everyone cheers and it’s great.
Yeah, you’re like, “Oh, wow, they did like it.” They did like it!
You’ve got quite an extensive tour, at least over here and then a couple of stops in Europe as well, right?
So we have one day in Denmark. Yeah, and I think it’s a festival or something. Yeah, it’s called National Nights. The rest of the dates are us being bopped around.
Yeah, I saw some cool venues on there as well. Quite a spread of kind of stuff from, yeah, almost a dive bar to a more intimate kind of songwriting thing, which will be cool!
Yeah, so we have a British band over here. So we have a couple shows that are full band, but most of them are acoustic. So it’ll be a different vibe for if you want to come to multiple shows.
Is it a full band here?
No, this is just acoustic. The front porch felt like acoustic. Just felt right.
Yeah, we’ve done a few years here now, and yeah, I feel like a kind of acoustic set does really well on that kind of stage as well.
Porch sitting and picking, you know, that’s the thing!
Then we’ve got part two of the, I guess a double album, right? Next month?
Two weeks!
Are there any differences you can pick out between the two parts? Is there anything specific?
Well, they feel cohesive as one project, I feel like…
They do. But you as the producer might have a different perspective on that.
Yeah, I mean I could go into geeky producer stuff…
That’s fine, go for it!
I mean, part two was recorded in a live studio with the full band together. So we multi-track things and we’ll do it in a big studio. The first part was done… the best way I can describe it is like; a part is done, then he sends it to me, then I get the drums recorded and he sends it to me. This was like all the musicians in the room together making music, and so that was one of the differences. And honestly, it was a little more special to me to do it that way.
Yeah, for sure. I mean, I think it’s pretty cohesive.
It’s all meant to feel like one big album that just came out.
You’ve done at least a couple of kind of standalone singles as well outside of the EP, right? What went into the decision to put them out separately compared to the album?
Just being honest, we’re independent artists. It is so much easier to put out song-by-song than it is to put out a full album and what you have to put in on the front end to do that. But what’s cool is we’re putting out our first vinyl. It will have part one and part two and those standalone singles that came out in between.
That’s cool! I feel like it’s so hard to decide what to put out these days as an artist. Like a lot of the industry kind of pushes towards singles, but there’s quite a lot still leaning towards an album and EPs!
The West is wild to me, I mean it is. There’s no right way.
Well, and I think you just got to stay true to what you want to say, you know, like try to follow your North Star. If you lose sight of that, that’s when it starts becoming inauthentic. It’s like we just had a mountain of songs that we wanted to put out an album and a project, but I wouldn’t say force that. We just have a song at a time, go single, single, single. We had written so much, we’re like, this feels like a project. So it’s like, who cares what’s right and wrong these days? The West is wild!
I noticed you guys are pretty up on the whole Christmas singles and that kind of thing. Are we expecting something else come December?
You did your homework!
We shine at Christmas, yeah!
We got a couple things coming for Christmas, things that I’m actually working on while we’re in the UK.
I imagine that’s quite stressful, right?
You know, it’s interesting… yes and no. I mean, it’s making music at the end of the day, right? It’s something you love to do. We can’t say it will be originals, so what we’ve done since 2020 is every other year we do originals, the next year we do covers. So yeah, we’re trying to build up to where we’ll maybe eventually do a Christmas vinyl.
That would be very cool.
Our Christmas show is really special. We give back to charity with it, and we do it with several other artists. So Christmas has become a big thing for us, really has. Accidentally.
I assume you’ve got everything in place for a Christmas show then back home?
Oh yeah, we haven’t announced it yet. But I can tell you it’s in December!
Have you got a busy few months when you get back home leading up to that, or?
Yes, it’ll be kind of a sprint until the end of the year. I mean it’s Halloween back home right now, so either holiday, when we get back, you’re going to be seeing Christmas.
It is, yeah, wherever you go it’s already Halloween. People were announcing Christmas stores in July!
What can we expect from the set tonight?
You know, we love our acoustic set, honestly. I might love it more, I don’t want to say more than the full band, there’s a great time at full band, but I think you don’t get a chance to get to know us as well with the full band. Like, when it’s acoustic and just the two of us, it’s very intimate, it’s very interactive, you get to just kind of get to know us more. I was telling a few people already that for our shows we just want to make you feel like part of our family, because that’s what we are. And like we just want you to feel that way while you’re here. Like, acoustic is the best way to do that. Because you get to know us, you get to feel like that.
Is it a different approach going into writing a set list for an acoustic show between you guys as opposed to a full band?
Yeah, you’re spot on, because some of the songs that we have don’t really translate as well to just a guitar, especially the more track-heavy ones. The EDM music we do doesn’t translate well to acoustic!
Idon’t know, I feel like on a front porch it’d be fun, right, in the rain?
Yeah, why not!
And also more of your like storytelling songs, sometimes those shine when you’re able to tell the story. So in a full band, if you got to go from song to song and just… it’s more about the energy and the party and the fun, harder to tell those stories, so our sets do change based upon what we’re playing. Some remain the same, but yeah, there’s songs we’ll play in our acoustic that we don’t play in full band and vice versa.
That’s cool though. So what you’re saying is we need to come down to the whole tour.
Yeah, you need to come to more than one show!
Then as kind of a lighter question, do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Anyone you want to support or friends you want to bring along?
I’ve always wanted Little Big Town.
I was going to say, I don’t want to speak for the other because I look up to them so much and they’re, I mean they’re very similar to us, very harmony-driven, but I think that their audience would, because they love them, would love us, and there’s just not a lot of us in country music, so. What about you?
I mean you kind of took mine, but another, I think Keith Urban would be awesome. He was a big influence on me just with country music, and I think it would just be cool, I think it’d be a cool combo, we could go out and sing harmonies with him on some of his songs. All three getting to be part of harmony stuff, I mean we still do cover one of his songs all the time. I think we’re covering one in the front porch set. I’ll have to look at the setlist. Keep you on the edge of your seat. Maybe we will, maybe we won’t!
We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing Kris Barras about his brand new album the other day, as well as his upcoming tour and his general sound! Check it out below!
Sadly the video didn’t save, so it’s just a written one for now. Maybe the audio will be dropped at some point!
The album is out soon! Is there an overall story, or is each track kind of its own thing?
There’s no like concept for the album. There are, yeah, eleven individual tracks. I always like to have like a cohesive sound throughout the album, and I do think I think we’ve got that with this. I think there’s a lot of different flavours on there, but I think there is overall like a cohesive sound, but, yeah, it’s not like a like a concept album or anything like that!
I did notice that we’ve had five singles so far, and they’ve all been towards the start of the album. What went into that decision, if there was one?
It’s really interesting that, because someone else asked me that one! The track listing was decided before the singles. I didn’t get involved in choosing what the singles are. I don’t normally do that. I put forward the ones that I think would be good. I think with the album there’s some obvious choices. You know, like ‘Monster We Made’ is the title track, it makes sense for that to be a single. ‘Riot of One’ makes sense to be a single, but a track like ‘Beautiful Lie’, I never imagined that being a single.
But I don’t choose, I find it hard to judge my own own music. In my opinion, a song that I’ve spent in some cases quite a long time writing and then recording it, and that being like a year ago, I find it a hard process, and you know, I’ve got fortunate enough to have people involved that are much more knowledgeable and experienced than me. I’ve got fantastic management, great record label with Earache, and a really, really good radio plugger like Austin Collins, who works with some of the the biggest names in rock and metal. And you know, I like to get their opinions, you know? They they know what will work, and ‘Beautiful Lie’, for instance, is the the head of Earache Records, Digby, it’s his favourite song on the album, and he absolutely loved it, and and that’s one of the reasons that got pushed through, and that’s great!
It was actually just coincidence. I wrote the the track listing and submitted that before any other singles were were chosen.
What can we expect from the other half of the album?
I’m really looking forward to people hearing it. I think there’s there’s a lot of different flavours on this album, there’s a lot of different elements, and there’s some stuff on there that people might not expect, or they wouldn’t necessarily have heard me do before. Some of the guitar work and the solos and stuff, I’ve really gone back to what I used to do in my teenager years, some of the more shreddy stuff, like stuff like guys like Steve Vai and Satriani and stuff, and bringing out some of those influences.
Typically, I’ve always had a token softer ballad song on each album. This one’s got three that could maybe sit into that category. Each one’s a little bit different. One of them in particular is just pretty epic. It’s got orchestral stuff and a big guitar solo over a big orchestral arrangement that that just sort of produced it. There’s some cool stuff in there, and yeah, I’m looking forward to hearing. I feel like the singles, whilst they probably are the strongest standalone tracks for what you need from a single, I don’t feel like they necessarily sum up the album, you know what I mean? Like, we’re at an EP, and don’t feel like they sum up like the Monsters We Made album. I feel like you need to hear all eleven to get a feel feel for the album.
Your debut KBB album came out just over a decade ago now. Is there any kind of comparisons you can draw from that release to this one?
I mean, if someone had never heard me before and listened to the first album, and then listened to this new one, they they wouldn’t even think it’s the same. It’s like the two have absolutely no connection whatsoever! I started off more in the bluesy rock world. I gradually got like a little bit heavier. The 2019 album, Light It Up, was still in the blues rock world, but had a lot more like classic rock elements. Then COVID hit, and, we didn’t know if the world was ended. A lot of stuff I was writing was just a bit heavier.
The thing is, I love playing blues music, but it’s not that’s not my entire identity. And I think people have struggled with this over the years with trying to understand me as an artist. It’s like there’s a lot of people in the blues world, they play blues music, and that’s all they can do. Maybe they’re much, much better than me at it. But that’s all they can do. That’s not me. I’ve played in metal bands all my teens. I was playing in jazz bands in in my early 20s. I’ve played a lot of different styles of music, and I spent a lot of time studying different styles of music when I was younger, and I think like these influences wanted to come out. With my 2022 album Death Valley Paradise, I was much more in like the modern hard rock world. Halo Effect, we went another step further again, probably taking more like modern metalcore influences, particularly in the production. This one, the way I see it is kind of sitting in between those two albums, like pulling it back a bit from Halo Effect. It’s not quite as heavy, and I just see it as kind of straight modern hard rock.
What’s the the writing process like for you? Do you do a lot of it yourself and kind of bring it to the band, or are the band a bit more involved as well?
It’s changed a bit over the past few albums. So, Josiah, who’s the producer, and he plays rhythm guitar and keys in the band, I’ve got him a lot more involved with the songwriting on Halo Effect, and on this album, And we work really, really well together. He’s my best mate, he’s a great guy and amazing producer, and his songwriting is really, really coming into its own over the past few years.
The process is is very, very different from song to song. Some of the songs started life as just me on my guitar singing some lyrics and then turned into a chorus, and then we develop it from there. Other songs, like ‘Riot of One’ for instance, he wrote the main riffs on that, sent it over to me and was like, “I’ve got this idea for like, kind of a big sing-a-long type song”. I’ve got a few of those. It’s obviously just instrumental that he gave me. And I sat with that and then ended up writing the lyrics and the melody. He gave me a stear in the right direction, gave me a little kick up the bum and said, ‘Right, go and write a big chatty sing-a-long banger.’ And so lots of different processes, I think that that’s a cool way to approach it, to keep it fresh and to keep new ideas coming.
I imagine it’s a different approach as well for this compared to something like, Hollow Souls or Supersonic Blues Machine?
Yeah, for sure. I mean, Hollow Souls, he’s involved with even more so because that’s actually like a joint venture. Like, Kris Barras band, technically, I’m a solo artist, but Hollow Souls, we started that together. Obviously we’ve got Phoebe with Hollow Souls, and it’s a different element. So we consider, obviously female lead vocalist, but also guests being involved. So that changes the writing process a bit with that, because we’re sometimes writing a song with with a special guest in mind, or we’re writing a song with a female vocalist in mind, which changes things. She likes to sing in different keys to what I would actually write songs in, so then we’re trying to write songs that would work for her, and so that’s kind of like a different approach, which is which is cool where it’s all in joint!
You’ve got quite a extensive tour plan for pretty much the rest of the year, right?
Yeah, so around the album release we’re doing an acoustic in-store tour, which is going to be cool. Josiah’s coming with me, he’ll be playing the piano. We’re doing like two of these a day, visiting like local independent record stores, and we basically do like a half-hour, 40-minute set, and then meet people and sign anything they want signed, and that kind of thing. They’re good fun. We did it on the last album, it’s the first time I’ve done it on the Halo Effect tour, and yeah, I really like doing like the stripped-back version of the songs. Vocally, I prefer singing the songs that way, I feel like I maybe do a better job vocally like singing over a piano rather than over a heavy band.
It’s going to be hard, you know, two a day with the some pretty crazy journeys. It’s it’s a pretty pretty intense thing, but hopefully it’ll be good fun.
Would you ever consider releasing a studio version of any of the strip-back tracks?
Well, we’ve recorded four of them. I don’t really know what the record label plan is. I think they’ve added like a bit of a bundle where you get a couple of them. I don’t know what the full plan is, whether there’s going to be a deluxe version or not. I don’t really get involved in it. But I’ve recorded four of them, piano versions, and I’m sure they’ll see the light of day at some point.
I assume it’s a full electric tour in October?
That’s right, yeah. Full band, nothing too crazy with that tour, it’s just around the UK. I can’t even remember how many dates, 10 dates or something. It’s our first headline tour in the UK for two years when that comes around. It’ll be good to get out there and have a blast!
Have you got much in the works for next year?
I’ve not even thought about it. I mean, again, I don’t really get involved in that stuff. There might be stuff going on that I haven’t yet told about. I mean, for me, it’s been a bit weird releasing an album in the summer. I’ve not done that before. Like, doing festivals and doing an album at the same time, it’s a different experience. So I’ve just been focusing on that, and then this tour in October, and not really thought about what happens after that. I guess it depends on how well the album’s received, and how well the tour does, and what opportunities come after that, you know? So, who knows!
Do you have a dream tour lineup you’d want to be a part of? Anyone you want to support, or any friends you want to bring along?
I mean, I’d love to open for Alter Bridge. I think that would be sick! Something like that would be really, really cool. I think we’d be like a good fit, I think we’d probably go down quite well with their fans. Yeah, that would that would be a pretty cool tour to do!
We had the pleasure of chatting to the amazing Australian country rock singer Jayne Denham about her new single and album, working alongside the incredible Marti Frederiksen! Check out the full interview below!
It seems like a somewhat unlikely pairing, how did it come about?
I’ve always been known for country rock, but I’ve leaned more toward rock always have a few rock covers in my shows as it is who I am. When my management suggested Marti as a producer, it felt like the right way to move a little further in that direction while still keeping my country roots.
At first, Marti was only meant to do one song, but it went so well that he ended up doing more. Before long, we were making a full record together, and it felt like the start of something new and special.
What is the writing process like between the two of you?
Most of the album was written with Marti, Kylie Sackley, and me, starting with ‘Hillbilly Halo’, which clicked right away! Kylie’s Australian background helped her understand me, and together we found an easy creative chemistry.
I’ve always loved writing songs that lift other people up, but this was the first time I wrote so openly about my own story. The album draws from my life, including ‘Preachers Son’ about my first boyfriend and ‘Angel of Mercy’ about my marriage breaking down.
You have embraced your rockier side with this collaboration. Did that come from Marti’s previous experience with rock and metal bands?
It came from me owning even more of who I am and recognizing that Marti was the producer who could take it where I wanted to go, based on what he’s done in the past.
The collaboration has given birth to a full album, right? Does it all lean more towards the rock side of country? Is there a similar theme present throughout the release?
It’s country and rock, so let’s split it in the middle. And yes, after my first three singles, there is a theme and a story behind why I chose this concept.
What can we expect from not only ‘Angel of Mercy’, but any other singles from the release?
We all know one of Australia’s biggest musical exports is INXS. Andrew Farriss and his beautiful wife, Marlina, live not far from us now, so we’ve become good friends. When I asked Marti what Australian artists he had worked with, he mentioned INXS, and I said, “Oh, that’s so cool I know Andrew!”. Marti then suggested we all write together, so I drove out to their farm, and we all jumped on a Zoom call with Marti in Nashville. It went so well that not only did it make the record, but it’s also the next song we’re going to really push for promotion!
Do you have a busy rest of the year planned for live shows in the lead up to the release?
I have some big festivals here in Australia, but next year, once the album drops in February, we’ll hit the road even more, including a trip to the USA, hopefully!
If you could have written one song from history, what would it have been and why?
I’m a massive fan of Heart. Growing up on country and gospel music, I later discovered rock as a teenager, and Ann Wilson’s voice absolutely blew me away. I would sing her songs day in and day out, trying to figure out how to sound a little like her. So I’d have to say ‘Barracuda,’ because it taught me how to sing big, and I’m so grateful for it, because it helped me find my own voice that blends country and rock. When Marti found out I could sing a little like Ann, he pushed me to my vocal limits, and I was able to use everything I learned from her while adding my own signature, too!
We headed down to the amazing Bodega in Notts the other week to see the wonderful A Thousand Horses (review here). We got the chance to chat to them before the show about their UK tour, their latest album and their plans for the future. Check it all out below!
How’s the tour gone so far?
Michael: Yeah, it’s been great. We’ve been out a few weeks and all the shows have been good. Being out with The Black Crows was an awesome run, and then Germany for the first time. Headlining was a great run there, and then we’re kicking off the UK tonight. Let’s talk about that. That’s important!
Exactly. You guys did a couple of days over here last year, right, as well?
Michael: We did, last summer. We did Manchester, London, and Glasgow.
It’s cool that you’ve got a little bit more of an extensive tour this time round, as well!
Bill: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. We’ve have a lot of people telling us, “Hey, you got to get off the beaten path and come, you know? Come and see us. And so we’re glad to finally be here!
How would you guys compare the scene over here in Europe compared to back home?
Graham: It’s very different. It’s like a different type of fan. You know, I feel like over here, maybe people pay attention to individual bands or artists more so than I feel like in America, people get kind of looped into like the scene, the country scene or the rock scene. And I think when you’re just kind of generally into something, you can maybe miss something or whatever. And I feel like over here, people attach to artists more.
Michael: I would just say that there’s an excitement in the coming over here for not only the artists that do, but the people that live here having an American artist come overseas. And you know, because it’s a long trip and it’s so there’s a lot of, like, seeing somebody you haven’t seen in a long time and they made a big deal of it. Everybody is going to get together. So, I would say it’s just kind of, there’s just an excitement about coming over here. For us especially!
You guys have managed to kind of straddle the rock and the country line quite well over here. You’ve done a C2C as well, right?
Michael: We did back in 2015, yeah. It’s been a minute since we’ve done it. When our first record came out, we were in the country world. And you know, we’ve always straddled that line our whole career and we’ve kind of always been rock-forward in what we do. If you’re a fan of our band, you know that.
Bill: I think the important thing is really; we have just always felt and seen ourselves as really just a rock band, you know? And I think at times, that’s really the spirit of our band and what is at our core. So, it’s less about straddling a line necessarily and just kind of doing what we want to do.
Michael: Yeah, our creative expression at that time, that’s like the big thing of what we do, artist-wise. Each record is a different expression of that time of where we’re at in life.
Do you guys kind of feel like you fit more into the hard rock side back home than as well, I imagine?
Graham: I think that where we are now in how we’re creating, and the subject matter, and where we’re at in our lives and stuff, we’re definitely back to the rock band. That’s always been in us. It’s like Bill said, you know, we kind of, at any given point in time, an album is a snapshot of just where we’re at in that moment. And I think right now, and for the foreseeable future, it’s rock music.
The new album’s been out a few months now, it seems to have gone down really well!
Michael: Yeah, it’s been great man. The response to the album has been phenomenal and it keeps growing, and it keeps getting good feedback and good response from the fans and audience. And now we’re out on tour performing it, which we haven’t done. This is the first tour for the record, so it’s great to see the audience react to the new music and play the new music. We play some of the old stuff, too, because that’s what our people know, and jt’s been awesome to kind of experience that!
Would you say your writing style has changed as well in the last 10 years since your debut? Do you approach the music any differently?
Michael: I mean, I hope it’s improved!
Bill: I think it’s matured. I think I think we’re certainly in the best place we’ve ever been creatively. We’re more focused than we’ve ever been. And you know, we really bled for this album, more than we have anything else. Any of our other albums. Not that, you know, those weren’t hard work too and everything, but this album, there was so much emotional, there were so many emotional events in all of our lives that led up to this album that when I say we really bled for it, I mean it. But also, it was the most inspired record we’ve made to date, and the most fun we’ve had making one, and it really felt like we were making our debut album all over again. We felt like a new band doing it. And, um… So with all of that in mind, it makes it extra special to us that it’s been so well received.
Is there some more writing still going on in the background, or are you just focused on the tour for now?
Bill: Yeah, I mean we’ve already started on the next record, really. We haven’t started to necessarily record it yet. We started to write songs, and we’re always trying to create forwards, and think like, “Okay.” We don’t want to make music and turn around and look at it too long, you know what I mean?
As soon as we make it and put it out, it’s not ours anymore. It’s the fans’, and it’s the people that discover it and love it. That’s when the live experience to us really kicks in and is so important because it’s like, when we play live, it’s our goal is not to recreate album. You know what I mean? It’s like a live performance is different than like making our own.
I have spoken to bands and artists in the past who have also said like “it’s new to the audience, but we’ve been playing these songs to death for two plus years now, so we want to get onto new stuff already!”
Bill: Yeah, well luckily with this album, I mean, we’re a totally independent band. We don’t have any label or anybody to answer to, thank God. And so we were able to write it, make it, and put it out. We didn’t have to sit on it for so long like a lot of bands have to. And we’ve been in that position in our career, you know, before with the past records where we’ve held some of the songs. Some of the songs on our last record, The Outside, were over 10 years old, and they were never recorded because of some Label— Jackass of a label—was like, “Oh, let’s not do that,” and so we had to jump through all that thing. The whole process took like a year, I think. Like, from writing the first song to kind of having it ready to be, you know.
You guys seem rather up on the whole social media thing. Do you have any advice for a band just starting out with it?
Graham: Oh, God. It’s an uphill battle, man. It never ends. That’s what it feels like.
Michael: You know, I think the social media side of things is the the thorn in every artist’s side, you know. It’s something that you have to do, and it’s great to do, but consistency is key, not overthinking is key. And that’s it. I mean, you just do it and don’t pay attention too much to the metrics of every single thing you do. You know, you’re not an analyst.
Graham: I will say, on the flip side of that though, the gift that social media has given to artists is direct connectivity to their fans. Which is great. People DM us, they comment us, comment to us, and we just get on there, and I’m like having conversations with fans and like, “Oh, shit, you can’t get a ticket? I’ll put you on the guest list tonight.” It creates a level of connection with people that you wouldn’t have otherwise. So, as much as it can be a pain in the ass to be like, “Look, I’m eating a sandwich,” you do get to have experiences and interactions with fans that you wouldn’t get otherwise. So, it’s a double-edged sword, for sure. There’s a lot of good in it.
What can we expect from the show tonight?
Michael: It’s an exciting set we’ve put together. We’ve kind of been working it out as we’ve been on the road the last few weeks. We’re gonna play some real old stuff from our first EP that we just started working into the set. It’s been fun to revisit. And then a lot of new stuff from the record that we’ve worked up, that we are excited about. It’s a good mix of everything, but the show’s got its flow. The set feels good right now. It’s not something that you could kind of hash out in a rehearsal hall. It’s one of those things that, like, we’ve been out on the road for what? A couple weeks now. It kind of took that to get it in.
Graham: It’s a live-run show, man. I mean, no question. And it’s no frills. It’s just five dudes up there making music. No computers involved. Yeah, just purely people music!
