Month: September 2023

New single, a Two Way Street.

The Two Way Street of life is brought to song in Sari Abbott’s new single, out on September 8th.

The Sunshine Coast artist co-wrote Two Way Street with 2022 Toyota Star Maker Max Jackson, while attending The CMAA Academy of Country Music senior course in Tamworth in January this year.

“The whole idea of Two Way Street is to acknowledge that sometimes you need to take the plunge and go it alone especially when relationships come to an end. You’ve just gotta have the courage to do your own thing”.

The singer-songwriter said, as well as being about growing up on her street where she’d lived all her life until recently, the song refers to her taking to the road and sometimes having to leave people behind.

“Two Way Street also holds memories about growing up with my neighbours who I’ve known forever and having fond memories of building tree houses on a spare block of land on our street,” Sari said.

“I’m hoping other people can find inspiration from the song because it’s very relatable with most people having a treehouse, growing up with awesome neighbours, and there comes a time when you leave the nest”.

“My song deals with that idea that it’s okay to be nervous about exploring new places and meeting new people, and when you leave some people behind in your life, you’re not cutting them out forever you’re just going on a journey for a little while. I want to inspire people to do what they want in life while their young and don’t hold back. I’m looking forward to hitting the open road and exploring my country while I’m young.”

Catch Sari at the Gympie Music Muster from August 24 performing her new single and her many other originals.

Sari hits the road in October in her beloved Toyota Troopy named Bob, heading from Queensland to Victoria for Christmas before heading across the Nullabor with friends to continue on her music journey.

Brendan McMahon Recalls His Childhood Memories With ‘Send In The Clowns’.

Growing up in a small country town is fantastic. Most of the time you can make your own fun and adventures, but every now and then something incredibly exciting would happened … the circus would come to town!

When you listen to Brendan McMahon’s music, you gain a strong sense of the man behind the songs. An inveterate traveller and astute observer, possessed of an enquiring and open mind – these are just some of his personality traits that shine through.

McMahon is a multi-award-winning singer-songwriter with over twenty years’ experience. Not afraid to defy expectation, his music is eclectic, adventurous, and blessed with a ‘limitless fluidity’. Having visited over fifty unique and varied countries, his travel experiences, specifically his observations of history, cultures, people, architecture, and nature, are at the root of his creativity and song writing.

Brendan grew up in the small town of Kapunda near South Australia’s Barossa Valley. He discovered his love of music at the tender age of 15 after being “awed and floored” seeing Jimi Hendrix play on television; amazed by the sounds that Jimi could pull from a guitar and captivated by the iconic performer’s showmanship. Borrowing money from his mother (and paying it back at $2 a week) he promptly bought himself a $60 guitar and amp rig from a mate.

Initially wanting to be a glam-rock superstar in the 80s and 90s (think Van Halen, Kiss, Def Leppard), McMahon later transitioned to the more storytelling driven tunes of songwriters such as Paul Kelly, Harry Manx, Richard Thompson and Garth Brooks, artists that continue to inspire him today.

Spending his late teens and early twenties as a lead singer/lead guitarist in rock cover bands playing across Adelaide and country Victoria, McMahon honed his skills the hard way – in front of demanding Australian pub and club crowds. In 1998, and now bitten by both the song writing and performance bug, McMahon released a 7-track EP called ‘Picture This’ with his band The Cunning Stunts.

In 2015 and 2016, Brendan released the solo albums ‘Falling To Earth’ and ‘Marker 7-58′ under the moniker of Satellite Gods, and in doing so was fortunate enough to collaborate and work with some renowned Australian musicians including Peter Maslen (Boom Crash Opera), Jason Vorherr (Darryl Braithwaite), Bob Spencer (The Angels), Simon Hosford (Vanessa Amorosi) and Wilbur Wilde (Ol’ 55).

After supporting artists such as Boom Crash Opera, Russell Morris, Wendy Stapleton and The Chantoozies in Australia, Brendan released the LP ‘On This Fine Occasion’ in 2017, which received great reviews both locally and internationally.

In 2019, McMahon, who now calls Melbourne home, released ‘In The Moment’ – his 4th solo album. Maturity, reflection and drawing on his personal experiences, his inspired yet refined lyrics again take listeners on a captivating journey.

Recorded with Steve Vertigan at Soggy Dog Recording Studios, and again drawing upon Australian music royalty in its creation – namely Dave Leslie (Baby Animals), Danny Spencer (Jimmy Barnes Band), Brett Kingman (James Reyne Band), and Peter Maslen and Jason Vorherr, plus a string trio from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (Sarah Curro, Gabi Halloran and Paul Zabrowarny), this powerful album embraces the essence of story-telling and leaves you thinking about the songs long after the last track finishes.

2020 seen the release of ‘No Rush Today’, an album that debuted at No. 2 on the iTunes country music chart on release. McMahon feels his 5th solo offering cemented him in the Country Rock space. The album delivered 3 top 10 AMRAP singles, ‘Jack’, ‘Sugar Cane Man’ and ‘Wired To The Moon’ along with strong charting on many other Australian charts including a No.4 position in France with ‘Sugar Cane Man’.

June, 2022, marked the release of ‘As The Road Unfolds’, the most successful record to date. It debuted as the highest selling Australian album on the iTunes Country chart and has also delivered no less than six chart topping singles – ‘Jenni J’, ‘When I See You Tonight’, ‘I Feel A Change’, ‘Skin & Bone’, ‘Gundry’s Track’ and ‘Back Roads’.

Where to from here? With three chart topping tracks from his highly anticipated 7th solo album already released, ‘New Country Morning’, ‘Time Rolls On’, and ‘It’s Good To Be Alive’, and the powerful and poignant ‘I Hear Your Voice (The Soldier)’ featuring the very talented Montana Sharp, it’s full steam ahead for the remainder of 2023.

Mackenzie Carpenter is channelling her inner Cyndi Lauper with the release of “Country Girls (Just Wanna Have Fun)” available now via The Valory Music Co. Almost 40 years to the day since its release (September 6th in 1983), Carpenter has reimagined the lyrics and added a fresh Country spin to the iconic ’80s anthem. True to the young songwriter’s style, the new version aims to sprinkle just enough cleverality and amusement to create a fun tune that can be cranked up and danced to.

“I showed up to a write one day saying I wanted to write the country version of ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ and next thing you know we started ad-libbing and ended up re-writing the ’80s classic…but with a whole lot of country flair,” shared Carpenter. “It all came together in a really fun, colorful way and I hope people feel like they can crank it up and have some fun-the boys too!”

Paying homage to the harmless rebellion in the original tune, “Country Girls (Just Wanna Have Fun)” brings everything a fun night out honky tonking could need, neon lights, whiskey, a cowboy, and of course, the girls. “Want a cowboy to take my hand and boot scoot and two-step me to a cover band,” sings Carpenter. “I’ll whiskey wink, he’ll think that he stands a chance, and kiss him just because country girls just wanna have fun.”

Despite the ability to write a vulnerable heartbreaker like “Jesus I’m Jealous,” Carpenter’s knack for cheeky lyrics accompanied by a healthy dose of sass shines bright across her self-titled debut EP in tracks like the TikTok-viral, “Huntin’ Season,” and her advisory “Don’t Mess With Exes.” This next release is no exception and is meant to be a soundtrack to going out and having a blast with friends.

Fueled by an upbringing consisting of a rowdy support system, back porch hootenannies and juicy drama that feeds any plot, the affable and kind Carpenter continues to embrace the crazy and “tacky” aspects that make life a little more fun. Since signing her record deal with The Valory Music Co. last year, Mackenzie is recognized in Country music as an artist to watch, being included in several spotlight programs including the CMT Next Women of Country class of 2023 and Nashville Briefing’s Artists To Watch 2023. This summer, she took the stage at major events like CMA Fest, Country Thunder, Tortuga Music Festival, Stagecoach and also made her Grand Ole Opry debut June 20th

Canadian Country Trio Petric Join Up With Powerhouse Vocalist Christie Lamb To Release ‘Single Problem’ And Get Set To Tour Australia.

Multi award-winning Canadian act Petric are gearing up to bring their special blend of Canadian pop country to Australian audiences. To celebrate in the lead up to their first Australian tour, the three-piece outfit is set to release ‘Single Problem’, a catchy country pop track which features Australia’s powerhouse vocalist, Golden Guitar and CMC Award winner, Christie Lamb.

“‘Single Problem’ has always had a special place in our hearts. It was one of our biggest charting hits in Canada, a couple of years ago. Having the opportunity to take a fresh approach to the song and collaborate with Christie has felt really great. Her voice is beautiful, and we love the way this track has turned out.” Jason Petric

The Manitoba based act have released a succession of successful singles in Australia including ‘Déjà Vu, ‘KIDS’, “White Lyin’, ‘Night Up’, ‘Beach Please’ and the Australian Top 23 chart-topping single ‘Flirtin’ . (with Hayley Jensen). They are excited for their upcoming Australian tour which will see them performing their catchy hook-driven tracks to Australian fans. With shows in Brisbane and Sydney, Petric then board the 7-night Royal Caribbean Country Music Cruise, Cruisin’ Country which features Australian Country Music heavyweights such as The Wolfe Brothers, James Johnston, Casey Barnes, Beccy Cole, Adam Eckersley and Brooke McClymont, McAlister Kemp, Amber Lawrence, Hayley Jensen and Australian born, Canadian raised Gord Bamford and more.

Meanwhile Australia’s very own Christie Lamb is excited to be collaborating with Petric on this single.

“I am so excited for you all to hear my brand new single ‘Single Problem’. I loved working on this track with the guys from Petric. It’s such a cute, fun, and fresh track about how good it feels when you find the one.” Christie Lamb.

The vibrant multi-instrumental award-winning singer has performed at high profile and iconic events such as CMC Rocks, Gympie Music Muster, The Big Red Bash, Groundwater Country Music Festival, NQ’s Rockin’ Country, Savannah in the Round, Cruisin’ Country, Country Rocks Festival and more and is known as one of Australia’s leading female country music entertainers.

Passion, and persistence, combined with raw talent and high expectations, has been the formula for success for Petric. The band have accumulated over 15 million worldwide online streams, 10 charting singles, and 3 Top 20 hits. Petric’s latest album ‘Flashbacks’ alone has accumulated 3 million online streams and has opened doors to multiple international markets including Australia.

Petric and Christie Lamb’s new single ‘Simple Problem’ is out at radio on Monday 4th September and all digital services on Friday 8th September.

Jake Whittaker shows a different side to his music with his new single, ‘Later’.

Written with best mate and producer, Jared Adlam, ‘Later’ was inspired by how the two friends met their respective partners.

“The first verse is about how I met my fiancée, as we sat out under the stars and chatted on the concrete water tank at the back of the property,” Jake said.

“‘Later’ was the first word we came up with for the song, then pulled the inspiration from that. We wanted a song with some depth to show that there’s more to me than just the mullet, moustache, and party song.”

Following on from singles, ‘Round Here’ and ‘Drink To That’, ‘Later’ shows a more lyrical and storytelling side to Jake’s music.

The radio-friendly single has also aided in Jake getting ‘brownie points’ with his fiancée, Nicole. “She loves it,” he said.

As with the previous singles, Jake wants to keep bringing music to his listeners that they can enjoy, while building his audience.

“The reaction to ‘Round Here’ and ‘Drink To That’ has been pretty spectacular; the country community has welcomed me with open arms,” he said.

“The country scene is full of great people from the fans to the industry people.”

Casey Barnes releases his brand new single, “Never Give Up On A Good Time”, as he prepares to the hit the road for the CITY NIGHTS TOUR in Sydney (Sept 8), Brisbane (Sept 16) & Melbourne (Sept 21). “Never Give Up On A Good Time” is the follow-up to “Boys Like Me” which peaked at #1 on the CountryTown Country Airplay chart; his seventh #1 single in just over two years.

“Never Give Up On A Good Time”, is the third single from a brand-new studio album to be released in early 2024 and was co-written by Casey with Nashville based hit-maker, Eric Paslay (co-writer of hits for Keith Urban, Lady A, Jake Owen and many more). These new tracks follow the huge success of previous studio album “Light It Up” (released February 2022), for which Casey received the 2022 ARIA Award for Best Country Album, 2023 Golden Guitar Awards for Toyota Album of the Year and Top Selling Album of the Year and the 2023 APRA Award for Most Performed Country Work (for God Took His Time On You).

Casey commented on the song, “I’ve been a massive Eric Paslay fan since meeting when we both performed at C2C Festival back in 2019. We finally had the chance to re-connect again in October last year when I was over in Nashville writing for the new album and playing some shows and that’s when we co-wrote this new one ‘Never Give Up On A Good Time’. I’ve always loved his writing and had a feeling we’d come away with really something special. This song’s all about chasing that ultimate night out, good time and bringing your friends along for the ride! It’s also going to be a great song to add into our live set too. Really excited to have this one out there!”

It is going to be a busy end to 2023 for Casey with the CITY NIGHTS TOUR, a massive run of festivals and finishing off his next album. Wherever Casey goes, the good time is sure to follow.

The reigning Female Artist of the Year, Amber Lawrence is back with a brand-new song for release, “Live A Country Song”. After releasing the ARIA and Golden Guitar nominated album “Living for the Highlights” in 2022, Amber is back with a new stand-alone single.

With its familiar Amber Lawrence melodies and soaring vocals, this is an energetic and fresh sound for the singer/songwriter and is definitely a song that will sit well on the festival stages throughout spring and summer this year.

“Live a Country Song” was co-written with Nick and Tom of The Wolfe Brothers, after a discussion about why popular country songs often tread the same well-worn themes and paths. The answer eventually
being addressed in this song – because we love everything about it, we live and breathe it, we write it & we sing about it, and we hope you get to live your very own country song!

The song is already proving to be a fan favourite when performed live, it’s a song that embraces all that we love about the genre, and celebrates it, and with the strong state of country music in Australia right now – what a time to celebrate! Amber is touring far and wide in 2023, and will commence 2024 in Tamworth with her ‘Live a Country Song Tour’.