The Radiators
Ballina RSL | April 20 | 8.30pm | $25
It was the first concert I ever went to; I was 13. The Radiators at the Homestead in Brisbane.
I don’t think the whole ID thing was big then, otherwise I wouldn’t have been squashed in with a bunch of dudes all screaming ‘She gives me head’. I don’t think I even knew what head was but blokes were clearly very enthusiastic about it. The Radiators are still playing and 40 years on they’re still belting out Give Me Head. It has a slightly more sinister overtone with age.
The Radiators have carved a niche in the archives of Australian rock history and shared the stage with great Aussie acts such as AC/DC, Rose Tattoo and INXS, with more than 4,000 shows to their credit.
They have played their music to millions of people in Australia, recorded more than 100 original songs, with two albums being awarded Platinum status, two achieving Gold, and sales of more than one million units.
The Radiators still tour extensively playing an average of 100 shows per year and the band’s fans, young and old, still flock to grab a slice of living Aussie rock history and dance the night away to the great catchy songs and classic hits that make The Radiators an iconic name in Australian rock music.
Don’t miss The Radiators when they head to Ballina RSL on Friday.
Support Your Uke
Club Mullum, Mullum Ex-Services |April 26 | 6.30pm | $12.50
For the past seven years Stukulele (aka Stu Eadie) has lovingly maintained Uke Mullum – Mullumbimby’s Uke Night. Ukulele players and music lovers of all ages converge to strum and sing along to a new songbook of 20+ songs with a different theme every month – 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, Beatles, Stones, love songs, break-up songs, murder ballads, TV themes, blues, jazz, disco, Motown, punk, and the list goes on. It’s a unique local event that Stu and his partner Miss Amber love presenting. Ukulele has turned into an all-consuming passion for Stu. Sixty-plus hours go into creating each event, plus he teaches at Coorabell Primary and performs at community events and care facilities with his beloved Uke Orchestra. In order to continue the fever Stu could use some support.
If you like what he is dong, jump on to www.patreon.com/UkeMullum and for the cost of a cup of coffee per month you can keep the whole community singing and strumming. As a Uke Mullum patron you will become a vital member of a growing community. You’ll have your say in choosing songs to learn and perform and gain access to online lessons and the monthly Uke Night songbooks.
This month, the Uke Night theme is Lounge – swinging 50s and 60s hits, smooth bossanova with the occasional psychedelic trip out. With Steve Russell on keys, Jaime Pattgalin on drums and Kate Gittins on wind instruments, this will be another amazing evening of great music and good ol’ fun. Don’t be square, be Hep Cat!
Splendour tix on sale!
North Byron Parklands | July 20-22 | $399/$179
Every year music lovers load their devices to be the first click in line for the much-coveted prize of tickets to Splendour in the Grass, held at North Byron Parklands 20, 21 and 22 July. Tickets normally sell out in minutes. They’ve been known to break the internet. Every year. It’s a credit to the organisers that they have created an event that continues to capture the zeitgeist. With more than 100 of the most exciting international and homegrown artists touring right now set to grace The Amphitheatre, Mix Up, GW McLennan and Tiny Dancer stages along with some of the biggest and most innovative stars of hip-hop and global names of indie rock, pop and dance and Australia’s most exciting established and emerging artists. This year’s big guns include Kendrick Lamar, Lorde, Vampire Weekend, Khalid, and The Wombats.
Tickets go on sale 9am on Thursday 19 April. Three-day event tickets are $399 plus fees, with single-day tix at $179 and a camping ticket an extra $129.
Go to www.splendourinthegrass.com or the splendour Facebook page for more info.
Eerie Things
Club Byron |April 20 | 6.30pm | $12.50
The Eerie Things, a 5-piece band based in Byron Bay, have an eerie vibe influenced by the likes of Pink Floyd and Alice Cooper, with a dash of good old Aussie rock.
Lead singer and guitarist Andy Bambach has been writing great rock songs with a variety of bands from Melbourne, Perth and Byron for a few decades now, and here he gets together with a group of like-minded musicians. With the soulful backing vocals of Rae Stanton and with Richard Seccull, Steve Elias and Garry Fenton on guitar, bass and drums, the band has come up with a highly original and eclectic sound that is both rock’n’roll and meaningful!
Their debut album Under a Canopy of Stars is available online to stream, or you can purchase it from their website www.theeeriethings.com, and it will be officially launched at Club Byron on Friday. They are supported by Kook Cartel, a local youth band fronted by 18-year-old Griffin Bambach. Club Byron, Marvell St in Byron. Doors open at 6.30pm, music will start shortly thereafter. The Eerie Things aim to be onstage around 7.30pm. Go to facebook page here
Tijuana Cartel at Spirit Festival
Spirit Festival, Byron |April 21 | 9.00pm
Australia’s premier ‘east meets west’ electronic beat makers Tijuana Cartel have a knack for blending layers of rich, intricate soundscapes with pulsating rhythms and luscious vocals to form an electronic beats tapestry that will cut through to your very soul. Bound together by their mutual love of instrumental, trippy and mind-expanding music, Paul George and Carey O’Sullivan are a truly formidable force.
Onstage is where Tijuana Cartel’s collective musical spirit is really given the chance to run wild. Joined by Yoav Mashiach on percussion and occasionally Joshua Sinclair on trumpet, they extensively tour Australia, regularly stopping off at all of the major cities, as well as small towns and the most-loved festivals including Peats Ridge, Rainbow Serpent, Wave Rock, Splendour in the Grass, Byron Blues and Roots, Falls, Shine On, Good Vibrations, Surry Hills Festival and Lane Way amongst others. They also tour across Europe and USA when the stars align.
Wowing audiences all over the world, they’re back with the new album Psychedelicatessen. If you’ve heard the band before, you’ll lose your mind! They play Spirt Festival at 9pm on Saturday at the Cavanbah Centre. For info about this event, and all of Spirit Festival running Friday till Sunday go to spiritfestival.com.au
Mercy Mercy at the Rails
The Rails |April 22 | 7.00pm | FREE
‘We are not playing the top 100 or classic hits of the 60s through to the 90s or beyond,’ said bass player and one of Mercy-Mercy’s two songwriters, Jon Dee. ‘It’s not that we don’t play other people’s material; it’s more that we play material that may not be as well known, by greats such as BB King, Nina Simone, Joe Bonamassa, Beth Hart, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and ZZ Top. A mix of contemporary and classic blues/rock material,’ he noted. ‘We play that and our own material with strength, enthusiasm and a conviction that rests solidly in our passion for the blues genre. It’s curious to us when we hear some people say that they don’t like blues because it is the root of all the forms of modern popular music. You can hear it in country, rock, hip-hop and even pop,’ Jon said. ‘In our own material, that is what we write as a band; there is a real blending of the blues, rock, pop and funk genres and we are also storytellers. Whether it is about a debt owed to music, an experience of love’s redemption or just a fun reflection on the feeling and experience of summer on the north coast, the aim is the same. We want to engage our audience in our music and our words.’
Mercy-Mercy’s debut EP Self Titled is out now and they are at The Rails in Byron Bay on Sunday from 7pm.
Grigoryan Brothers in Byron
Byron Theatre |April 28 | 7.30pm | $45/$30
Although regarded as Australia’s finest guitar duo performing much of the instrument’s standard classical repertoire, the Grigoryan Brothers’ passion is to expand their horizons through new arrangements, their own compositions and commissions. This ambition can be heard as the brothers take the classical guitar into genres such as jazz, folk and contemporary music. There are no boundaries, only new frontiers to cross. In concert, mix it all together and you have a dimension to guitar playing rarely seen in the musical world.
For this performance The Grigoryan Brothers will be performing works from their latest release, which sees a return to classical repertoire. The album will include songs by composers such as Bach, Elgar, Dvořák, Rachmaninoff, Faure, De Falla and Ponce all masterfully arranged for them by their father Edward.
The program will also include other works highlighting Slava’s and Leonard’s diverse skills; their deep appreciation of a broad spectrum of musical styles has resulted in many collaborations involving music, both written and improvised. Combine this with their classical training and the result is a unique sound incorporating all these influences. It is not classical, not jazz, not world music; it is the Grigoryan Brothers.
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