Sunburnt Country Music

Two Tone Pony formed in 2018 with five members who all have extensive musical experience, and they started gigging in 2021. Last year they went into the studio to record some songs with producer Rod McCormack and now their first single, ‘A Life Well Lived’, has been released. David Kirkpatrick is a founding member of the band, but it is far from being his first foray into music: as the song of Sli...

While James Keith now lives on the northern beaches of Sydney, he grew up on the land - but his connection to country music did not start there. It's a relatively recent passion, as I found out the first time we chatted , and one he has fully committed to, releasing his debut country rock single, 'Life is Good Today', last year. Keith has now released a new single, 'Say I Do'. It shows a more roma...

Rusty Pickups is a four-piece band from Toowoomba in Queensland that evolved from an earlier honkytonk project into the more bluegrassy outfit they are today. They recently played at the Tamworth Country Music Festival after a turn at the Gympie Music Muster, and they have plans to range far and wide to other festivals. The band has released several singles over the past few months and their EP wi...

Over the past few years Laura Frank has released several singles in the country rock/pop genre that have revealed different parts of her story - as well as showcasing her vocal skills - building a portrait of an artist who is steadily gaining fans and recognition. She won the People's Choice Award for Most Promising Future Star at this year's Tamworth Country Music Festival, and now she's released...

Angus Gill is a Golden Guitar winner as well as a nominee many times over, four this year alone as an artist and one as a producer. He releases music as a solo artist and also collaborates with others. In 2020 he released the album 3 Minute Movies with the band Seasons of Change, who work with Paul Kelly. Now there’s a new single for Angus and Seasons of Change, called ‘Departure & Arrival’, a...

Queensland artist Matt Cornell has had long associations with several other Australian performers - he's played with Richard Clapton and Shannon Noll, and in The Baby Animals - but perhaps none has been as strong and long-lasting as that with country-rock star Adam Brand. Cornell has been part of Brand's band and worked as his musical director for several years - but they have never recorded a son...

Blake O’Connor was the 2019 Toyota Star Maker winner and that year released his first album,  Everything I Feel . He has now released his second album,  Finding Light , which is as uplifting as the title suggests. O'Connor collaborated with other songwriters, including Sinead Burgess, but there is a clear through-line that is all his, and it's true to the album's title, even when there a...

It doesn't seem like that long ago that Adelaide singer-songwriter Matt Ward released his last album, If I Was in Dallas Tonight , but he has already released a brand new song, 'Nobody Told Me'. Ward actually took a break after the album, not writing or recording, but he has returned to both with vigour and is looking ahead to his new album, due for release later this year.  We spoke recently...

Anyone who has heard a Jayne Denham song won't soon forget it, because Denham never fails to impress. With her powerhouse voice and boundless energy - which she brings to her live shows as well - Denham inhabits her songs, bringing them to vivid life for fans. That was the case on her Golden Guitar-nominated album Wanted , released in 2021, and it's also the case on her new single, 'Moonshine'. Te...

Harley-Davidson motorcycles are famous all over the world, and beloved by many - including Melbourne artist Jason McDaniel. McDaniel has an extensive and fascinating musical history, which we discussed the first time I interviewed him , and after a long hiatus from music he released the single 'A Tall Glass of Country & a Shot of Rock 'n' Roll' last year. McDaniel's latest single is 'Harley Ri...

When Parkes, NSW singer-songwriter Raechel Whitchurch released her first new single since her Golden Guitar-nominated debut album Finally Clear , its title came as surprise. That's because it's called 'I'm Not Cool', and anyone who is even a casual observer of Whitchurch's work and life would disagree with that assessment. Whitchurch grew up as a performing musician in a family band, then, after s...

Suzy J is a creative powerhouse from Melbourne who is passionate about performing as well as songwriting - and her talents in the talent have been recognised lately with three of her songs making the top 30 in the Pop/ Country/ Ballad categories in the 2021 Australian Songwriters Association songwriting competition. Suzy's latest single is called 'With You' and it's perfect for audiences who love...

There is a high level of skill needed to release a debut single that makes a huge impact, and New South Wales singer-songwriter Brooke Harvey did that with her first single, 'Southern Sky'. And she has done it again with her new single, 'Little Bird', which features guest vocals from Kasey Chambers. While 'Little Bird' is no doubt having an impact on listeners, Harvey is looking ahead to the relea...

Jake Whittaker has been a musician for quite a while, but for most of that time he was not performing country music. Whittaker has an extensive background in funk, blues and soul but his heart has long been in country - and he has now released his first country music single, 'Round Here'. Whittaker's range of influences can be heard in the song, which is about escaping the rat race and reconnectin...

Originally from Melbourne, now resident in south-east Queensland, Brook Chivell has been wowing country music audiences for several years with his high-energy live show. Before the pandemic he released the album Fearless Rider , which spawned several singles, including 'Hot Country Girl'. Chivell waited out the pandemic, as artists had to do, but in the process discovered a wellspring of creativit...

The last time I spoke to Queensland artist Briana Dinsdale she had found out she was the recipient of the Keith Urban Scholarship to the Academy of Country Music in Tamworth, NSW. Dinsdale is not only a great performer but a songwriter with a particular - and interesting - slant on the world, which means her songs always offer something unexpected and wonderful. Sometimes it's a bit of sass, somet...

ydney singer-songwriter Kiara Rodrigues released the upbeat single 'High School Reunion' last year then found out she was to be a Grand Finalist at Toyota Star Maker during the 2023 Tamworth Country Music Festival. Ahead of the competition she released the single 'Message in a Bottle', written with Nashville-based Australian artist Katrina Burgoyne. Where 'High School Reunion' is about moving on f...

Melbourne artist Sarah Catania has had a busy start to 2023, kicking off with attendance at the Academy of Country Music in January then releasing her new song 'Little She Knows', the follow-up to her debut single 'Venus and Mars'. Catania is an independent artist who has thrown herself into the creative and business sides of music, including writing with artists such as Lyn Bowtell, and with her...

Jax Tonic may be from the northern beaches of Sydney but with family routes in the Central West of New South Wales he has long felt connected to the land. His latest single, 'Country Boy', pays tribute to those who live and work on the land and also brings audiences a second single from Tonic after his first, 'On the Front Foot', was released last year. We caught up recently to talk about country...

Given the hectic schedule six-piece Sydney band The Mezcaltones had at this year's Tamworth Country Music Festival, you'd think they'd want to have a little lie-down before they launch into any new projects. Instead they have gone right back to their busy gig schedule and launched a new album, their fourth, Agavé Soirée , which captures the band's dynamic live sound and will no doubt be a wel...

Last year Tamworth-based artist Ashleigh Dallas won two Golden Guitars, including one for Female Artist of the Year, and this year she took home the GG for Traditional Country Album of the Year for her fifth album, In the Moment . When I interviewed Dallas last year she mentioned she was working on new music, and she meant it: her new single 'Take a Minute' is not taken from In the Moment because...

Country music, as its name suggests, tends to have something to do with the country. In its modern form the singers and songwriters of country music may not live on the land but instead inhabit the genre by making storytelling the focus of their work, as stories have long been at the core of country music. Josie Laver is an artist from both strands. In her debut album, Ride This Lullaby , she tell...

Every music lover has those moments when they hear an album for the first time and know it's going to be with them for a long time - and even when they're not playing it they're thinking about it. Outsider , the debut album from Queensland singer-songwriter Bud Rokesky, is likely to be that kind of album for many a music lover. Rokesky has a compelling singing voice, and that's part of it, but he...

In 2019 Sydney artist Ingrid Mae released the album Holy Smoke and she had plans to release a second album a little sooner than 2023 but, as we know, things happened in those intervening years. But great music is welcome at any time and Mae has greeted an album that is passionate and sassy, as well as serious in parts. It may be called Closing Time but no doubt it will open up Mae's music to new f...

Before the pandemic Queensland artist Will Day was regularly on the road, playing gigs in various states; since the world has started reopening he's found himself on festival stages, off the back of several successful singles, including the latest, 'Always a Girl'. It's always a pleasure to interview Will and this time we spoke about the new single and what he has coming up this year. More about W...