-
Bluesfest announce legendary rock guitarist in their fifth and final announcement – Backseat Mafia
Bluesfest Byron Bay have today announced their final artist announcement for the upcoming 2025 festival. Legendary US guitarist, Tom Morello and Indonesian blues powerhouse, Electric Cadillac now round out the 36th iteration of Australia’s most-popular, long-running festival. With only 70 days until the gates are opened, the festival is promising something for everybody – from Chaka Khan and Toto, through to Here Come The Mummies and Taj Farrant, there are now over 50 artists locked in. Grammy-winning, Harvard-educated, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted artist, Tom Morello is living proof of the transformative power of rock’n’roll. Known for his innovative guitar playing, Morello is a ground-breaking artist both in…
-
Meadow 2025 Drops Final Line Up For Last-Ever Bambra Hill Festival! Feat. Hiatus Kaiyote, Pond and More – Backseat Mafia
Australia’s festival scene has been on one lately. From the tree-lined magic of Strawberry Fields to the community spirit of Meredith and the chaos of Beyond the Valley, it seems like every month has another reason to pack your tent, charge your phone, and road trip into the great unknown. If you’ve been lurking on Instagram stories and quietly questioning your life choices, Meadow 2025 is here to tip you over the edge. Set in the rolling Bambra hills on Gulidjan, Gadubanud, and Wadawurrung land, Meadow has quietly built a reputation for delivering one of the best boutique festival experiences in the country. But this year, the stakes are higher…
-
Tom Odell Adds Final Sydney Opera House Show Due to Overwhelming Demand – Backseat Mafia
Tom Odell, the multi-platinum British singer and songwriter, has announced an additional and final performance at the Sydney Opera House on January 5, 2024, following overwhelming demand. These two performances, set in one of Australia’s most iconic venues, will mark Odell’s only Australian appearances. Both shows will feature The Metropolitan Orchestra, promising a unique musical experience blending Odell’s emotive songwriting with lush orchestral arrangements. The announcement comes on the heels of the release of Black Friday, Odell’s latest album, which has been met with critical and fan acclaim. Its title track has garnered over 166 million streams on Spotify and amassed 2.75 billion views on TikTok. Following the album’s success,…
-
The final chapter of Steve Von Till’s awesome homage to the changing moons. – Backseat Mafia
The Breakdown Neurot Recordings – 8.9 If you missed gazing at the Hunter Moon last week then here’s a permanent audio reminder of its beauty, significance and restorative power. Steve Von Till aka Harvestman, the prolific deliverer of sounds via post metal totems Neurosis, Tribes of Neurot and his solo work, has released ‘Triptych Part Three’, the final album in his moon cycle trilogy. In April Harvestman honoured the Pink Moon with ‘Part One’, a collection of subtle soundscapes, other-worldly drones, gentle cosmic rock, early kosmische and eerie electronic folk. ‘Part Two’ focused on the Buck Moon, reflecting change and progression, abundance and vitality. The consequent music pulsated with a…
-
Jerry Cantrell Shares One Final Sneak Peek Of Forthcoming Album ‘I Want Blood’ – Backseat Mafia
Jerry Cantrell’s highly-anticipated new album, ‘I Want Blood,’ arrives next Friday, with one final sneak peek with the release of the album’s title track. “There’s a confidence to this album,” Cantrell explains. “I think it’s some of my best writing and playing and certainly some of my best singing. There are large chunks of this record where I felt like my face was pressed to the ceiling of my abilities, operating at the top of my capacity.” The four-minute-plus track opens with a menacing bass line from Duff McKagan, accompanied by Mike Bordin’s building drumbeat, followed by Cantrell’s ominous first words… “I Want Blood.” The song was co-produced, as the album was, by Cantrell…
-
Love As Fiction Records announces re-release of the final glorious album from the iconic Big Heavy Stuff – Backseat Mafia
Love As Fiction Records have announced that iconic Sydney band Big Heavy Stuff‘s final 2004 album is available for pre-order today. The 20th Anniversary Edition of the album will be released on Vinyl, CD and Cassette in limited editions. For the first time it also includes a previously unreleased version of the album, titled ‘Naked Friends and Enemies’ which is an earlier raw version of the album mixed by the legendary Wayne Connolly. The album has been remastered by Chris Hanzsek and artwork refreshed and re-designed by Matt W Bayes. It has been curated directly with the band in collaboration with Nick Kennedy. There will be a Double Vinyl LP,…
-
God Dethroned Reveal Final Single ‘The Hanged Man’; New Album ‘The Judas Paradox’ And EU/UK Tour Kicking – Backseat Mafia
God Dethroned, one of the most respected Dutch extreme metal acts, will unleash their new studio album next Friday, on September 6, 2024, via Reigning Phoenix Music (RPM). The band has just released the final single ‘The Hanged Man.’ Leading down the final steps towards the sonic abyss that is “The Judas Paradox,” the track immediately suffocates listeners with crushing double-bass drumming and bass – without losing its melodic sense in the form of scheming lead guitars though! Judas Iscariot, the main inspiration behind the album title, once again lurks around in the lyrics, rounding off yet another striking song out of the band’s hellish forge. Frontman Henri “The Serpent King” Sattler comments: “A song which lyrics are…
-
20 artists named in first artist announcement for Bluesfest Byron Bay’s final curtain in 2025, with plenty more to come – Backseat Mafia
Bluesfest Byron Bay have dropped the first artist announcement for their 36th, and final, iteration. With a heritage that goes back to 1990, the festival promises to be a celebration of everything that Bluesfest has stood for over the past 35 plus years – music, community, and unforgettable experiences. To that end, the first artist announcement has tapped into a mix of both Australian and international acts covering everything from blues to soul to funk, rock and country. and is certainly heading towards the promise that it will be an unforgettable experience. Artists named include Crowded House Vance Joy • Ocean Alley • Tones and IGary Clark Jr • Rag’n’Bone…
-
Australia’s premier, and iconic festival, the beloved Bluesfest Byron Bay, shocks with news of its’ final curtain. – Backseat Mafia
Bluesfest Byron Bay has today released the staggering news that its’ 2025 event (and its’ 36th Anniversary) will be its’ last, and leaves Australian festival goers and live-music lovers with an ever-diminishing choice for quality music experiences. Along with the growing list of venues that are shutting down across the country, musicians and music fans alike are seeing their capacity to do what they love in the live setting, sadly disappearing before their very eyes. After 35 years of celebrating the very best in blues, roots music, and beyond, the legendary institution that has brought some of the world’s greatest artists to Australia, along with a host of magnificent home-grown…
-
Arka’n Asrafokor – RPM label debut ‘Dzikkuh’ out now; Watch Video For Track ‘Final Tournament’ – Backseat Mafia
A new era has begun for Togo based metallers Arka’n Asrafokor [Asrafocore = “Music of the Warriors” (“asrafo” means “warrior” in their mother language)]: their Reigning Phoenix Music (RPM) label debut is finally out, and this special day is even accompanied by a music video for the track ‘Final Tournament.’ It’s a song that celebrates the victory of truth, human unity, and dignity over the lies, cowardice, and greed of some individuals leading the world and dividing communities. The song merges traditional chants and rhythms with the heavy sounds of the guitar, drums, and bass in the unique Arka’n Asrafokor style. The band state: “The time has come when people need to stop fighting against each…
