Birds of Tokyo, Katy Steele, previewing new material at WA’s SOTA

Two of Perth’s best known names, Birds of Tokyo and Katy Steele (of Little Birdy) are expected to preview new material at the 4th State of The Art (SOTA) festival next month. Both acts have been working on albums in the United States.

SOTA is held over three stages at the Perth Cultural Centre fromMay 30 during the WA Day long weekend. It is a celebration of musicians and acts who were born in, grew up in, or are based in WA. It is expected to draw 4,000.

The festival will seeBirds of Tokyo headline their first Perth show in over two years. They are currently wrapping up their follow-up to their 2013 album March Fires which debuted at #1 on the ARIA chart and yielded the triple Platinum award-winning single Lanterns. They advised their fan base via Facebook that next week they will have some “good news.”

Steele has been in New York for the past four years working on her debut solo album. She says, “People think I’ve been partying but I’ve been working very hard.”

In a quest to make a record different to Little Birdy, she has made three albums and scrapped two. The first had a country flavor. The second, with producer Joe Hamilton, reverted to the electro-pop of her late teens pre-Birdy act, Plastic Scene. That also didn't feel right to the self-confessed perfectionist. The third album, based around her songs without a definite sound in mind, will be out this year.

The SOTA bill ranges from rock to hip hop to blues to indigenous jazz. Others announced so far are You Am I (leader Tim Rogers was born in Kalgoorlie), The Scientists, Downsyde, Port-Hedland born Gareth Liddiard, Sable, The Love Junkies, Timothy Nelson & The Infidels, Rob Snarski, a reunion of Holly Rollers, Rainy Day Women, We Two Thieves, Lois Loney, Mr. Mountain, Lower Spectrum, Grace Barbie, Boom Bap! Pow!, Koi Child, Hideous Sun Demon, Lily, Rag & Bone, Marksman Lloyd and arts and culture collective The Community Supergroup featuring Diger Rokwell, Empty, Wisdom 2th and more.

The festival is put together by WAM and Celebrate WA, and includes acoustic sets and a food truck market.