Industrial Strength: July 25
JOSH PYKE TO GO ON HIATUS AFTER REGIONAL TOUR
Illustrious singer songwriter and avid champion of emerging talent, Josh Pyke, this morning announced he’s going on a hiatus at the end of the year.
He’ll completea 12-date solo 10 Years Of Memories & Dust regional tour through November and December before taking a break.
“After I’ve wrapped up this year’s shows both here and abroad, I’ve decided to go on hiatus from touring my own stuff for a while,” Pyke said.
“The last dozen years or so of touring have been wild and hugely rewarding, and now I’m keen to dig into some other creative projects.In the meantime, I can’t wait to play for you all for the rest of 2017!”
The regional tour sees him perform his Memories & Dust album in full, with a second set of all his fan favourites.’
The tour kicks off on November 3 at the Byron Bay Brewery, moving through to Port Macquarie, Katoomba, Henley Beach, Norwood, Mackay, Townsville, Cairns, Belgrave, Ballarat, and finishing up at Theatre Royal in Castlemaine on December 10.
In the meantime, the 13-date The Best of Josh Pyke Tour of capital cities starts at Enmore Theatre Sydney on July 28 and winds up at Wrest Point Casino Hobart on August 26.
AUSTRALIA TAKES ANOTHER VINYL STEP
As vinyl sales increase in Australia – $15 million worth of the format were sold in this country last year, according to ARIA, the sixth consecutive year of growth – things are moving to cater for increased demand.
The first new vinyl pressing plant in 30 years is set to open early next year in Melbourne. Program Records will start off with 12” records pressed at 140 and 180 grams, with 7” and 10: presses in 2019.
The problem local labels and artists face is that overseas plants are slow in manufacture, leading to long delays.
Program Records founder Steve Lynch says his plant will be alleviating the problem by using Canadian company Viryl Technologies’ fully-automated WarmTone machinery which spits them out at 30 seconds per record.
In the meantime, such is the demand for players that The Sound of Vinyl, which became the Australian stockist for Chicago-based company Gramovox’s three-year-old Floating Record Player is currently out of stock, according to its website.
Barry ‘Baz’ Scott from independent record retailer Egg Records in Newtown, Sydney, says: “The vinyl trend really picked up again about seven years ago here in Australia and our sales show it goes from strength to strength each year. “
It’s not just older fans returning to vinyl: “We’re also seeing young guys and girls coming in to buy their first ever record, so it’s a whole new audience coming through.”
Australian sales on Record Store Day are hard to get, but a quick ring around of this year’s shifts in April found an average of a growth of 25% to 40%.
In any case, some retailers are suggesting that the focus on vinyl should expand from just that one day to throughout the year.
JUSTIN BIEBER CANCELS REST OF ‘PURPOSE’ WORLD TOUR
Justin Bieber has cancelled the remainder of his Purpose World Tour “due to unforseen circumstances”, it was announced overnight.
A statement from promoter AEG Presents read, “Justin loves his fans and hates to disappoint them.
“He thanks his fans for the incredible experience of the Purpose World Tour over last 18 months.
“He is grateful and honored to have shared that experience with his cast and crew for over 150 successful shows across 6 continents during this run.
“However, after careful consideration he has decided he will not be performing any further dates.”
A total of 14 shows are affected, including those in North America, Tokyo, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Singapore.
SPLENDOUR COLLABORATIONS
As a PS to yesterday’sTMN report on Splendour In The Grass, the lovefest continued its reputation for all-starcollaborations.
Biggest surprise on the Sunday night was Tina Arena stepping alongside triple j faves Client Liaison to perform on their ’A Foreign Affair’, on which she appears on the recording.
Just for kicks, La Arena, dressed by Cappellazzo Couture, also threw in her’Sorrento Moon’ and a cover of Womack & Womack’s ’Teardrops’ before a crowd estimated to be 25,000 by her peeps.
“What a thrill, what an incredible audience and what a band… loved every second,” she said as she stepped off.
Peking Duk’s array of guests included The Castle actor Stephen Curry, guitar-shredding Dan Sultan, Ivan Ooze, Vera Blue, Nicole Millar, and Aluna George flying from England to be part of the show.
Vera Blue also joined Slumberjack during the latter’s set. And while it was far from unexpected, A.B. Original’s fiery set closed with Sultan, Paul Kelly and Caiti Baker for ’Dumb Things’.
Kilter brought out rising starsLanks and Woodes, while Allday’sappearancewas practically a mini-festival, with Mallrat, Asta and Japanese Wallpaper all hopping on stage.
Go-Betweens legend Robert Forster was spotted lurking in the wings of the tent named for his bandmate, Grant McLennan, and later sauntered onstage to perform a couple of songs with BAD//DREEMS.
Dune Rats, who arrived on motorbikes and threw beer cans into the crowd, brought on Grinspoon’s Phil Jamieson.
The part-Powderfinger two-song reunion at the end of Bernard Fanning’s solo set before 10,000 certainly set social media afire.
But alas no one told drummer Jon Coghill, who was that night tending to a sick daughter at his home on the Sunshine Coast.
Coghill, now a presenter on local ABC Radio, told the Sunshine Coast Daily he was only aware of it when a friend texted him to congratulate him on a great set.
“I just was surprised, to tell the truth,” he admitted but figured he’d find out tomorrow when Powderfinger and their manager meet in Brisbane for their first band meeting since they split up in 2010.
TANIA DE JONG TO KEYNORE AT CBAA CONF
International soprano, award-winning social entrepreneur, creative innovation catalyst, global speaker and spiritual journeywoman Tania de Jong AM will deliver the keynote speech at this year’s Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA) conference, to be held from Nov 9-12 on the Gold Coast.
De Jong will speak on creating a station culture which encourages diversity, innovation, understanding and the idea of mistaking mistakes to learn from them.
Meantime, the CBAA was one of the three finalists in the Association of the Year Award. It lost to the Australian Dental Industry Association.
DIGITAL CONTENT RATINGS GO DAILY
In a move to get a larger proportion of advertising budgets for the Australian digital sector, IAB Australia and Nielsen will now provide for the first time daily digital measurements to publishers, agencies and marketers in addition to its monthly data.
Only the US and Thailand offer daily digital measurements.
According to figures, 19 million Australians consume digital content daily. Digital video consumption averages over 25 hours per month for adults.
STONEY ROADS SETS GUINNESS WORLD RECORD
Australian EDM hub Stoney Roads has officially set a new Guinness World Record for the ‘Largest B2B DJ Relay’.Late last year, as part of the second Movement Sydney series, 147 DJs played over 12 hours.
The event was live-streamed on Facebook with tens of thousands tuning in and commenting throughout the day.
Among the DJs mixing their tracks on a VOID sound-system were Swindail, Human Movement, Polographia, Kinder DJs, Kato, Sidechains DJs and Porsches.
MALAYSIA BANS ‘DESPACITO’
Puerto Rican artists Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s’Despacito’ might be taking streaming to new stratospheresbut the Malaysian Government isn’t that impressed with it.
The sexy track has been banned from state radio and television (but not from streaming services or the likes of YouTube) after complaints from the public according to Communications Minister Salleh Said Keruak.
Salleh urged private radio stations to also be sensitive to local culture and jettison the track.
HALESEY PROMO VISIT
Halsey is confirmed for an Australian promo tour from July 31 to August 2 behind her hopeless fountain kingdom album, which debuted at #2 on the ARIA chart.
Among her media commitments is a set at the KIIS presented Optus-powered iHeartRadio LIVE stage in Sydney on Wed August 2.
Brett “Nozz” Nossiter, Content Director of iHeartRadio Australia said: “I’m so excited to have Halsey take the stage for iHeartRadio LIVE.”
“She’s a lyricist that’s fierce, creative and courageous and it’s going to be a great event bringing her fans closer to an artist they love.
“I’m also keen to get matching tattoos with Halsey while she’s in town.”
Her single ’Now Or Never’ has gone platinum in Australia and the US, amassed 150 million Spotify streams and 28 million cumulative YouTube/VEVO views; ’Eyes Closed’ has generated 21 million Spotify streams.
WAMFEST EXPANDS
This year’s WAMfest, which so far has stuck to showcasing WA acts in metro areas, is packing a lunch hamper and expanding to the regionals.
It’s also staging in Margaret River (Oct 26), Dunsborough (Oct 27), Merredin (Oct 28), Bunbury (Oct 28), Mandurah (2Oct 8) and Albany (Oct 29).
There are calls to acts to showcase in regional acts, while Perth will also have regional talent.
Organiser WAM stated that last year’s WAMFest set a new attendance record, with 14,500 coming out over four days to 26 music venues, transformed spaces and even backyards.
AUSSIE PODCAST CONSUMPTION RISES
New research from Edison Research and audio on demand firm Whooshkaa show that podcasts are striking a chord with Australians – especially “younger, skilled and affluent audiences” according to Whooshkaa’s founder and CEO Rob Loewenthal.
While awareness in Australia of podcasting has risen to 72%,29% listen to podcasts, with the greatest appeal to the 18—34 age group (38%) and 35—54 (34%) who are primarily work full-time. The figure drops to 18% to over-55s, and 10% for the 12—17 demo.
Some other key stats include:
- In terms of earnings, 16% make $150,000 a year
- 17% of Australians are listening on a monthly basis. Australians devour podcasts at an average of 5 hours and 22 minutes weekly, with more males (56%) than females (44%)
- 78% of podcast consumption is at home, 39% in vehicles, 26% when walking and 23% on public transport
- 69% of podcasts are primarily on smartphones and tablets, and 31% on desktop
“SECRET ACT” FOR LITTLE BIGSOUND
QMusic is about to reveal the identity of the “secret” headliner of its a free all-ages gig to mark the end of its Little BIGSOUND event on Saturday July 29.
Asha Jefferies, Ruby Gilbert, TØBI and Twelve Past Midnight have been chosen from applications to perform live throughout the day.
Little BIGSOUND, held at State Library of Queensland (SLQ) at The Edge and aimed at musicians aged under 25 wanting to enter the music industry.
Airling,The Kite String Tangle and Tia Gostelow are among artists on the panels.
The one on how a great song is written includes Dew Process’s A&R executive, John Mullen and record producer Konstantin Kersting.
The Edge’s Digital Media Lab will transform into The Ableton Live studio, where attendees can get hands-on and make music using the next generation of production software and live instrumentation. The Recording Studio will feature the interactive KORG History of Synths.
Covering digital marketing and publicity are Title Track PR’s Sarah Chipman and Comes With Fries founder Vanessa Picken.
The Circle Of Life sees Mucho Bravado’s Ben Preece on how to set up a record release, while Julia Bridger and the QMusic team will give tips to those wanting to start a music business on sustainability, structure and income streams.
WA ORGANISATIONS INVESTMENT PROGRAM OPENING DEFERRED
The opening of the next round of applications to Western Australia’s Organisations Investment Program has been deferred for 12 months.
The reason is that the newly amalgamated Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC) wants to do a comprehensive review of the program.
It is intended to ensure the program is working effectively, provides value for money, and meets the needs of the State’s diverse range of arts and cultural organisations.
Applications to the program were planned to open for a second time in 2018, following the inaugural round held in 2015.The opening of this round has now been rescheduled to March 2019, for funding commencing January 1, 2020.
The review of the program, which will be undertaken by the DLGSC’s Culture and the Arts (WA) division, is intended to ensure the program is working effectively, provides value for money, and meets the needs of the State’s diverse range of arts and cultural organisations.
Organisations not currently in receipt of recurrent funding through the Program can continue to apply for project funding through a DLGSC Culture and the Arts (WA) grants program.
Enquiries can be directed to the Organisations Investment team by email or phone 08 6552 7300.
GOOGLE PLAY COMPATIBLE WITH APPLE CARPLAY
Put aside the frustrations of vehicle infotainment systems, new advances make drivingand staying connected less of a teeth-gnashing exercise.
Apple’s CarPlay – which already allows third party apps including Spotify and Pandora, and of course Apple Music –now also includes rival Google Play.
WHAT ARE RADIO LISTENERS BANKING ON?
A new study of Australian commercial radio listeners’ financial habits by Nielsen and Commercial Radio Australia sends a direct message to the Big 4 banks.
69% of listeners are very or quite satisfied with their main financial institutions.
But 6% are not very or not at all satisfied, and 11% plan to change in the next six months. The latter cite high fees and charges (19%) and poor interest rates (14%) are the most prevalent reasons.
More than one in five (22%) commercial radio listeners say their investment/savings priority for the next 2-3 years is “saving for a car or holiday”; while 18% are focused on “paying off their home”; and 18% are “saving for retirement.”
EMMYS LIVE TO AUSTRALIA
The 69th Emmy Awards will be broadcast live to Australia on Foxtel’s FOX8 channel from Los Angeles on Monday September 18 at 10am. The telecast will also be streamed live on Foxtel Now.
Hosted by late night TV host Stephen Colbert, Foxtel shows accounted for over 170 nominations across its drama, comedy, factual, sport, news and kids channels.
HBO, which is exclusive to Foxtel in Australia, led the total nominations with 111.
OPEN DAY FOR AFTRS
The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) holds an Open Day on Saturday August 12 at its Moore Park, Sydney, campus.
Prospective students can talk to tutors, get info about the courses, check out the school’s facilities, and check out the works of previous students while a panel of graduates talking about their experiences will be available in a live online stream. Full details on the website.
VALE
- Geoff Mack (Albert Geoffrey McElhinney) is best known for writing I’ve Been Everywhere, a hit for Lucky Starr in 1962 It also charted in the US, Germany and Japan. Its 131 cover versions include Johnny Cash’s on his 1996 album Unchained.
Mack’s guitar and singing abilities got him chosen to tour as an armed forces entertainer during World War II.
He was inducted into the International Songwriters Hall of Fame in Nashville, in 1963, the Hands of Fame at Tamworth in 1978, the Tamworth Songwriter’s Association Song Maker Award in 1997 and elevated to the Australian Country Music Roll of Renown in 2008. Mack was 94 when he passed. - Catfish Purser was best known as drummer for 1950s rocker Johnny O’Keefe, whom he met in Sydney in 1955. Their band The Dee Jays would play four hours straight at their own gigs, and backed most of the international acts that toured Australia.
Purser retired 20 years ago to the Gold Coast but continued to play regularly, and devoted much of his energy to Sidesplitters Gold Coast, a group of performers who raised money for colleagues who had fallen on hard times. He was 83. - Lyn Barnett had from the age of 15 notched up five early ‘60s singles in her native New Zealand through Viking and an album Lyn before she moved to Sydney with her husband Mike Leyton of Sounds Unlimited.
She gained a national presence on the TV show Bandstand but her singing career stopped. She became a recluse in her public housing flat in Burwood and was dead for a month before her body was discovered, according to an inquest last week. She was 72.
AND A FEW OTHER THINGS …
Among the 40 portrait offerings for the $100,000 Archibald Prize (announced July 28) are those of former Go-Betweens member Robert Forster and the Oxley brothers of The Sunnyboys.
Lorde was stuck on a New York subway train for a number of hours, with just a box of oatmeal for company. Some of her fellow passengers did recognise her, but she’d put her finger to her lips and go “ssshh!” and they wouldn’t blab.
After his co-write on Tex Perkins’ memoirs TEX (out this Friday through Pan), Sydney author and Laughing Outlaw Records founder Stuart Coupe is working on a book on Australian roadies from the 1950s to present day. It is due next year through Hachette.
Major telcos Telstra, Optus, TPG and Vocus could face legal action by the end of the year if they’re found to be making incorrect claims about NBN speeds, ACCC Chairman Rod Sims warned in a radio interview.
The Bombay Royale are doing a number of European festivals including Sziget in Hungary and Brittany in France after an Australian run following the release of their third album Run Kitty Run.
EON Sports Radio, which was stopped abruptly in May, is being investigated by liquidation administrators, Cor Cordis, if it traded for a month while insolvent.
Melbourne duo Over-Reactor postponed three shows on their Judgement Day tour so singer Ezekiel Ox can stay at home and concentrate on his mental health. “I am in a very painful, confused and dark place at the moment, and my mental health needs my full attention,” he explained.
A sign of the times: Sydney’s last Blockbuster video store, in Mount Annan, is shuttering on August 1.
Radio Todayreports that a few months ago, Nova 106.9 Brisbane General Manager Jay Walkerden told Integration director, Dee Curtis, they should “do something weird to the brekkie guys when they arrived to work one day.” When Walkerden returned from holidays last Friday, both he and the breakfast team were forced to navigate a jumping castle and a petting zoo filled with farm animals, and witness an unsavoury dance performance by weekend announcer and NRL star Sam Thaiday.
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