THE WEEKLY WRAP | 10/05/2024
The Weekly Wrap is a look at the biggest stories in music collected in one place for your reading ease.
electric fields knocked out of Eurovision
In a shock to many, Australia’s entrant into this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, Electric Fields, has been eliminated from the competition.
The duo of vocalist Zaachariaha Fielding and producer and keyboardist Michael Ross took to the stage and wowed the audience with their chosen song, ‘One Mikali (One Blood)’.
Joined on stage by vocalists Brendan Maclean, Alyson Joyce and Simi Vuata, as well as Fred Leone on the yidaki, Electric Fields’ performance was mesmerising, but the judges didn’t see it that way, with the electro-pop act missing out on the finals.
Although disappointed, Electric Fields took to Facebook to express how much they enjoyed the journey and what it meant to them.
“Last night’s performance was so much fun and the crowd was incredible! We’re so proud of what we’ve done, it’s been a major undertaking for a team of a lot of people and we are forever grateful to be here and share our song, performance and culture with everyone,” the statement reads.
“We came to Eurovision wanting to share the Aṉangu culture from home and make history along the way whilst being rockstars on stage. Sharing the rich history of Australia with the world has been so special and a proud moment.”
legendary alternative producer and artist Steve Albini dead at 61
Steve Albini, the man behind some of the greatest records of the 90s, sadly passed away from a heart attack this week, aged 61.
The news was confirmed by Brian Fox, an engineer at Albini's studio Electrical Audio Recording.
The pioneering producer, who preferred the term ‘engineer’, was responsible for some of the biggest rock records of all time, including Nirvana’s In Utero, Pixies’ Surfer Rosa and PJ Harvey’s Rid Of Me. Albini also helped shape the careers of Joanna Newsom, the Breeders and Mogwai.
Along with producing, Albini fronted rock bands Big Black and Shellac and was known for his innovative recording methods and controversial takes.
Many of those Albini worked with and who admired him have taken to social media to express their thoughts on his passing, with Nirvana posting the letter Albini sent them before commencing work on In Utero, detailing his recording process and the type of guy he was. RIP.
Jimmy Barnes and James Reyne headline Rock the Boat 2025
Music cruises are the in thing these days. From the KISS Kruise to the Monsters of Rock Cruise, sailing the seven seas while listening to live music is becoming more and more popular with American music audiences. Now Australians can experience the thrill of watching their favourite artists at sea with the Rock the Boat Cruise.
Returning in 2025 with a stacked lineup headlined by Jimmy Barnes and James Reyne, spend seven days sipping cocktails and listening to great Aussie bands while sailing the Coral Sea.
Also along for the ride are Ian Moss, Daryl Braithwaite, The Angels, Russell Morris, Glenn Shorrock & Brian Cadd, Mahalia Barnes, Chocolate Starfish, Thirsty Merc, Sarah McLeod and a host of cover bands, including Don’t Change – Ultimate INXS and Dirty Deeds.
Guests will depart from Sydney and spend seven days on the luxurious Carnival Luminosa, stopping in Noumea, New Caledonia and Mare, New Caledonia.
You can find all the details regarding Rock the Boat here.
blur announces new doco blur: to the end
Brit-pop marvels Blur have announced the release of a new documentary, blur: To The End.
Named after the band’s 1994 single, the doco focuses on the band’s most recent reunion and the recording of their 2023 album The Ballad of Darren, culminating in the massive sold-out shows they played at Wembley.
According to the official description of the doco accompanying the trailer, the film “follows the unique relationship of four friends — and bandmates of three decades — Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James, and Dave Rowntree as they came together in early 2023 to record new songs ahead of their sold-out, first ever shows at London’s Wembley Stadium in July last summer.”
blur: To The End will premier at the Sydney Film Festival this June before its wider release.
slash names his current favourite metal bands
In a recent interview with Ola Englund (founding member of Feared and lead guitar of Swedish metal band The Haunted) for his YouTube show Coffee With Ola, Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash revealed his current favourite metal bands.
Chatting with Englund about his forthcoming record, Orgy of the Dammed, Slash was asked what bands he is currently digging.
“AC/DC had a new record that was really good, Queens of the Stone Age have got a new record,” he said.
“I love Gojira, it’s great, and the new Metallica record [72 Seasons] is fucking amazing,” he added. He also gave props to Megadeth for their 2022 album The Sick, The Dying… and the Dead! and spotlighted Dirty Honey as ones to watch.
Orgy of the Dammed is set for release Friday, May 17. You can pre-order / pre-save the album here.
Fanning Dempsey National Park Share Debut Single 'Disconnect’
Last week former Powderfinger frontman Bernard Fanning and Something for Kate vocalist Paul Dempsey announced their new collaborative project Fanning Dempsey National Park.
Today the duo has shared the band’s first single, the lively saxophone heavy ‘Disconnect’. It’s certainly different from what most expected, something Dempsey acknowledged in a statement about the tune: “We agreed straight away there's no point doing something together if it's going to be what people think it's going to be. It’s not the two of us with acoustic guitars singing campfire songs.”
He added, “This started out with almost a gospel kinda feel, but over a few drafts, the drums got punchier, and the guitars got hookier, and then we started throwing horns at everything, and suddenly, the party was on.”
Fanning also gave his two cents on the song, saying “‘Disconnect’ always had a lot of ‘serious moonlight’ energy right from its beginnings.
“The swapping lead vocal plays with the idea of connecting and disconnecting by juxtaposing the confidence/ indecision with each consecutive line. We originally wanted to use sax on everything. After we roughly finished a demo, we’d say, ‘What else does it need?’ The answer was inevitably more sax.
While there is no news on an album yet, expect more details in the coming weeks.
trailer drops for Lollapalooza doco series
Lollapalooza is one of the world’s most successful festivals and for the first time fans can go behind the scenes of the iconic event with the Paramount+ documentary series, Lolla: The Story of Lollapalooza
Michael John Warren directs the three-part series that chronicles the history of founder Perry Farrell‘s 30-year creation, featuring interviews with Farrell, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, Ice-T, Chance the Rapper and more.
“When Lolla was launched in 1991, the concert industry felt like a boring car ride that was running out of gas,” Farrell said in a statement when the doco was first announced in February of last year.
“We pumped new life into the live music experience and set the foundation for the youth’s counter culture to become important and exciting again. Now more than three decades young, I am happy to have this opportunity to give people an inside look at the festival’s contribution to music history.”
Lolla: The Story of Lollapalooza is set to premiere on Paramount+ on Wednesday, May 22.
Friday Five
We like music. You like music. Here are five tracks we can’t get enough of this week.
1. Hinds ft. Beck – ‘Boom Boom Boom’
2. 1tbsp – ‘Limosina’
3. Fu Manchu – ‘The Return of Tomorrow’
4. Kakkmaddafakka - ‘Wickedest Game’
5. Mabel ft. Shygirl – ‘Look At My Body Pt. II’
