STRAIGHT ARROWS

STRAIGHT ARROWS

23 01 2025

Straight Arrows

(Sydney, AUSTRALIA // Agitated Records)

Watching Australia’s Straight Arrows in concert stirs a visceral reaction. Throbbing, sweating, pulsating urgently across the stage, delivering melodious hits with an unrelenting, volatile energy before a final climactic burst, departing the podium and leaving a riled-up audience to contend with whatever lesser events the remainder of their night may hold.

On record, Straight Arrows offer perhaps a little more nuance. Sure, the urgency and buzzing 60s punk-inspired energy is well and truly present, but this mingles with moments of the other-worldly and the truly sublime, across an array of eclectically influenced tunes. Amongst the brilliant chaos lie a few calm, introspective moments before the band subjects the dear listener to another catchy, melodious blast, relentless hooks still trailing through one’s mind.

Just ask fans like Henry Rollins, Iggy Pop, or John Dwyer, the former two gladly hawking the group on their radio shows, whilst the latter gleefully dragging the band across Australia and the USA in support of his latest opus.

Along with Oh Sees, Straight Arrows have shared stages with many friends and heroes: The Buzzcocks, The Sonics, Ty Segall, Black Lips, Jay Reatard, Deerhunter, and the New York Dolls – when the best in the biz hit Australia, they know who to call! 

At home they’ve appeared at the Hoodoo Gurus’ curated festival Dig It Up! as well as under the dome at the world-renowned Sydney Opera House as part of their hometown’s Vivid Festival. 

Not wanting to leave anyone out, they’ve also proselytised the good word abroad, having toured the UK/EU and the USA widely on numerous occasions and been invited to play at Memphis’ legendary GonerFest.

After 11 45s, three albums plus a live LP – released across the USA, the UK and Europe on labels like Goodbye Boozy, Hozac, Spacecase, Agitated, Rice Is Nice, Budget Living and RIP Society – 2024 will see Straight Arrows thrust their fourth album across the globe, and what a feast it is! Entrées in the likes of the resoundingly rapid Fast Product, and the kaleidoscopic psychedelic blast of Walkin Thru My Mind have already delighted underground radio presenters, and audiences across the globe. Just wait until they hear the whole thing!

Straight Arrows’ album number four will be available worldwide on record in May 2024, out on Rice Is Nice (Australia), Agitated (UK & EU) and Lollipop Records (North America).

« Straight Arrows: the fuzziest, most catchiest, escapist, good-times vending, rapscallion trampoline shiners this side of the Murray River” – John Dwyer 

“A new Straight Arrows record is always something to look forward to. What a great band.” – Henry Rollins

 

 

 

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CLAMM

CLAMM

23 01 2025

CLAMM

(MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA // MEAT MACHINE/ CHAPTER MUSIC)

Melbourne punk trio CLAMM explore the confusion of what it is to be a young person trying to live an honourable life in this fucked up world. Their songs are about trying to navigate systems of power and oppression while retaining a healthy sense of self and mental health. Community, creativity, and catharsis are what they hope to achieve through their music.

They released second album Care in August 2022, via Australian indie institution Chapter Music and UK label Meat Machine. Full of blown-out, dystopian punk power, Care found Double J rotation, was feature album on RRR, PBS, ZZZ, and saw the band score a Spotlight Artist feature on BBC 6 Music with Steve Lamacq. The album reached #4 in the AIR Charts and #19 in the ARIA Australian Albums charts and was written up by the likes of Chicago Reader, NME, Paste, Music Feeds, DIY Mag and Dusted.

CLAMM’s 2020 debut album Beseech Me was a Triple R and FBI Radio feature album and sold out its original cassette pressing almost immediately. It was reissued on vinyl in 2021 by Meat Machine (renowned as the home for Canadian art-punk provocateurs Crack Cloud), which saw CLAMM featured on the cover of French
Rolling Stone and played on BBC 6 Music.

In Australia the band has played with Wolf Alice, Ty Segall, King Gizzard, Amyl & the Sniffers, the Chats and the Murlocs, and played festivals like Melbourne Music Week, Tentpole and Do the Pop. CLAMM toured UK/Europe in August 2022, again in February 2023 for shows with A Place To Bury Strangers and
Preoccupations, and return for a run of UK/Europe summer festival shows in May 2023 including Wide Awake, Levitation and Badd Bonn.

In late 2022 bassist Maisie Everett departed the band, and new member Stella Rennex (Parsnip, Thibault, The Toads) joined the fold.

“CLAMM may not be the first group to venture out into the fuzzy Australian wilderness, but…they might just be the best.” – DIY Mag
“CLAMM’s storm of cathartic energy disguises how intricately constructed the songs are…both exhilarating and engaging.” – All Music

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DION LUNADON

DION LUNADON

23 01 2025

DION LUNADON

(New York, USA // In The Red Records)

Born in Auckland, New Zealand and now residing in New York City, Dion has played in various bands, most notably The D4, who released two albums on legendary New Zealand label Flying Nun Records and A Place To Bury Strangers, appearing and writing on their studio albums Worship (2012) Transfixiation (2015) and Pinned (2018) as well as numerous singles and EPs. He also played in the formidable Flowers Of Evil beside members of Crocodiles.

While taking a break from touring with A Place To Bury Strangers, Lunadon recorded a self-titled solo album encompassing all that he loves about rock ’n’ roll. Previewed by the single »Com/Broke, » Lunadon’s LP arrived in 2017 on Agitated Records.

Just as the pandemic hit early 2020, Lunadon decided to leave A Place To Bury Strangers and focus on his own music. In June 2020, he released the song “When Will I Hold You Again”, a duet with Kate Clover, and September 2020 saw the release of the “Schreien” EP.

In 2021 he put a band together to give his songs life and in 2022 Henry Rollins got him in touch with In The Red Records who released his sophomore album Beyond Everything.

November 14th 2023 saw In The Red releasing his 3rd album, Systems Edge.

 

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STIFF RICHARDS

STIFF RICHARDS

23 01 2024

Stiff Richards

(Melbourne, Australia // Legless Records)

 Possibly the gnarliest thing to come out of Rye since ergot poisoning: Stiff Richards.

Straight out of the shed into your head, it’s riff-ready, pugilistic punk rock. Scorching licks, no bullshit tricks. Skin-prickling, face-melting, teeth-gritting, savage rock ’n’ roll. Three records deep on Legless, Stiff Richards is a State Of Mind. Five super garage punks, invoking all the slippery pit ghosts that came before them. Blasting the spiders from the rotting rafters, these vibrations will elicit sensations from Australia to Belgium.