Photos of Loaded and True by Anthea at a house show in Bulli and a pub show in Moruya at The Monarch Hotel on the South Coast NSW
Dec 30, 2024
Dec 11, 2024
HOT PALMS, 2012
This was the first time Hot Palms played. It was a gig at The Empress Hotel in Fitzroy North, Melbourne, in 2012. Emma Russack played guitar, Jake Phillips played bass and I played guitar and foot drums. It was the launch of the first self titled Hot Palms CD-R EP, and Mole House with Michael Zuliki (Albert's Basement), Carla dal Forno and Pat Breen also played. Maybe J. A. Core (Soda Eaves) played too?
Breaker
Lehmann B. Smith, of Kes Band and many other great bands, made a beautiful record with Joe Alexander, Jake Core, Emma Russack and myself in 2021. Here it is
Dec 10, 2024
BLUE RIDERS, FEB 2025
Blue Riders will play Wednesday 26 February at Franks Wild Years in Thirroul, opening for Nebraska based songwriter Simon Joyner, with his Australian backing band The Eucalypts. The Eucalypts are Michael Beach, Leah Senior and Jesse Williams.
Purchase tickets from https://events.humanitix.com/simon-joyner-usa-at-franks-wild-years
Dec 9, 2024
NORTHERN RIVERS SHOW, JAN 2025
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MELB 2022
Here's a photo of us playing in Melbourne at the old John Curtin Hotel, across the road from the Victoria Trades Hall Council. This was November 2022. We played a bunch of instrumentals before Emma Russack jumped up to sing a Deaf Wish cover with us - Not By Myself.
L to R: Jake Core, Snowy, Joe Alexander, Oliver Mestitz, Lehmann Smith & Alec.
It was a false alarm in the end, the pub is still open and hosting live bands today.
L to R: Jake Core, Snowy, Joe Alexander, Oliver Mestitz, Lehmann Smith & Alec.
NSW TOUR, NOVEMBER 2024
NEW WEIRD AUSTRALIA COMPILATION, JUNE 2024
There's a live recording called Last Place on the New Weird Australia compilation, Worlds Only World. Last Place was recorded live at The Wine Cellar in Auckland, NZ/Aotearoa, during a week long tour in March 2024. It was our first show, supporting Mess Esque and Pumice. We went on to play another bar and a cafe on the north island, then we played two sets on the ferry between the north island and the south island, then two sets at a church on the south island. It was a beautiful time.
Compiled by 'transient ambient' group Worlds Only, featuring 24 tracks of post-genre experimentation with debut collaborations, one-off matchups, spin-offs, and rarities. All proceeds from the release on all platforms will be donated to organisations delivering mutual aid on the ground in Palestine, and to recently settled Palestinian refugees.
Worlds Only is a transient ambient group. The term is vague, specific, metaphorical and literal depending on what day it is. More than anything, it’s a way to play, listen and share music with a group that feels bigger than any individual. It’s about the space in between people, cultures, identities, the physical and spiritual worlds, what is in our control and isn’t, and personal transcendence that is invisible to the public eye.
During Worlds Only’s formation, Darren (Lesaguis) mentioned that when he thought about the ambient music we would make, his mind naturally veered toward colder, more isolated sounds, and he was surprised as to how warm our music was. This warmth is a defining element that ties the relationships between each artist within the group, and the expanded universe of friends, comrades, local icons and lifelong influences who contributed to this compilation. Tom (T. Morimoto) may have been joking when he suggested calling it “Worlds Only Extended Universe”, but it truly distils the intricate web of relationships that connect us all musically and humanly.
The group of artists here do not represent a specific scene, but collectively reflects a particular mindset that embraces ambiguity, values integrity, distorts the idea of what constitutes experimental music, blurs traditional songwriting vs improvisation, complicates Australian identity, stretches how melodic and rhythmic ambient music can be, and celebrates the transient ambient nature of how our lives intertwine.
On 'Worlds Only World', you will find 24 tracks featuring all new music, debut collaborations, one-off matchups, spin-offs, and rarities dug up and polished off from hard drives and archives. For each artist and track, we have tried to provide some musical and social context to the artist, the accompanying music, and why they are here. Thank you for being here.
Worlds Only is a transient ambient group. The term is vague, specific, metaphorical and literal depending on what day it is. More than anything, it’s a way to play, listen and share music with a group that feels bigger than any individual. It’s about the space in between people, cultures, identities, the physical and spiritual worlds, what is in our control and isn’t, and personal transcendence that is invisible to the public eye.
During Worlds Only’s formation, Darren (Lesaguis) mentioned that when he thought about the ambient music we would make, his mind naturally veered toward colder, more isolated sounds, and he was surprised as to how warm our music was. This warmth is a defining element that ties the relationships between each artist within the group, and the expanded universe of friends, comrades, local icons and lifelong influences who contributed to this compilation. Tom (T. Morimoto) may have been joking when he suggested calling it “Worlds Only Extended Universe”, but it truly distils the intricate web of relationships that connect us all musically and humanly.
The group of artists here do not represent a specific scene, but collectively reflects a particular mindset that embraces ambiguity, values integrity, distorts the idea of what constitutes experimental music, blurs traditional songwriting vs improvisation, complicates Australian identity, stretches how melodic and rhythmic ambient music can be, and celebrates the transient ambient nature of how our lives intertwine.
On 'Worlds Only World', you will find 24 tracks featuring all new music, debut collaborations, one-off matchups, spin-offs, and rarities dug up and polished off from hard drives and archives. For each artist and track, we have tried to provide some musical and social context to the artist, the accompanying music, and why they are here. Thank you for being here.
RIVER OF NO RETURN
HIDDENNESS SONG, 2009
THIRROUL SHOW 9/5/24
Blue Divers plays Franks Wild Years on Thursday 9 May with Merryn Jeann. You can purchase tickets to the event here: https://events.humanitix.com/merryn-jeann-blue-divers-at-franks-wild-years. Flyer by Merryn.
THE BUNG NOTE CHOIR, AUSTRALIAN SUMMER 2022
TOKYO 26/11/23
Some photos from when we played 2 sets at Haru no ame 春の雨 cafe in Togoshi / Nakanobu, Tokyo, then went to an Okinawan Izakaya on Tex's recommendation.
BLOSSOM BUDDIES COMPILATION, MARCH 2024
Blossom Rot Records released the Blossom Buddies II mixtape on International Women's Day, with all proceeds during the month of March going to the PCRF. Blue Divers contributed a sleepy instrumental recorded spontaneously in Bulli while dinner was being prepared.
Annabel: synth, percussion
Annabel: synth, percussion
Georgia: harmonica
Jes: percussion
Jack: cooking
Jack: synth
Alec: guitar
AOTEAROA TOUR FINISHED, MARCH 2024
On Wednesday night we played the Wine Cellar in Auckland, opening for Mess Esque and Pumice who were both so great. It was a big deal seeing Pumice for the first time, after being a fan for 15 years.
We played a mostly instrumental set, ending on a cover of Prince Of Thieves by The Garbage & The Flowers, sung by Annabel. We met original drummer Torben Tilly after the set, who we didn't know was in attendance before playing.
We drove to Kirikiriroa the next day, an inland city by the Waikato River on the North Island. Brandon De La Cruz joined. It was pretty by the river. Sam walked in off the street not knowing what was on and ended up buying two records and having us sign them - Sam was a legend.
We drove to Levin, where we played two sets at Firebird Cafe, one instrumental, and one a spontaneous mix of covers and original songs with singing. Annabel, Jake and Oliver had a sing. Levin is a service centre for the surrounding rural area, a town by Lake Harowhenua and not far from the Tasman Sea. We stayed at a winery and wished we could have had a day off here.
We got up early to get to Wellington to board the Kaitaki, The Interislander ferry, that would get us across the Cook Strait. We had heard about the deal where you play a couple sets onboard the ferry and you get a free pass. I also knew The Garbage & The Flowers had played it, and recently discovered that Bonnie Prince Billy had played one of his favourite gigs on this ferry in the early 2000s. We played a couple instrumental sets through my mini battery powered PA speaker and managed to sell a couple of records to unsuspecting travellers.
There was then a long drive down the East Coast of the South Island to get to Lyttelton on time for our first set at the Port Noise Festival later that same day. Lyttelton is a small and sleepy historical port town at the northwestern end of Banks Peninsula. It is a beautiful place. We set up in the Union Chapel and played 2x 20min sets with a break between them. These sets were part of the secret shows lineup of the festival, so we played to two different audiences that didn't know what they were attending. I like to think they liked it.
Coolies were playing down the road shortly after our sets. We got in the pit and they were incredible.
We played a mostly instrumental set, ending on a cover of Prince Of Thieves by The Garbage & The Flowers, sung by Annabel. We met original drummer Torben Tilly after the set, who we didn't know was in attendance before playing.
We drove to Kirikiriroa the next day, an inland city by the Waikato River on the North Island. Brandon De La Cruz joined. It was pretty by the river. Sam walked in off the street not knowing what was on and ended up buying two records and having us sign them - Sam was a legend.
Coolies were playing down the road shortly after our sets. We got in the pit and they were incredible.
AOTEAROA / NZ TOUR 2024
We play with Mess Esque and Pumice in Auckland, some free 2-setters in Hamilton and Levin, an early morning set on the ferry to the South Island, then some *secret* sets at the Port Noise Festival in Lyttleton.
Wed 6 Mar
The Wine Cellar, Auckland
w/ Mess Esque + Pumice
tickets via the venue
Thu 7 Mar
Last Place Bar, Hamilton
*two sets* from 8pm
free / koha
Fri 8 Mar
Firebird Cafe, Levin
*two sets* from 7pm
free / koha
Sat 9 Mar
The Interislander ‘Kaitaki’
Wellington to Picton
8.45am
Sat 9 Mar
Port Noise Festival, Lyttleton
*secret shows*
GIG, 06/01/24
Blue Divers play Petersham Bowlo in Sydney on Saturday arvo 06/01/24 with Monica Brooks, Rory J S, Hugh B + Modern Pop Ensemble plus DJs Eddy Diamond, Cousin and Jon Watts. We will play at 14:30.
NSW/QLD DEC 2022
Towards the end of 2022 we went on the road to play shows with our friends Dag, Stefan Blair and a bunch of other bands in Melbourne, Kyneton, Beechworth, Milton, Nowra, Thirroul, Sydney, Newcastle, Broadwater, Coorabell and Brisbane. The end of the tour, in the Northern Rivers of NSW and up to Brisbane, felt special. By that point Blue Divers and Dag, with Stefan too, were different bands with the same members - a tight knit unit, shifting around on instruments depending on who's turn it was to play. We also learnt many covers as The Bung Note Choir when the time was right for playing songs people knew.
Dag, Blue Divers & Stefan Blair
Happy Sun House, Broadwater NSW / Thu 15 Dec, 2022
Dag, Blue Divers & Stefan Blair
Coorabell Hall, Coorabell NSW / Fri 16 Dec 2022
Dag, Blue Divers, Stefan Blair & Plainer
Driveway Show in West End, Brisbane / Sun 18 Dec 2022
JAPAN NOV/DEC 2023
We are in Japan to work on material and record for the third album. We played some music in Matsumoto and Tokyo.
Give Me Little More 24/11/23, Matsumoto, Nagano w/ ナライガワ製作所, The Yamadas & DJ Sakura Fantasma. I particularly liked Sakura's droney cassette DJ sets. We played as a duo - Alec and Jake. Then we played Haru No Ame, an ambient focused record shop/cafe. Haru No Ame 26/11/23, Tokyo. Alec solo set, followed by 4 piece band set w/ Alec, Jake, Ashley & Andy.
The scores are always layered like Gothic architecture, one layer must be left open for refugees and terrorists. If the song died by doing so, it is its life until then.
- Tori Kudo, Maher Shalal Hash Baz
I am collecting Japanese music on CD and vinyl. Maher Shalal Hash Baz is proving to be a great inspiration in music making at this time.
Give Me Little More 24/11/23, Matsumoto, Nagano w/ ナライガワ製作所, The Yamadas & DJ Sakura Fantasma. I particularly liked Sakura's droney cassette DJ sets. We played as a duo - Alec and Jake. Then we played Haru No Ame, an ambient focused record shop/cafe. Haru No Ame 26/11/23, Tokyo. Alec solo set, followed by 4 piece band set w/ Alec, Jake, Ashley & Andy.
The scores are always layered like Gothic architecture, one layer must be left open for refugees and terrorists. If the song died by doing so, it is its life until then.
- Tori Kudo, Maher Shalal Hash Baz
I am collecting Japanese music on CD and vinyl. Maher Shalal Hash Baz is proving to be a great inspiration in music making at this time.
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