According to Mess and Noise, Claire Birchall is “a genuinely brilliant songwriter who should be lauded more frequently”.  She has so far released four incredibly diverse albums, including one by her full-tilt rock band Paper Planes (2008 ‘Paper Planes’).  A talented multi-instrumentalist and DIY enthusiast, Claire self-records, mixes, and plays the majority of the instruments on all of her solo albums.  She is now set to release her fourth, titled ‘Electricity’, due out this May.

Claire’s 4track recording obsession began when she was a teenager in the ‘90s.  To this day she continues to record all of her solo releases as such, with no plans of “going digital”.  Due to the many years of developing her recording craft she is capable of creating lush sounding albums that are far from “lo-fi”.  Her first solo album, 'This Gallery of Mine' (1999) was a cassette only release that circulated throughout the Geelong underground, gaining her some local cred, gigs and Geelong radio spots.  Her follow up, 2001’s ‘Captain Captain’, became a Melbourne community radio favourite, scoring a spot in Triple R’s Soundscape Top 10.  It’s intricately layered instrumentation and sweet vocal harmonies captured widespread interest and a host of fans.  'Gallery' and 'Captain' were belatedly officially released in 2013.  

Greatly admiring chameleon artists such as Neil Young and Beck, Claire likewise carries a minor aversion to sticking to the one sound for too long.  Although she loved fronting Paper Planes, whose successes included the critically acclaimed self-titled album (“Words fail me. Perfect.” – M&N), when they suddenly disbanded, she seized the opportunity to take a new path.  As Claire told an interviewer in 2013, “I'd been doing the Paper Planes indie rock thing for a long time [and] you start getting in a bit of a box in terms of what songs you can do. I had been really neglecting my home-recording stuff too.”  For the next few months she chronicled a new collection of songs with the help of her Casio keyboard, guitars, and army of effects pedals.  What resulted was the album ‘PP’, “an extraordinary mélange of basic beats, distorted keyboard and guitar, and pop songs of exceptional resilience” (M&N), worthy of being “a serious contender for the best of 2012” (Lorraine Crescent).  Her cover of The Bangles ‘Manic Monday’ was a Triple R Breakfasters staple for endless weeks.  

With her 4tracking fixation reignited by ‘PP’, Claire instantly moved on to recording new songs.  Two years later, ‘Electricity’, was finally complete.  In the artist’s words, “I’ve got finicky with this new album ... every time I record a new song, I think ‘Oh, that’s actually better than one I thought was good enough.’... I’ve been using my loop pedal a bit, I’ve mixed things up … between loops – fuzzy guitar – but it’s also got a bit of a country vibe.  It’s different from PP; not as much drums”.   An incredible amount of instrumental tracking was done for record, producing a dramatic wall of sound.  As for the mood, Greg Wadley, who mastered the album, said it “sounds like Coburg”.  Most would likely place the album under the indie-rock banner, but from the country stylings of ‘Maryjane’ to the self-proclaiming ‘Rock and Roll Girl’, gloomy ‘80s pop inspired ‘Lucky Charm’, and noise guitar driven ‘Magnetic Field’, ‘Electricity’ proves that Claire is an artist that can cross a variety of genres with ease.

In mid-2014 Claire put together a new band, Claire Birchall & the Phantom Hitchhikers, featuring Bec Birchall (Paper Planes) on keys/vocals, Pete Azzopardi (The Coves/The Happy Lonesome) on bass/vocals, Jarrod Brown (The Coves) on drums, and Matthew Green (The Happy Lonesome) on harmonica.  Birchall & the Hitchhikers have been lurking around the last few months playing songs from ‘Electricity’ and Claire’s previous work in preparation for the album release.  They’ve found an immediate chemistry, and all agree this is a band that was meant to play together.



No accurate depiction of electronic music culture would be complete without special mention of Deborah De Luca. Widely acknowledged as one of the most prominent flag-bearers for Techno globally and a regular fixture inside the world’s most distinguished DJ booths, Deborah has the unique ability to transfix crowds with her electrically charged, technically nuanced sets, fusing hard techno with minimal grooves and melodic soundscapes to absorbing effect. A pioneer in the use of social networks as a promotional tool, whilst somehow managing to retain a strong sense of discretion in her private life, Deborah is unrivalled in her determination and passion, earning every part of her current status as one of the most exciting talents to emerge from the international Techno scene over the past decade.
Born under the shade of the infamous Vele di Scampia – one of the toughest districts in Naples – the now-globally recognised DJ, producer and label head came from humble beginnings, forging her path to international success against unlikely odds. However this was to become her making. “You shouldn’t let anybody tell you what you can or can’t become”, she expounded in a rare interview, referencing her early livelihood as a nightclub dancer. “It’s true, in recent years I have gained popularity, but I am very grateful for the long journey it’s taken”. More than anything else, Deborah’s roots and her unwavering ethic are an integral part of the flourishing artist we see before us today.
Deborah spent the formative years of her musical career in Northern Italy, following a brief stint at fashion school in Modena. Cutting her teeth on the European club circuit, where she quickly realised music was her true calling, Deborah’s hard work and relentless determination eventually began to pay off and in 2013 she launched her very own imprint Sola_mente Records. Created as a platform by which to release her own music, free from creative pressure and external constraints, the label went from strength to strength and in November 2018, Deborah marked a decade-long career in the industry with the critically acclaimed release of her debut album ‘Ten’. A huge milestone for the Italian producer, ‘Ten’ represented an important rite of passage and a body of work that she would cherish indefinitely.

Bookings Australia (Andrew)
andrew@morningafteragency.com.au
Bookings International (Sally) 
booking@db-booking.com

❖Vapour
❖Sudbeat
❖Bedrock
❖Meanwhile
❖Selador
❖The Soundgarden
❖Balance

https://linktr.ee/kaseyvapour

One of the most loved and respected names in the Australian dance music industry, Kasey Taylor made his mark in his hometown of Melbourne before John Digweed scouted him in the mid-nineties on his first trip to Australia where Kasey was playing the warm up set for him. It was that warm up where he gained Digweed’s instant respect and shortly after he invited Kasey to play at his infamous Bedrock night in London. That was the catalyst for Taylor to take his sound to a global audience, leading to international exposure and a permanent move to Europe to satiate the demands of his worldwide bookings that followed.

Kasey is the creative power behind the highly revered Vapour Recordings, the 25-year old mainstay which was founded in 1997 and is over 160 releases deep and still going strong.

More recently Kasey has gone through a massive personal and creative resurgence. The recently rebranded Vapour Recordings is on a roll again with the label releasing regularly after a 2 year break due to the pandemic. The standard of the releases is and has always been what makes the label stand out from the rest, with names like Guy J, Hernan Cattaneo, Gai Barone, Stereo Underground, Jamie Stevens, Nick Warren, Dousk, James Monro, Mike Rish, GMJ, D-Nox & Beckers and many more high profile artists all appearing on the label. With an armoury of names like that, it’s easy to see why Vapour creates
excitement with the scene’s biggest players.

On a more recent production level, Kasey’s releases and remixes have appeared on labels such as Sudbeat, The Soundgarden, Bedrock as well as his very own label Vapour Recordings. Kasey has a ton of releases and remixes in the pipeline as well as some exciting collaborations with some of the worlds finest producers as he continues his drive to making quality productions to raise the hands of his beloved loyal followers on dance floors all over the world.

Behind the decks, Kasey is a fan favourite at all the clubs and festivals in his hometown of Australia as well as on a global scale too. He’s played and supported alongside all the industry greats you can think of and is one of the very few that can captivate an audience with his combination of versatility, patience and experience which allows him to move through a variety of genres from deep house to techno with his perfect attention to detail and immaculate programming.

With his finger well and truly on the pulse, Kasey has an ear for a great tune and is always looking to the future, and that future is set for one of Australia’s most popular dance music artists and exports to continue his already well decorated career well into the future.

I am a singer-songwriter, I like to write songs about my hometown, and the characters I have met along the way. I am influenced by the blues and folk as well as indie and the 90s.

hi there! im tahlz and i really like music a whole lot.

falconio is following