Songwriter/DJ/Multi-Instrumentalist Lucas James' debut LP, ‘Long Way Back Down’ was self released in 2016. The album features a wide mixture of influences and styles with an emphasis on power pop and bluesy soul. Self produced and recorded/performed mainly by James on a laptop in his spare room, it was mixed by Andrija Tokic ( Alabama Shakes, Benjamin Booker ). Singles 'It's A Natural Thing' and 'I Can't Cry' followed showcasing a more fuzzy garage/pop-rock sound. In 2021 James released the album 'Bad Business' with band in tow under the name Midnight Drags. Latest single 'Obsession' features less of the power-pop, fuzz-heavy sound, showcasing a slicker more pop-funk electronic vibe.

Australian female poet, singer-songwriter, artist and dreamer, Camille captures this revolving world through a kaleidoscope lens. From the perspective of female poet, Camille takes the picturesque landscape of life and holds a microscope to it, unveiling the complex political, social and environmental issues suffocating humanity, and transforms those images into narratives where poetry and music collide. 

Originally from Byron Bay and currently living in Melbourne, Camille made her musical debut with the haunting ‘A little gypsy song’ followed up by the feminist anthem ’…Because I was born a girl’, both receiving a warm reception from radio stations and publications.

VANCRYNES is the musical alter-ego of Angelo Saridis, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer from South Gippsland, Australia. His music spans the genre spectrum with roots in early punk and post punk and a solid grounding in 90s alternative rock, his music fuses these influences.
" I sometimes imagine Paul Dempsey and Tim Rogers had a love child with Black Francis and Kim Gordon as the godparents and Johny Marr as the favourite uncle...somewhere in that mix is where VANCRYNES lives"

Exploring themes that are predominantly a shared introspective reflection, there is a happy sad dynamic and a nostalgic sensibility to all the songs.  'I'm trying to share what's anxiety provoking for adults...and show that none of us really have our shit together...but at times there's something beautiful about admitting our failings and insecurities'.

VANCRYNES is guitar driven, sweat soaked and authentic music that comes from the heart.

VANCRYNES is committed to capturing the immediacy of the songwriting process and moves quickly to capture songs as the moments of creation are fleeting 'I just want to get a general sense of the song recorded and move on to the next one.  If the songwriting is strong enough, then I hope it will carry through the more casual production approach.  My production is very loose'.  

Keeping it fresh and committed to the creative practice of songwriting, VANCRYNES sticks to a blistering regime of writing, producing and releasing with more than 100 songs completed in 2022 and that frenetic pace continues today.  'To quote the famous philosopher Lloyd Christmas...I can't stop once I've started....it stings'

Rock/Power-Pop/Fuzz

Following on from his debut 2016 record,
Long Way Back Down, Melbourne-based singer-songwriter Lucas James returns in 2021 with a new project, Midnight Drags, and a new album Bad Business, his second full-length LP and first offering with a full band in tow.
Co-produced by esteemed Australian guitarist Ashley Naylor (Even, Paul Kelly) and mixed by prolific engineer Matt Wallace (Faith No More, The Replacements, Maroon 5), Bad
Business shows James at the apex of his songwriting career and marks as his most expansive release to date.
A punchy, nine-track record of guitar-driven power-pop hooks and soaring alt-rock riffs,
the album pays tribute to the pop-rock stylings of the ‘70s and ‘80s, where melody and lush compositions were situated front and centre beside commanding guitars and monstrous pop hooks.
A fuzzed-up rock’n’roll album at its core, Bad Business combines the multitude of influences James acquired from an infatuation with all kinds of guitar-heavy pop music, spanning Bowie to Cheap Trick, The Knack to The
Cars and beyond.
While the early focus for James was to write songs destined for other musicians rather than occupy the spotlight himself, it was only a matter of time before he would begin to crave making music of his own, his own way.
Widely recognised as a sought-after studio engineer by day who spent most of his time in the orbit of extraordinarily accomplished session musicians, the desire to produce his own record with a full band became too strong to ignore, and he got to work writing the album tracks, while assembling a dream cast of top- tier players to collaborate with.
Stream album here
Lyrically, Bad Business is ostensibly grim, filled with a combination of fictitious and real-life tales drawn from the debris of a hardened life. Residues of personal challenges and fragments of real-world experiences are formed into snapshots of torment, gnawing self-loathing, failure, addiction and lovesick
criminals. Yet despite the lyric’s relatively ugly subject matter and ominous undertones, the album’s music is disarmingly upbeat and optimistic. Infectious power-pop hooks swell alongside bonafide alt-rock riffs and stand-out vocals, while Ashley Naylor’s masterful guitar work sits neatly alongside Brett Wolfenden’s (Todd Rundgren, Wolfmother) expert drumming and stomping basslines courtesy of both Warren Booth (The Good China) and Australia’s illustrious bassist Bill
McDonald (Stephen Cummings, Angie Hart).
With engineer Wez Prictor manning the desks and Naylor running the show, the band tracked the songs to a 2” tape in James’ studio, before laying down his vocals and meddling with guitar overdubs. From there, James spent the next few months tinkering with the mix, and upon adding striking flourishes of piano and string sections to the album, the record was complete. The result is a 30-minute collection of expertly arranged tracks that deviate between sizzling power-pop melodies, stadium-sized rock’n’roll burners, earnestly delivered, down-tempo numbers and swirling guitar-laden instrumental epics.

Followers of Midnight Drags