Hugo Stranger and the Rattlers are so prolific that I can barely keep up with their material. They released their instrumental surf rock track “Go, Rattlers, Go!” on Halloween, and they’ve already got another tune for us, “Set Me Free.” Quantity doesn’t mean sacrificing quality for this local act. “Set Me Free” is among my favourite Hugo Stranger and the Rattlers’ songs.
“I guess it’s about wanting to be better,” explained the band’s frontman, Tom Harrison. “Knowing and being self-conscious that you haven’t been.”
Hugo Stranger and the Rattlers will celebrate the release of “Set Me Free” with a double set show at Bearded Lady in Kurilpa/West End on Sunday 17 November. It all kicks off at 2 pm and tickets are $10 at the door.
Image used with permission from Hugo Stranger and the Rattlers
Releasing new music during a pandemic presents a challenge, but Melbourne soul-pop act Kinkora won’t let the virus slow her career down. She recently dropped a brand-new single “Set Me Free,” and it’s got just the kind of upbeat vibes we all need right now.
“Set Me Free is about being in a relationship with someone that you know isn’t good for you, but feeling trapped and unable to find a way out. It’s about that toxic, helpless kind of love that keeps pulling you back in,” Kinkora explained. “Whilst I wrote the song over a year ago, the release has coincided with the current shared experience we have of feeling confined – so I think everyone will be able to relate to the general sentiment of wanting to be set free in some way!”
It sounds so slick, but Kinkora actually recorded the song in her bedroom before letting master mixer Matthew Hadley work his magic. Recording the video took some lateral thinking, but it’s pretty brilliant. Check out the clip which sees Kinkora’s dancing flash mob unexpectedly crashing some Zoom calls.
“It was a massive project to coordinate. Each of the dancers learnt the dance via video and we had one run through on Zoom. On the day of the flash mob we used a group text to send cues such as “Go Group 1”, “Go Group 2” etc to notify the dancers to enter the zoom call at the right moment – the whole thing was done completely live. It was chaotic but absolutely hilarious.”
“Set Me Free” is the first of several songs Kinkora will release this year and into 2021, so watch this space!
Image used with permission from Kinkora; photo credit: Naomi Lee Beveridge
Few artists invest as much in their creative vision as Israel Cannan. We saw him write, engineer, and play all the instruments on his sophomore album Walk. So now it’s out, you’d think the hard work would be over, right? Not a chance.
Israel’s just released a new single “Set Me Free” and to promote it he’s made this music video. For most artists that simply means time in front of the camera, but that’s too easy. Israel actually directed and edited the film clip too. Is there anything he can’t do?
Apparently not, because now we’ll see him setting off on his first national tour. It all kicks off this Friday in Adelaide. Tickets are available now from the venues for the following shows. If he puts as much work into those gigs as he does everything else, they’re going to be pretty spectacular.
25 February 2011 – Fringe Festival, Adelaide
26 February 2011 – The Exeter Hotel, Adelaide
27 February 2011 – La Mar Sundays, Adelaide
1 March 2011 – Mojo’s, Fremantle
3 March 2011 – The Raval, Sydney
18 March 2011 – The Front Gallery, Canberra
19 March 2011 – Bertha Brown, Melbourne
25 March 2011 – Gallery, Forster
26 March 2011 – The Loft, Gold Coast
15 April 2011 – The Entrance Leagues Club, Bateau Bay
