Kevin Parker acquires Wave House studios
Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker can work on his studio tan – he’s bought the Wave House recording studio in Yallingup, WA, for $2.75 million. Tame Impala famously recorded their 2010 album InnerSpeaker there, as well as parts of 2015’s breakthrough Currents.
Wave House was built in the 1980s in a rare 50-acre ocean front to the Indian Ocean and views of the Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park. It came with a 3-level main house for 12, and a 2-storey house for six. It also had a natural limestone ampitheatre famous for its spectacular acoustics and views. Among those who have previously recorded at Wave House include Beastie Boys, Eddie Vedder, The Waifs, Fat Freddy’s Drop and Fatboy Slim.
Another Australian songwriter has snagged a billion streams
Yet another Aussie songwriter has notched up 1 billion streams. The latest is Vassy, brought up in Darwin and now living in Los Angeles. She got it for French producer David Guetta and Dutch duo’s Showtek’s 2014 global hit ‘Bad’, on which she sings and co-wrote.
APRA AMCOS have previously established The 1,000,000,000 List to commemorate such an achievement. They include Tones And I, Troye Sivan, Gotye, Vamce Joy, Sia, Flume, Dean Lewis and 5 Seconds Of Summer, among others.
It’s getting more expensive to tour USA
It’s getting more expensive for musicians from Australia and other parts of the world to tour the US, the largest touring market in the world. In 2016, international musos had to pay 42% more for visas. Now, The Industry Observer reports that visas have been hiked 50% from October 2.
Filing fees for O visa petitions rise by 53% from US$460 to US$705 ($961) per petition, while filing fees for P visa petitions are up 51% from US$460 to US$695 ($947). From now on, only a maximum of 25 can be on a petition, and processing goes from 15 calendar days to 15 business days, which could be a problem if an Aussie act was offered an immediate US tour.
Laneway names for No Fixed Address + Richard Lane
Two pioneering rock acts are being honoured by their respective hometowns with their own lanes. The City of Adelaide has made ‘70s political reggae First Nations band No Fixed Address the fifth act to be honoured, joining the likes of Cold Chisel, The Angels, Paul Kelly and Sia. Lindes Lane of Rundle Mall will now become No Fixed Address Lane.
No Fixed Address formed in Adelaide after its members came from all around the country to study at the University of Adelaide’s Centre for Aboriginal Studies in Music. Songs like ‘We Have Survived’, Pigs’ and ‘40,000 Years’ about the black experience struck a chord with crowds of all colours and younger First Nation acts and were part of a rising tide of black consciousness.
Meanwhile, the City of Fremantle is considering renaming the thoroughfare behind historic Artillery Drill Hall ‘Richard Lane’. Lane who died in May was co-founder of The Stems, The Chevelles and The Rosebuds. The Drill Hall was home to music venues as the Fly-By-Night and now Freo Social. For a portion of time, the multi-instrumentalist leased Drill Hall for his music school.
Music Victoria up for global award
Music Victoria is one of three nominees for Best Global Music Office in the inaugural Music Cities Awards. It acknowledges the office that shows the greatest support for music, musicians and music businesses in their city as well as globally. MV is up against the Memphis Tourism Office and Vermont’s Big Heavy World. Winners will be announced on September 23 – head here for all the details.
Join the Support Act board
Support Act is looking for Expressions of Interest from suitably experienced people to be considered for appointment to the board of directors. They seeking directors with the following career profile and interests: Legal. Commercial and Business and Philanthropy.
Expressions of interest should be sent to [email protected] by COB Friday 18 September. If you would like to discuss this opportunity, contact Sally Howland (chair) on [email protected].
SCG Media Group expands
Brisbane-based media and publicity firm SCG Media has ramped up its media presence. The EDM & hip hop platform Purple Sneakers which it quietly bought in January has been given a facelift and slight editorial shift under long time editor Emma Jones.
At the same time, SCG has launched Countrytown, aimed at country music fans aged under 40 who’ll be looking for an alternative after Foxtel scrapped Country Music Channel.
AIR Awards announce Independent Label Of The Year nominees
Up for Independent Label Of The Year at the AIR awards on Thursday October 1 are ABC Music, Spinning Top Records, Elefant Traks, I OH YOU and Sweat It Out. The awards are held virtually at Lion Arts Factory in Adelaide and broadcast on YouTube – find out more here.
Study shows more Australians now appreciating the arts
Us Aussies are a creative lot: 98% engage with arts and culture. But a new study from the Australian Council of the Arts, Creating Our Future: Results of the National Arts Participation Survey, found that more are acknowledging (to 84% from 75% in 2016) the vital role it plays in almost every aspect of our lives, from education to mental health to strengthening local economies.
This includes the impact on child development (63%, up 13 percentage points), our sense of wellbeing and happiness (56%, up 11 percentage points), dealing with stress, anxiety or depression (56%, up 11 percentage points), understanding other people and cultures (60%, up eight percentage points), and bringing customers to local businesses (41%, up nine percentage points).
A growing majority of Australians (75%) feel that First Nations arts are an important part of Australia’s culture, and both attendance (32%) and interest (40%) are increasing. However only half feel First Nations arts are well represented.
Young people (15-24) are highly engaged, more likely than other age groups to recognise the impacts of the arts and creativity, and more willing to give time and money to the arts.
Support for public funding for the arts is strong and growing (63%, up 12 percentage points) and Australians have clear priorities for investment, including ensuring access to the arts and creative experiences for young people to support learning and development.
Never miss a story – sign up to our mailing address for all the latest news, reviews, giveaways and features.
