Ten Peel Artists head to Fairbridge Village to Record ‘Demos from Peel’
We’re excited to showcase a fresh selection of regionally-based talent, announcing the ten Peel region artists selected to take part in WAM’s Demos from Peel regional recording project, and feature on the upcoming compilation set to record in Fairbridge Village this March.
The high quality of applications received for the project is testament to the talent throughout the region, and made for a difficult selection process. The successful acts were chosen to provide a snap-shot of the varying ages, musical genres and geographical locations of artists within the region, enabling the compilation to capture the multiplicity of stories, experiences and musical contributions the region has to offer.
The artists selected for the project include Applejack & Moonshine (Mandurah), Kindred Spirits (Dwellingup), Groves (Boddington), Technicolour Dream Machine (Coodanup), Liam Dawes (Waroona), My Shadow and I (Mandurah), The Skeleton Collective (Byford), Imogen Morgan (Boddington), Anika Louise (Falcon) and Violet Orange (Greenfields).
The historic Fairbridge Village in the Shire of Murray will play home to WAM’s pop up studio for two weeks in March as the artists record their original songs. Most recognisable as the home of the much-loved Fairbridge Festival now entering it’s 28th year, the heritage listed site was established in 1912 by Kingsley and Ruby Fairbridge as the world’s first – and only remaining – Fairbridge Farm School for emigrated youth. Over 3,500 children were housed at the school between 1913 and its closure in 1982, with the original buildings and site playing a significant role in West Australia’s post-colonisation architectural, cultural and migrant history.
The ten acts will be working alongside renowned sound engineers and producers, including Matt Gio and Dan Carroll of Rada Studios, Debaser Studio’s Andy Lawson, with Ryan Brennan and national hip-hop legend Dazastah dropping by as guest producers.
Demos from Peel forms the third of nine regional projects set to record up to 90 regional artists across WA’s nine regions in the next three years. So far, WAM’s regional recording projects have uncovered 110 songs from 48 regional centres across the state. The songs have received radio airplay across the country, been distributed on over 28 000 compilations CDs and garnered over 120,000 plays on streaming platforms. The previous compilations, Demos from The Wheatbelt and Demos from the Northern Goldfields can be heard here. A deeper dive into WAM’s regional recording history can be found here.
OUR PEEL ARTISTS
Anika Louise is a 15 year-old singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Falcon. Anika first picked up a guitar at the age of 9 and began writing and performing pop, country and rock inspired tunes. Anika was a finalist in the 2019 Fairbridge Festival Songwriting Quest, a nominee for the 2019 WAM Song of the Year Award and took out second place in the Act-Belong-Commit Breakthrough music competition in 2019.
Applejack & Moonshine are a four-piece rockabilly band from Mandurah that have carved their own path in the Australian Americana scene. Since releasing their debut record ‘Deep, Dark, Down’ in mid 2018, the band have fast become festival favourites with their unique brand of thigh slapping, high energy swampstomp n blues.
Groves (Jason Pirrett) is a 24 year-old hip-hop artist and rapper from Boddington. Jason was first inspired when being introduced to the underground Australian hip-hop scene and finding music he could relate to. Jason draws influence from the world around him to create music from the heart.
Imogen Morgan is a 17 year-old singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist growing up on a farm in the Shire of Boddington. Imogen has a strong passion for music playing the flute, guitar, piano and cello, and is working towards a place at WAAPA after she finishes High School. Imogen can be spotted busking and performing locally, and draws on her personal experiences and emotions when song-writing.
Kindred Spirits (Chris Portlock) is a contemporary folk act from Dwellingup, featuring multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and educator Chris Portlock. Chris incorporates his historical knowledge and interest in different musical instruments into his improvised and original work, having recorded overseas and currently performing with multiple bands.
Liam Dawes is a passionate solo indie artist from Waroona that’s been making and expanding his knowledge of music over the past 5 years. Liam’s song writing aims to connect with others in the way music has had an emotional and healing impact on his own life.
My Shadow and I are a four-piece punk-rock band from Mandurah that formed in early 2018. The band’s music focuses on catchy, sonically punishing and guitar driven melodies to accompany their high energy performances. Their song-writing explores the modern Australian blue-collar life and effects of mental illness, relationships and finding the work/life balance.
Technicolor Dream Machine are an alt/rock four-piece from Coodanup that draw on their diverse musical influences to create pop-driven grunge tunes with an energetic playing style. Their song-writing plays with tempo, melodic breakdowns and catchy guitar progressions to keep the listener tuned in. Technicolor Dream Machine first performed as a band in late 2018, taking out first prize at a local Battle of the Bands competition.
The Skelton Collective are an alt/indie/pop family band from Byford. The four-piece consisting of parents, daughter and son have performed and worked together since 2017 to release 2 EPs, with their single ‘All I Wanna Be’ garnering a WAM Song of the Year nomination in 2019.
Violet Orange are an 80s inspired pop-funk outfit from Greenfields. Drawing on quirky musical call-backs, rock guitar licks and driving drum beats, the six-piece released their first EP ‘Fool Me Twice’ in 2019 and will have you up and dancing in no time.
WAM delivers Demos from Peel with the support of the State Government Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries and with strong local support from our community partners Pinjarra Junction Shopping Centre and Fairbridge Village.
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