Coming Events

Sunshine-Drenched Pop Symphonica

They have ditched the white robes (now memorialised in an emblem on their new outfit) for a darker, more worldly stage presence comprising of black fatigues and clip-on red crosses with hearts. Musically, The Polyphonic Spree still create the most euphoric, uplifting pop music imaginable and the sheer joy of their music is undeniably persuasive.

Like all genre-busters, they’re hard to describe, but one of the best phrases to illustrate The Polyphonic Spree is symphonic pop. Ringleader/composer/shaman Tim DeLaughter is behind the whole thing, with a cohesive, relentlessly optimistic take on the world and all of its problems, with hope, rather than the ever-popular beast of nihilism, being its driving force. While it’s easy to get lost in the presentation of it all, the matching outfits, the ten-voice choir, the obscure instruments, The Polyphonic Spree is a pop band at heart, and so contagious is their enthusiasm, one listen, and you'll be hooked on the happiness.

Supported by Delta Spirit and DJ Fashion (With A Gun)

Southern California indie rockers Cold War Kids are getting ready to hit the road returning to Australia in August for Splendour In The Grass and headline shows.

The band started in 2004 in historic downtown Long Beach in guitarist / vocalist Jonnie Russell's apartment above the restaurant Mulberry St. Ristorante. After relocating to California COLD WAR KIDS toured extensively in 2005-2006, which created serious internet buzz amongst the blogging community. The band released two more EPs, With Our Wallets Full and Up in Rags in 2006. In the summer of 2006, they signed to Downtown Records and released their debut LP Robbers & Cowards that spawned the single Hang Me Up to Dry.

The band’s Australian 2007 sell out tour left fans wanting more and saw singles “Hang Me Out To Dry” and “Hospital Beds” hit Triple Js Hottest 100.

Live they have a reputation to deliver a highly animated and energetic live show - don’t miss out!

The Presets performance at the Tivoli on the Sunday 15 June was postponed due to illness, and has been rescheduled for Monday 4 August.

Tickets for 15 June are valid for the new show.

For patrons who cannot attend the new date, refunds are available from Brisbane City Box Office, Elizabeth St Brisbane or by sending the tickets to -

Presets Refund
C/- Ticketek
GPO BOX 4000
Brisbane 4001

Patrons requiring refunds must return tickets before COB 30 June 2008.

APOCALYPSO AUSTRALIAN TOUR

The Presets are returning to Australia for a tour of devastatingly epic and thrillingly visceral proportions for the one, the only, Apocalypso tour. Taking in the east and the west coast, the trans-Australian jaunt is set to confirm The Presets' seat on the throne atop dance music mountain.

With the release of the breathtaking Apocalypso on April 12, this tour is set to be the virgin live voyage for a suite of songs from the new record, premiering them in a completely reworked set at bigger, theatre-style venues nation-wide.

Australia's dance music answer to Gilbert and George will come home to tour Australia after previewing the new record across the UK, Europe and the US taking in Fabric in London, the V Festival around Australia and a 16 stop tour of the US.

With My People an already club classic, and This Boy's In Love looking likely to follow in its footsteps [in glitter boots], Apocalypso is going to own 2008.

Ladies and Gentleman; boys and girls; and of course, all lovers of the ARIA award-winning, Pnau, get ready to put your dancing shoes on as we are extremely proud to announce that the visual and aural spectacle that is this most amazing act will be returning to Australia for limited shows coinciding with their Splendour In The Grass festival appearance.

Having virtually stolen the "live limelight" at the Big Day Festivals and thereafter selling out all Australian concert dates on their headline album tour, Pnau have been spending their time conquering international markets.

It's no secret that one Sir Elton John has been espousing his admiration of Pnau across the universe whilst introducing our dancefloor heroes to an array of international pop star luminaries. Celebrating the impending release of a brand new single, Embrace (featuring the stunning vocals of Pip Brown from Ladyhawke) from their hugely acclaimed third self-titled album, Pnau return to perform three massive sideshows with a twist of styles featuring their special guests, the very awesome Operator Please and DJ extraordinaire, Sam La More.

Q Song 2008 is a statewide search for our best and most innovative songwriters and this year’s Q Song event is again shaping up to be the largest songwriting awards ceremony of its kind in Queensland and is proudly supported by Q Music, The Courier-Mail, 612 ABC Brisbane, ABC Local Radio Queensland and all of the award category sponsors.

All winners will be announced at this Gala event, with more than $25,000 in cash and prizes presented to winners across 22 categories covering everything from rock and pop to jazz, blues and roots, hip-hop, electronic/dance, alternative, country, ballads, metal, punk, indigenous and world music.

Featuring performances from The Gin Club, The John Steel Singers, Chris Pickering, Common Ground and more to be announced, the Q Song Awards gathers together the Queensland music industry to celebrate and recognise the achievements of QLD songwriters. Only a limited number of tickets are available to the public so get in quickly to be a part of the biggest night in Queensland Music.

Please visit www.qsong.com.au to check the full list of 2008 finalists and listen to their song entries.

Following the release of his highly anticipated new album "We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things." Chugg Entertainment is pleased to announce that Jason Mraz will continue his love affair with down under, with a run of headlines shows this August.

On his previous tours, Mraz has become accustomed to spreading out on stage with his percussionist Toca Rivera, occasionally with bass player Ian Sheridan and for the first time on his last tour, drummer Mike "Leroy" Bram. This time all of his band mates will join him as well as a three-piece horn section, for the biggest show Mraz has ever brought to Australia.

On "We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things." his third studio release, Mraz teamed up with renowned producer Martin Terefe. Among the highlights are collaborations with British tunesmith James Morrison and singer/songwriter Colbie Caillat.

Mraz has an accomplished, versatile voice, a crossword geek's love of language and the kind of fun-loving live show that makes people spread the word. (Rolling Stone)

Well, word is spreading fast...come on see for yourself what all the fuss is about.

Already on high rotation at triple j, Melbourne indie pop band British India return with a new single ‘I Said I’m Sorry’ from their upcoming second album Thieves, out Saturday 19 July.

To celebrate their new album British India are pleased to announce their ‘Thieves’ National Album Launch Tour.

It’s been 12 months since the indie champions burst onto the Australian music scene with their debut album Guillotine. What followed was 11 months of sold out shows around Australia as the popularity of the band grew nationwide. Songs such as Tie Up my Hands, Russian Roulette, Run The Red Light and Black & White Radio became anthems in clubs, venues and festivals across the country.

Thieves is an album that celebrates the garage pop which has characterised British India’s initial success, but demonstrates the band’s growth, both as songwriters and musicians!

Supported by The Protectors

Sneaky Sound System are back, and they have a lot to talk about. They have signed an international record deal, recorded their new album, confirmed to play at Glastonbury, released their new single ‘Kansas City’ to radio in Australia and now announce The 2 Tour for August 2008.

Arguably the most popular band in Australia right now is Sneaky Sound System. Their single ‘I Love It’ had the longest chart run in Oz history, their debut album has gone twice platinum and at one point they had four singles in the Top 50. Yet Sneaky are not a hard-touring rock band or a manufactured pop act. They’re certainly pop and proud of it, but their background lies in their country’s exploding dance scene.

After many months bunkered down in the studio, Sneaky Sound System has finished recording their new album aptly titled '2'.

To showcase the blistering new tracks featured on ‘2’ Sneaky Sound System will be touring the East Coast of Australia supported by the Dukes of Windsor!

Death Cab for Cutie are returning to Australian shores in August as part of a worldwide tour in support of their groundbreaking new album Narrow Stairs. Long a hard-touring band, they enjoy a well-earned, stellar reputation as live performers as both Australian fans and critics learned during their sold-out 2006 run.

When asked to describe Death Cab For Cutie’s sixth studio album, Narrow Stairs, guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Chris Walla characterizes it as "having teeth." While many bands in Death Cab For Cutie’s situation would try to recreate the success of hit songs like "Soul Meets Body" or "I Will Follow You Into The Dark," the band have instead crafted the most ambitious and varied album of their career, one that refuses to pander and which stretches their artistic boundaries.

Don't miss out on your chance to catch these extraordinary indie rock craftsmen live this August. These shows will sell out quickly.

It's been over 20 years since the coolest, most stylish and arguably influential man in British rock has ventured down under, but August sees Paul Weller making a long overdue, much anticipated return to these shores.

As one of Britain's most intriguing artists Paul Weller has continued to add to a songbook to rival any of his peers with the sheer scope of his musical adventurism.

Now entering a new phase of his career with a fresh collection of songs, Weller's latest offering 22 Dreams will be released in Australia on Saturday 7 June through Shock. Weller is currently midway through a sold out UK tour, drawing rave reviews.

Don't miss what will doubtless be an exciting, passionate display of rock-star cool by a performer still at the top of his musical game, live on Australian stages in August.

After over 2 years off the road in Australia, Pete Murray and his band have finally announced a national tour.

The tour will see Pete perform in all major capital cities as well as an extensive regional run and tickets will go on sale in the very same week Pete's third album, "Summer At Eureka", hits shops.

"Summer At Eureka" was written, recorded and produced by Pete in his home studio in the hinterland of Byron Bay. The fist single, You Pick Me Up is an up-tempo track that reflects the sunny, laid back and positive environment in which it was recorded. In addition to his touring band, Pete enlisted Powderfinger's Darren Middleton to add his deft guitar skills to the song.

You Pick Me Up is already bulleting up the Australian airplay charts and is on course to equal the chart topping radio performance of previous Pete Murray classics like So Beautiful, Better Days and Opportunity.

Pete will be joined on this six week tour by his acclaimed band; Andy Sylvio (drums), Ben McCarthy (keys) and Jonathan Zion (bass). The local dates will come off the back of Pete's international tour which will see him back in Europe hitting the stage with the likes of Rage Against The Machine, Metallica and Foo Fighters at some major festivals including Pinkpop in Amsterdam and Rock Am Ring and Rock Im Park Festivals in Germany as well as solo headline shows in the UK.

After a few years away, Pete and his band are itching to get back on the road and with his new, more upbeat songs. These shows are not to be missed!

Newton Faulkner is not your ordinary singer songwriter - as he sings, his old-soul voice dips from a gently enchanting croon to a commanding roar full of yearning and intensity. His playing surpasses sensitive strumming, using his guitar as a hybrid instrument combining fret board pyrotechnics, unusual picking techniques, altered tunings and a mesmerising percussive use of the guitar's body.

The 23 year old Surrey UK native, whose debut track "Dream Catch Me" has become the most played song on Australia radio, will bring his unique style and hit roots rhythms to your town in September.

A relative unknown in Australia just 3 months ago, talk of the dread-locked songman was rife following his stand out performances at the 19th Annual East Coast Blues and Roots Festival in Byron Bay last March.

Don't miss the show everyone will be talking about.

"In a year of auspicious breakthroughs for women writer-performers, Childs was the standout." - Time Magazine

"One of the most promising among a new generation of composers and performers." - The New York Times

Touring Australia, Toni Childs found an audience even more diverse than she imagined. "This gray-haired older woman at an airport x-ray machine referred to the song I've Got To Go Now and said, 'You wrote my life!'" Toni says of her Australian shows: "There'd be a guy with long red hair and a beard singing his heart out to Stop Your Fussin'. On the other side of the stage a housewife, and up front two kids with spiked hair."

The Woman's Boat brought her to Geffen Records. Released in 1995, the single Lay Down Your Pain earned Toni her third Grammy nomination, for Best Female Rock Performance.

Toni will be supported by Matt Kelly.

Ash Grunwald is back with his most adventurous, exciting and accessible album yet; the highly anticipated full length studio release, Fish Out Of Water.

The album, in stores late August, sees Ash collaborating with the renowned beats master Countbounce from well-known Australian hip hop outfit, TZU.

The end result is a thrilling hybrid of musical styles, infused with beats and grooves, junkyard percussion, scorching riffs and Grunwald's trademark deep and strong vocal that is bound to impress and delight fans of quality music.

The tunes range from swirling, lurching, raucous rocking tracks, to riff driven numbers with a hip hop vibe, a pulsating, grinding "dance track," a Gospel-style song inspired by the Blind Boys of Alabama and an old school folk ballad. The album positively bristles with optimism, excitement and possibility.

Fans of Grunwald will already be familiar with his sense of musical adventure, and with Fish Out Of Water he has truly let his hair down, pushed all the boundaries and let rip in a major way. The consequence? A career highlight.

Ash will be touring the country from late August. Don't miss him.

The Pianomen, an entertaining evening featuring some of Queensland’s finest piano vocalists.

The Pianomen comprise David Bentley, Damian Black, Bob Donovan, George Ferguson, Chris Hartley and Phil Hollett. These talented performers have extensive experience over many years in entertaining crowds of all shapes and sizes both in Australia and overseas.

Supported by Kerry Jacobson, Greg Lyon, Joe Williams, Dale Robbins, Stephen Henry and other fine local musicians and singers.

Limited VIP Dress Circle Seats are $75.00 & General Admission Seats are $50.00

Ladytron was formed when Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu, the tall dark figures at the back of the stage, discovered the ladies of Ladytron - Mira Aroyo (who has a Ph.D in genetics) and Helena Marnie - on train in Bulgaria. Their albums 604, Light & Magic and Witching Hour have established Ladytron’s unique style of heartbroken disco, mashing vintage synths and the Kraftwerk-esque dual female vocals.

Ladytron are back with their fourth album, Velocifero, a tantalising piece of distorted soul drawing on the wealth of two decades of electronica, new wave and rock.

Australian audiences can bear witness to these savy purveyors of sinister pop in 2008 when the ‘tron embark on their first ever tour of Australia.

The Liverpudians will be supported on their national tour by the “Kitsune-style electro-pop” of Swedish 2 piece Familjen who currently have their song “Det Snurrar I Min Skalle” on mega rotation on Triple J.

Conor Oberst has been enchanting audiences with his intoxicating anecdotes and gorgeous imagery under the Bright Eyes moniker for the past decade, but the recent introduction of his latest project - Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band remains as excitable, inspired and full of surprises as ever.

And although Bright Eyes has long been the best known vehicle for his songs, he has fronted and worked with numerous different incarnations and lineups throughout his career, ostensibly just to keep up with his own free-roaming muse.

So with that spirit in mind Conor is now re-opening his long dormant solo career. Holed up in a temporary studio in Tepoztlán, Morelos, México, more known for Aztec Magic and Extra-Terrestrial Sightings, a temporary studio was created in a mountain villa called Valle Místico on the outskirts of town. A special band was assembled for the recording, known amongst themselves and to friends as The Mystic Valley Band. It was there at Valle Místico that Conor and the band lived and worked for that time in near perfect harmony, often unaware of the hour or the day.

‘Conor Oberst’, the album is set for release on August 2 and will be Conor's first solo effort since 1995’s ‘Soundtrack To My Movie’. He has been one of the most prolific artists of his generation - “the quality and breadth of Oberst's songwriting have provoked comparisons to Bob Dylan” - Rolling Stone. Do not miss this rare opportunity to be spellbound by Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band.

"...the next Ray Romano" - Montreal Gazette

One of my favourite US comics” - Russell Peters

A massive hit with audiences when he toured the country with 'Russell Peters & Friends' earlier this year, Asian-American stand-up comedian Jo Koy returns for his first solo Australian tour.

Recently named as one of the "10 comics to watch" of 2007 by Daily Variety, Koy is famous for his quick wit, infectious on-stage energy, sharp observational humor and inspirational family-based laughs.

His performance covers a variety of topics from his ambiguous ethnicity and growing up with a Filipino mother, to male-female relations and personal stories of life with his 3-year-old son. His unique stand-up, dynamic energy and loud stage presence has audiences convulsing with laughter and is a big hit with fans of all ages and racial backgrounds.

As Dragonforce prepare to unleash their fourth album Ultra Beatdown, anybody who understands the world of metal can have any doubt that we are about to witness a band going from being ‘potential international stars’ to a ‘major global phenomenon’.

The release of Ultra Beatdown is not the only thing Dragonforce enthusiasts have to look forward to! Talking the excitement level past 11 is the news that Dragonforce have packed their mini trampolines and guitar risers ready for an official Australian tour this October!

With one of the most entertaining live shows on planet rock, tickets will sell fast, so don’t drag your feet.

Australian Rock Legends Noiseworks have just announced a series of dates throughout October and November 2008.

Noiseworks regrouped in June 2007 after disappearing from the scene in 1992. Their continued popularity has prompted further touring and inspired work on new material for a studio album planned for release later in the year.

"The band is better than it has ever been" says frontman Jon Stevens, "We're all enjoying performing together again and while we are, we'll keep doing this".

It's been a long, long, too long a wait but finally Brian Setzer, Slim Jim Phantom and Lee Rocker will be back down under on their Farewell World Tour.

Formed in 1979 the Stray Cats took the world by storm with their infectious rockabilly musical stylings and frenetic live shows.

Having created their own version of the standard rockabilly sound by blending Brian's jazz & swing sensibilities with the band's love of the 70's UK punk sound, the Stray Cats have built up a devoted following and maintained an enviable live reputation throughout their 30 year career.

Currently ripping it up across Europe, the Stray Cats have rocked the world and are back to rock Australia for one last time on the Stray Cats Farewell Tour.

For pre-sale tickets from noon Thursday 24 July join the Stray Cats Fan Club on www.straycats.com