Musicadium Blog

Glen Terry is one of our blues artists - a fantastic performer who has played for audiences all around the world.

From his MySpace:

A very passionate, soulful entertainer, Glen has entertained people around the world! A musical journey has taken Glen from his birthplace in India to five star hotels in Cairo, Egypt in the mid eighties; Blues festivals and tours to Tokyo, Japan in the nineties; and performances in Kenya, Mauritius, Thailand, Dubai, Sri Lanka to his adopted home in Australia where he settled in 1988 and became an Australian Citizen. November and December 2007 saw Glen on tour across Scandinavia, where he was well received in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. Glen is also known for his many performances in aid of NGOs around the world. His Concerts were often sponsored by brands such as Corona Extra, Sri Lankan Airlines, HSBC, Barefoot Gallery and they were not to be missed. Glen has just released his brand new album “ SOUL SEARCHIN”, which is being given rave reviews and lots of airplay. Glen’s shirts are sponsored by Barefoot Sri Lanka.

1. Glen, your album ‘Soul Searchin’ has received rave reviews and as one music journalist suggests, has ‘cemented your place in the Australian Blues hierarchy’. Who are the other key Blues Musicians in Australia and how do you think the Blues scene is travelling in this country?

Glen Terry: The Australian blues scene is thriving. The Australian Blues Music Festival held in Goulburn this year reflected that in a big way.

2. Which blues musicians would you say have influenced your style the most?

Glen Terry: BB King for sure! Buddy guy, Kenny Neal, Jimmy Burns and a whole lot of other un-known musicians around the world from Sri Lanka to Mauritius have had a great influence in my playin.

3. What is it about the blues that you love so much? When did you discover it?

Glen Terry:  I love the fact that you can truly express yourself when playing the blues. It is story telling at its best. The first time I heard a BB King album.

4. You’ve lived and travelled in many countries around the world, but currently live in Canberra. Where is your favourite place that you’ve performed and why?

Glen Terry:    BAREFOOT GALLERY in Colombo Sri Lanka! That is surely one of my favourite places to play in the world. The atmosphere, the Vibe and the people!

5. What is your favourite song to play from the album and why?

Glen Terry: Sugar Blues Express, as I always long to escape from the city to the country!

6. Do you think the Australian blues scene will survive and flourish?

Glen Terry: I do think the Aussie blues scene will survive and flourish. There are a few of us performing all over the world and letting everyone know that there is some real good blues coming out of Australia. The Canberra blues Society and other blues organizations around the country play their part to ensure that the blues lives on.

7. Finally, what is next for Glen Terry?

Glen Terry: Keep Playin! Everything else will follow. New album etc!!!

Thanks Glen! We appreciate you taking the time to answer these questions.

Glen’s Music is available on

The Musicadium team would like to congratulate our wonderful artists who have been nominated in the 2009 QMusic/Courier Mail QSong Awards.

We would like to congratulate (as well as all the other fantastic nominees, but these guys especially!!):

Timothy Carroll (Folk Ballad/Alternative/People’s Choice Award)

Max Judo (Indigenous)

James Grehan (Blues and Roots/Rock)

The View from Madeleine’s Couch (World Music)

Ange Takats (Encouragement Award)

Amy Cushway (Encouragement Award)

Buckley Ward are a Melbourne band who have just signed with us!  They are an exciting band - this filmclip is fantastic and we love the lyrics coming up as various pictures and signs throughout the clip.

Their MySpace has this to say about them:

Born in a tin shed on Melbourne’s coastal fringe on a lazy afternoon, Buckley Ward were suddenly a band. Kind of like in year 9, when you kissed a girl and you suddenly had a girlfriend. The 5 piece outfit moved from a tin shed to a rehearsal space, from cuppas to lattes and from small dingy pubs to larger dingy pubs, taking with them an increasing number of devoted fans.

The band released their debut self-titled EP in the Autumn of 2008 – but far from contented, immediately set out self recording their first full length album. The result, ‘Something in the Night’, is a journey through their constantly evolving brand of carefully crafted pop.

Fashioned in the back alleys of North Carlton, the album draws on influences as diverse as Crowded House, Wilco, The Shins and Death Cab for Cutie, but stands alone as an unmistakeable and uniquely Buckley sound.

Check them out on MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/buckleyward.

Musicadium Artist Steve Grady played at the Apple Store at Robina Shopping Centre Saturday 20th June and Photographer Beck Cains was there again. She got some great shots of Steve.

Steve’s Bio:

There ‘aint much to do in Redcliffe. (Unless you are retired). You can walk your poodle safely past the Kipparing shops, visit the jetty, catch puffer-fish off the ol’ bridge…did I mention the jetty? The slow-paced lifestyle of the bay-area north of Brisbane may explain why local artist Steve Grady is such a prolific songwriter and producer. So much so, Steve “heart on your sleeve” Grady wrote, produced and recorded the majority of his debut album, Hotel Chelsea, on his own. Recently released at a sold-out launch Hotel Chelsea has received favourable reviews.

Check out Steve’s Album Hotel Chelsea on

From the New Artists to Radio website:

ENTRIES CLOSE FOR 2009 NA2R IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS ON 3 JULY!

Open to unsigned artists & bands, NA2R is a brilliant initiative that gives aspiring and independent artists an opportunity to get their music played on commercial radio and gives them all the tools necessary to break into commercial radio, and music industry.

There are plenty of winners in this comp with even the Finalists getting access to some of the best and biggest Music & Program Directors from around the country via the exclusive NA2R workshop.

New Artists 2 Radio (NA2R) is an initiative of Commercial Radio Australia – the industry body for Australia’s 260 commercial radio stations. It’s one of the ways in which commercial radio helps to nurture and support Australian musical talent.

NA2R has been happening for eight years and has helped launched the careers of artists like Delta Goodrem, Kid Courageous, The Sunpilots, Sarah Blasko, Faker, Thirsty Merc and Jade Macrae.

Entries will be open to unsigned Australian artists aged between 15-30 years who have not yet charted in the top 100 Australian National airplay chart.

Fast-track your music career this year by entering into 2009 NA2R.

Click here to learn more about 2009 NA2R and how you can enter!

A few weeks ago, we helped Tokenview have their song What Can I Do get the Free Single of the Week on the front page of the iTunes Store! We loved the song as soon as the disc came in. Now we have just found the film clip for the song and this RULES!

This video was directed by Josh Groom (Birds of Tokyo, Angus and Julia Stone) and Maddi Milasas. Featuring guest vocals from The Basics (Wally de Backer, Kris Schroeder, Tim Heath).

Let us know what you think of the clip  - leave your comments here!

Check out Tokenview at their Myspace or purchase their music online at

We are all massive fans of Only The Sea Slugs here in the Musicadium office - we received their EP and instantly fell in love with this odd, but fascinating creature on the front cover.

We recommend that you check out their MySpace - definitely ones to watch!  They are doing well in the Toohey’s Extra Dry UncharTED competition and have been featured on MySpace.  Stay tuned.

What do you think?  Is it attention grabbing? Cute? Gross? Weird? Interesting?

Leave your comments here.

Ange Takats weaves intricate and soulful stories with her beautiful lyrics, melodies and soul. Her music manages to combine the songwriting talents reminiscent of Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell with a modern-day fervour and sass. She has spent the last 6 months playing Australia’s festival circuit, and was featured at Brisbane’s Greenfest last weekend - the perfect platform for her folky goodness. Grab a hold of her very special LP from , and discover that beautiful storytelling hasn’t faded with the dissent of folk legends, but is alive and thriving.

You have a solid schedule right through to October at this point, what have been and will be some of the highlights?
I’ve spent the past 6 months doing the folk festival circuit - kicking off with Woodford at the beginning of the year.
I’m  really excited about playing The Village festival up in Yeppoon in August because it’s a chance to see Mr Percival perform again. I’m a big fan! There are loads of other great performers taking part like Tijuana Cartel & Mojo Webb.

Tell us a bit more about your live performances. What can people expect when they see you play live?

I suppose storytelling would be the key word to describe my performances. My songs are very story-based and I like to weave little anecdotes between the tunes to give people some idea of how the song came about. I always enjoy the energy of the crowd and talking to them while I am on stage. Maybe it’s better for someone else to describe my live performance style:
“Ange Takats captivated the audience with her simple but perfectly crafted songs and I must admit her voice is truly one of the most beautiful and powerful female voices I have ever heard, bestowing goose bumps on me throughout the evening,”- Tsunami Music Magazine

Some great things have been happening in Ange Takat’s world. You’ve been selected as the album of the week on Artsound FM 92.7 in Canberra, you’re supporting Renee Geyer in Eumundi on June 11, and you’ve just been selected as an outstanding entrant in this year’s Q Song awards. Do you feel that everything is happening at once?
It’s always nice when things fall in to place. I’ve put a lot of time and energy into the music side of things over the past two years and it’s great to get recognised and rewarded for that. Each new album review gives me a little thrill but playing to packed venues at Woodford and the National Folk Festival in Canberra have definitely been music career highlights in recent months.

What inspires you when you’re songwriting? Is there a particular way/place/mood that you like to write songs in?
Um….I gain inspiration from all kinds of sources. My debut album Aniseed Tea has songs inspired by Irish nudists, Romanian Canadian medical students, knitters, heart breakers, op-shoppers…
Most of my songwriting happens in my little beachside unit on the Sunshine Coast. I often start writing a song with my guitar and then finish the lyrics in my head as I walk along the beach. That seems to work for me.

What would your dream gig be? Where? Who with?
Supporting Paul Simon or Joni Mitchell. I am in awe of them both as songwriters. But in reality, my dream gig is any gig that has a bunch of people seated in front of me, willing to listen and enjoy what I do. ‘The dream’ is to play those kinds of gigs all the time!

Finally, what’s in store next for Ange Takats?
The festival scene slows down over Winter so I’m going to use that time to focus on my songwriting and the business side of things. I was successful in securing an RADF/Arts Queensland grant at the end of last year which helped fund my album tour and I’m keen to apply for some other grants in the coming months.

I’m not sure how this happened. I’m an outsider in the world of music, an industry I’ve loved and been involved in all of my adult life. You see, I’m an unashamed fan of pop music, a genre that is generally discarded, by most, as just mindless babble, not considered an art form by those in the know. We are all excited about the emergence of self distribution tools and the ability of the artist to have more control over their career, that the primped and polished pop star is becoming an endangered species.

For the Love of Music

Well, perhaps it’s not true that I don’t know what happened, I think it has something to do with Australia’s tendency to cut down anything that is popular- generally called ‘tall poppy syndrome’. Now, I have a musical background, I love jazz and soul and can appreciate classical music. I also know enough about music history and theory to be considered relatively educated. I’m not going to come out and tell you that I think Britney is a great singer, however I do appreciate the brand that is Britney Spears. I think there is a lot to be said about the marketing machines behind such phenomenon, and I’m not ashamed to admit that listening to this kind of music, or watching these artist’s videos, can often brighten my day.

Decline of Major Labels

I mean, let’s not get hysterical about the ‘death of the labels’. Not being important anymore is not death - it’s just lonely and disappointing.-  Andrew Dubber

Seeing the steady decline in the ‘big four‘ labels bodes badly for aspiring pop stars and pop music fans alike. It seems to suggest that the money it takes to create these ‘megastars’ is slowly dwindling, which in turn means that the major labels will

a) sign less pop artists

b) be less willing to take risks on artists that don’t tick their particular boxes and, scarily,

c) be less willing to let their artists take risks after achieving their initial popularity.

For aspiring artists with a more alternative appeal this doesn’t pose too many problems, however pop artists will still require the collateral to fund marketing effort it takes to launch in this genre.

Rise and Fall of Music Genres

The rise and fall of music genres is nothing new. Classical music was often commissioned/funded by royalty for their own means. Jazz was the ‘pop’ music of much of the 20^th Century and has since carved out a sustainable place for itself in western music. More recently, Gangsta hip hop enjoyed a massive popularity in the 90’s with the likes of Tupac and Biggie Smalls but has since receded from the popular music charts, although still remains in a mutated form in the likes of Kanye West and Eminem.

Popped: The Beginning of the End

‘The record business is in trouble, but the music business is alive and well.’-Tony George

With this in mind, I guess I can take solace in the fact that ‘pop’ music, as we refer to it now, will always have a place in music. What will we call this music if it is no longer popular? And with the diversification of the way we distribute and consume music mean that the popularity of genres is no longer dominated by one specific genre? Will this truly be the end of ‘pop’ music in any form?

What next?

I can already hear the rejoicing of my peers: ‘Yay! Death to pop music’ ‘Long live Indie Bands’. One thing’s for sure. This industry we love is changing, for the best most probably. Change is always scary, and although I try to embrace it, there is always a longing to grasp onto what is familiar.

Last year, Musicadium sponsored the New Music/Experimental Award - this year, we are sponsoring both the New Music and Experimental award AND the Pop Award! We are proud to be associated with the premier Song Awards in Queensland.

FROM QMUSIC’S FORTNIGHTLY MAILOUT: Queensland’s annual search for the state’s finest songwriters closed last Friday with a record number of entries. More than 2140 songs from across Queensland have been entered this year in 14 categories.

Q Music Executive Officer Denise Foley said “This is by far the most outstanding response we have ever had from Q Song. It’s truly a year to celebrate Queensland creativity with the number of exceptional songwriters we have in our state.”

Entries are currently being featured on www.qsong.com.au and each week 612 ABC Brisbane features Q Song artists on Thursdays at 1.30pm with Richard Fidler. Listeners can tune into local radio Queensland to hear outstanding entries.

Entrants in Q Song 09 will have the opportunity to not just showcase their songs, but also to share in $25,000 worth of cash and prizes aimed at building their careers.

Past Q Song winners include Kate Miller-Heidke, The Boatpeople, The Grates, The John Steel Singers, Robert Foster, Kev Carmody, Bernard Fanning, Ben Salter (The Gin Club), Kate Bradley, Jackie Marshall, Tim Steward, James Grehan, 8 Ball Aitken, Emma- louise, Shari Williams and many more.

While Q Song principally targets emerging and unpublished songwriters, those with established songwriting careers will also be eligible for the Published Song of the Year Award.

Finalists will be announced on June 29, 2009 with the Q Song Awards event to be staged at Fortitude Valley venue, The Tivoli on August 11.

Also announced on the night will be the Grant McLennan Lifetime Achievement Award, and The Courier-Mail Peoples Choice Award.

For more information about Q Song 2009 visit: www.qsong.com.au