Quick Overview
Did you miss us? We took a summer break and are now back in action on the other side of the Labor Day holiday.
This edition’s interview is with Gordi, aka Dr Sophie Payten, who became a doctor of medicine, launched a global music career, worked in hospitals during the pandemic, and moved to LA — all in a 5 year period. It’s a helluva story.
We have a slew of new tours hitting US roads this September, a new and very Aussie-friendly vinyl bar in Hollywood, a source to get Australian artist synchs, and the Mates festival debuting this November.
Three Cool Gigs
Vance Joy | Hollywood Bowl | Sep 8 - celebrating the 10 year anniversary of ‘dream your life away’ with GROUPLOVE supporting
Alex Lahey | House of Blues Boston | Sep 12 + 13 - a couple of nights in Boston on tour with New Jersey’s The Front Bottoms
Crowded House | Gerald R Ford Amphitheater Vail CO | Sep 17 - let some Crowded House flow over you with that cool mountain air
☝️The Gerald R Ford Amphitheater in Vail Colorado
Interview: Gordi
My debut album came out in 2017, in August, and I'd spent a month that month touring around the US. Then I got back, I was on tour with Gang of Youths in Australia. The following week after that, in September, my final medical exams began. My bandmates recount stories with me backstage at the Gang of Youths shows with palm cards right before we're about to go on trying to study up. It was a terrible and amazing time of my life. I got to the end, and then 2018, I had a few loose ends to tie up. I was on tour pretty much the whole year. 2019, I took off music largely to just complete my medical internship, my first year of proper work. I did that at Prince of Wales in Sydney. At the end of 2019, I quit my job and thought, all right, back to music full time, had a whole year of touring lined up. Then the pandemic hit.
[FAST FORWARD…]
At the end of 2021, as the heart of the pandemic is wrapping up, I guess, I started to come to LA. I've been coming to LA for 10 years but just trips here and there. Basically, from the end of 2021, I started to make a concerted effort to gradually start relocating here. Someone once told me that in the music industry, it takes you 11 times to move to LA, which I think is probably true for most people. It was the same for me.
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☝️Gordi, aka Sophie Payten 📸 James Dryden Studio Lachie Thompson
Hollywood and Vinyl
You may remember Lost Property Bar in Hollywood from the Aussie + Kiwi vinyl nights we’ve been doing there with APRA AMCOS LA. As usual, the music got the party started and during the summer break our managing editor helped launch LP Vinyl Bar, a transformation of the space that adds the record collection of DJ Raul Campos, who you may know as host of KCRW’s Global Beat: Australia. The sound system got a serious upgrade, a DJ booth was built, and a large disco ball now spins.
Opening night is this Thursday September 5, and Cockatoo subscribers will be warmly welcomed. If you can’t make it, don’t worry, it’s open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and we have a lot more Aussie vinyl nights in store.
Mates On Stage
Back in April, Campbell Burns of the band Vacations joined us on the Cockatoo interview sharing the stories behind their incredible rise from a new band in Newcastle to one of our biggest recent international success stories. Now as an LA resident, Campbell and his band are doing the right thing and getting their mates together for a night of music.
The Mates Festival will take place on November 16 at the Bellwether.
Synch It
One of the best ways to help artists both make money and get known outside of their home turf is to get them synched into film, “TV” and games. Trying to help solve that problem, Australian-founded music service Melodie, which features over 50% Australian composers, has added a “show Australian artists only” search feature. As they explain it:
Melodie (www.melod.ie) is a tech-enabled music licensing solution providing unlimited access to thousands of high-quality tracks & stems, with highly intuitive search tools, and simple licensing.
In 2023, Melodie introduced a unique solution, the “Australia” search filter. Selecting the ‘Show Australian artists only’ option while searching the Melodie library, enables production companies, businesses and brands to search ONLY music by Australian artists.
If you’re in a position to enable such synchs, maybe try them and find something new.
Aussies on US Stages
Dancin’ In September
One may think that with the summer season starting to wind up, Aussie touring activity would drop off, and one would be wrong.
In chronological order, Boy & Bear, Boo Seeka, the Hoodoo Gurus, Zheani, Vance Joy, Paul Kelly, and Troye Sivan kick off US tours this month.
Royel Otis, Glass Beams, and Quivers return for fall runs.
Our unstoppables — Troye Sivan, Keith Urban, Fisher and Hayden James — add more shows.
And on the topic of road warriors, The Heart Collectors, Dom Dolla, Neil Frances and Alison Wonderland started tours in the spring and are still rockin’.
We’ve got all the tours we can find on our Who’s Touring? page, and please let us know if you know anyone touring who we’ve missed! 🙏
GC On The Radio
Back in May, the Gold Coast’s Girl and Girl did a showcase on Seattle’s KEXP, the home of their new label Sub Pop. Here is the full show ICYMI.
And speaking of Queensland, shout out to everyone who’s up in Brisbane for this week’s Big Sound conference.
Golden Grants
October 1 is the deadline for another three international-focused grants are coming up from the Federal Government’s Music Australia: International Performance and Touring Activity, International Professional and Artistic Development, and International Market and Audience Development.
Managing Editor: Adam Burke 🗞️ Content Editor: Billy Bianchini
Published from Tongva and Chumash country.
