Currently smack bang in the middle of the Purple Sneakers DJs ‘We Mix, You Dance’ national tour, PhDJ has whipped up the Purple Sneakers DJs ‘Easy Listening’ Mixtape. It features 25 tracks and samples and times in at 29 minutes and 56 seconds.

The mixtapes from the Purple Sneakers DJs so far have been indie party mashup mixes showcasing an eclectic range of tracks, ranging from rock to hip hop, punk, electro, indie, club and other styles. The ‘Easy Listening’ Mixtape on the other hand proves that the Purple Sneakers DJs have the ability to play a main room set, whilst still very much infusing it with their own distinct Purple Sneakers flavour. Check it out!

Download from here: http://www.zshare.net/audio/6257620232dad861/

The Drones have become a bit of a household name in Australia these days and it’s not too difficult to understand the appeal.  Combining great musicians, blistering live sets and a relentless tour schedule the band has well and truly established themselves as one our best musical exports.  I had the pleasure of seeing them at their last Brisbane show and must admit that despite being only a fairly recent convert I was blown away, which was why when the opportunity to interview guitarist Dan Luscombe via email on one of the bands short returns to Australia (they headed back to Europe two weeks later) I was pretty darn stoked.

Now to digress a moment here I have a confession to make – this was my first interview and I wasn’t altogether sure what I was doing.  It seems relatively straightforward, and while in actuality it really is, for those who haven’t done it before it can take way too much time.  Having dredged my mind clean for questions I decided to put it to a panel of advisors (my girlfriend’s half-drunk house mates) who represented musicians and non-musicians alike, but most importantly were considerably bigger Drone’s fans than myself.  In the end I think we came up with something resembling a good list, but there’s always that fine line between stimulating and nonsense.  You be the judge.

Back to Dan though: Dan has been well respected on the Oz music scene for years but many people don’t know much more about him besides the fact that he didn’t join the Drones until late 2006, when he left his former outfit Alpha Male to replace Rui Pereira.  Besides Alpha Male, Dan’s also played in the Black Eyed Susan’s, Four Hours Sleep, the Paul Kelly Band and Stardust Five (w/ Paul Kelly, Dan Kelly, Bill MacDonald and his brother Peter Luscombe, 17 years his senior) and teamed up with Paul Kelly again to do the soundtrack to the Ray Lawrence film ‘Jindabyne’.  Perhaps a good way to get to know Dan and the rest of the Drones though (besides this interview!) is through Dan’s tour blog from the 2007 European tour @ http://dronesdiary.blogspot.com/ .  It’s a great read that makes you simultaneously smug and jealous from start to finish.  At the risk of over-prepositionalizing any more sentences though I’ll let Dan do the talking.

So you’ve been touring all over the world recently, and you’ve done all this before.  How has this most recent European Trip compared to your others, most notably the 2007 one? What’s the general ratio of work time to play time?

Well, thankfully we haven’t been at the mercy of a fairly shoddy booking agent since that tour. And I’m being pretty generous in that description. The work to play ratio is a grey area. If sitting in the van comes under the “work” banner, and it probably should I guess, then it’s about 80/20!

Favourite travel destination?

I’d say Paris. We’ve got a few buddies over there, and they provide a very homely atmosphere. Nice lookin’ joint, too.

So Just what happened to Gorka and Van Morrison? (Read Dan’s blog for details). What measures have you taken to ensure this tour doesn’t end like the last one?

We’ve taken the necessary measures, put it that way. But one can never expect things to always go smoothly. “Be prepared” is not just a Boy Scout’s motto. I’m not sure what happened to either Gorka or Van, but I sometimes lay awake at night, wondering.

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The teenaged three-piece from New South Wales’ Central Coast Short Stack have gone on to do what no other Australian music act has successfully achieved. They have used the combined powers of SMS, YouTube and MySpace to amass a following that’s growing by the second; racking up over four million plays on MySpace, with over one million plays for their second single Princess alone, and on top of that, being Australia’s biggest band on YouTube with over 2.5 million views of the Short Stack TV series and video clips.

In between HSC exams and gigs supporting the likes of The Veronicas, Simple Plan and Good Charlotte, work began on Stack Is The New Black with all the songs written by the band. Stack Is The New Black covers a range of styles, from epic ballads to fast and furious electro-tinged rock anthems.

Short Stack is hitting the road later this year with tickets on sale now. The bands new album Stack Is The New Black is available in stores and online from 14th August 2009. Find out why Short Stack was crowned Channel V Oz Artist of the Year.

Don’t miss Kate Ceberano as she lights up the stage revisiting the highlights of her career and more.

You can check out Two Flat Whites interview with Kate Ceberano here .

Award winning singer and songwriter Kate Ceberano gets comfortable to talk with Two Flat Whites. One of the great voices this country has produced, Kate has teamed up with multiple ARIA award winner and Grammy Award winner Mark Isham to create her first jazz album in 20 years. An album that could only be aptly titled, ‘Bittersweet’.

With five Platinum albums, four Gold albums and over 1 million albums sold in Australia alone, Kate Ceberano has performed countless sell-out tours, starred in acclaimed feature films and hosted her own television show Kate & Friends. Kate’s bittersweet musical journey is set to continue. So grab a warm beverage and enjoy the interview.

Where did you grow up?

Melbourne

You live in Melbourne – what do you love most about that now?

I always love Melbourne this time of year. The turning of the leaves and the early dark nights. It reminds me of warm kitchens after school, tram rides home through Hawthorn, Kew and Balwyn and the smell of rain. I also love the city and the drama of Southbank counterpointed with the Botanical Gardens.

In your own words, what do you do?

I am a performing artist.

Where did you learn your craft?

On the road, in pubs, small theatres, cafes and bars. Later, concert halls, arenas and film studios. It has never ceased to inspire me and thrill me the learning part of my craft. Each new skill challenge or obstacle has been a red flag. I never ever think that I know it all. The contrary, I always approach new experiences knowing nothing… more fun this way. Open heart, Open mind…

Childhood Memories:

TV Show – Bewitched

Hobby – tap dancing

Food – grandma’s chicken and banana cake

Fear – being left out

People – teenage girls in gangs have always made me wary

Defining moment – the first harmony I ever heard

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It’s been a little while between drinks for Philadelphia Grand Jury ( The Philly Jays for short). Their first two tracks ‘ Going To The Casino (Tomorrow Night) ‘ and ‘ Ready To Roll’ stormed across the radio waves and internet after landing on high rotation on Triple J as well as being downloaded and passed between peeps an absolute sh*tload. Off the back of these tracks The Philly Jays have toured nationally 3 times and played the Big Day Out and Laneway Festivals .

Dan W Sweat plays the drums, MC Bad Genius makes the necessary noises and a guy called Berkfinger sings the songs. The band are now readying themselves for a load more touring through the end of May and early June with party boys, Bluejuice and also slamming themselves onstage at the Come Together Festival at Luna Park Sydney.

Philadelphia Grand Jury are currently putting finishing touches to a long player which you can expect to hit stores this September!

Tour Dates:
FRI 29 MAY – EAST BRUNSWICK CLUB, Melbourne W/Bluejuice
SAT 30 MAY – JIVE, Adelaide W/Bluejuice
SUN 7 JUNE – COME TOGETHER FESTIVAL, Sydney
FRI 12 JUNE – THE ZOO, Brisbane W/Bluejuice
SAT 13 JUNE – ANNANDALE HOTEL, Sydney W/Bluejuice

Check out Two Flat Whites interview with Bluejuice here .

The Bumblebeez are an eccentric brother/sister sucker punch unlike any other. No messin’. The band was formed by Chris Colonna and his sister, Pia of Braidwood, New South Wales. Chris uses a cut-and-paste technique to combine hip-hop and rock tracks to which either he or his sister (who goes by the stage name ‘Queen ViLa’) provides vocals. Though they’ve been fittingly described as “musical coleslaw”, this delicious description is somewhat of an understatement once their back catalogue and erratic brilliance live has been experienced.

While Chris Colonna has recently donned his producer hat and helmed the controls on the highly imaginative new Wolf & Cub record, he’s managed to find some time to drop an exclusive track for the V Raw project, entitled “Misfit”. Made on his Nintendo DSi using the Korg DS software with vox and drums (via the system’s inbuilt audio player), the crunchy little 8-bit banger is now out in the ether for all and sundry to absorb.

In addition to the track itself, an exclusive film made by the Glue Society inspired by “Misfit” has been created, showcasing the process that goes into a music video, highlighting the many roles and individual skills that equate to the “onscreen magic” that is generally taken for granted. Stay tuned.

Grab the track here .

The routine, the grind, the daily; some do their 24-7 on a treadmill. Not Phrase. He maintains a sharp eye on the day-to-day and stays above the vicious cycle. To him, it’s Clockwork.

Clockwork, the new album by Phrase , is about time; and times have changed! Two Flat Whites in conjunction with our friends at Universal Music Australia are giving ten (10) lucky people the chance to win Phrase’s new album Clockwork.

Forget what you knew about him. His acclaimed APRA and ARIA nominated debut album, Talk With Force, was yesterday. Clockwork is not only about the now. It’s about the next. Phrase hails from Melbourne and he has crafted a stellar sophomore effort, tweaking his beats, his narratives, and his world view. “Clockwork features production from J-Skub, M-Phazes, and Jase, and guest appearances from Daniel Merriweather, Jackson Jackson, Bliss n Eso, Illy, Kram, Wendy Matthews and Max White. The single “Face It” featured Ian Kenny from alternative rock band Karnivool and was used in the marketing campaign for the Australian release of Halo 3.

Please email your name, postal address and where you heard about the competition to info for your chance to win!

Competition closes Sunday, 24th May 2009.

Everyone’s a winner at Two Flat Whites, get your free download of Phrase’s hit single Clockwork here .

Dash & Will are an alternative singer/songwriter duo from Melbourne. Dash (Charlie Thorpe) and Will (Josie De Sousa-Reay) began performing together after meeting at an arts college in inner-city Melbourne.

The girls entered their demo into MusicOz , a national competition for unsigned acts. Coming second overall. Josie’s father then gave their demo to Barry Palmer , a Melbourne-based producer and former guitarist with Hunters & Collectors and Deadstar and parent of a classmate, at a Christmas party. Just over a week later, Palmer called the girls and offered to sign them to his music production company, Gigantically Small . Following a couple of years of small gigs, a new 5 track demo and showcases to labels, Dash and Will signed to Mercury Records , through Universal Music Australia .

Dash and Will headlined the 2008 Rock The Schools tour across New South Wales in 2008 and have since supported many musicians including Ben Lee, Matt Costa, The Kooks and Faker’s Nathan Hudson . Their first single, ‘Pick You Up’, was released in May 2008, and second single ‘Fighting Over Nothing’ was released in October 2008. Their debut album ‘Up In Something’ will be released in 2009.

It’s busy times for Dash & Will, who The Age voted as the most likely band to succeed in 2009. And stay tuned for details of their national “Out of Control” tour kicking off in late May.

Check out the latest single from Dash & Will The wonderfully unhinged sing-along ‘Out of Control’ , being released on iTunes on the 15th May 2009.

Click here to see the new video clip, shot in Tokyo! (Watch it to the end for a very cute scene with some Japanese by-standers!)

Click here for your free Dash & Will download!

Carl Riseley , you may remember him as a finalist on Australian Idol, Carl has made a compelling record, with his second album The Stillest Hour , which evokes a late night smoky club, where the vibes are mellow, and the photographs on the walls are black and white. It sees the Queensland-born jazz singer and trumpeter take a confident step forward in his musical journey.

On The Stillest Hour , he leaves behind the big band sounds and surrounds himself with a small and highly accomplished team of musicians. They were Bill Risby on piano and keyboards, guitarist James Muller , drummer Hamish Stuart and bass-player Jonathan Zwartz .

The title track, written by Nashville-based Ford Turrell , sets the tone for the entire album. “The dark night rolls on with all her power,” goes one line. Recounts Carl, “It’s got a strong image. To me, the ‘stillest hour’ is the romancing hour — after midnight, when it is really quiet, and when I feel the most creative.”

Carl’s album The Stillest Hour is available in stores now. Do yourself a favour and get yourself a copy! For tour dates, go to his website here .