My lovely and VERY talented friends, Juvita and Joel, are supporting one of Australia’s hottest bands – Thirsty Merc – this Sunday. Last week their band, Good Fight, played a fantastic set at the Peninsula Lounge on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. The night was aptly named “Girls Behaving Naturally” and featured three of the Peninsula’s hottest female singers. Kate George started out the night to a rapturous welcome. Her powerful, passionate vocals were greeted with stunned awe. This lady can ROCK! Next up was Meg O’Reilly and her band and, finally, Good Fight came on stage. Johnny Kendall, one phenomenal fiddler, joined them on the night to help recreate the magic he contributed to the bands’ latest single ‘Dublin Rain’. His playing is exquisite to say the least and added some heartbreaking riffs to almost all songs on their set (is it a riff if it’s played on the fiddle? I’ve no idea!). Between songs he threw out a little humorous flourish here and there which kept things moving along nicely.
Sidetracked – the intention of the post was to draw attention to Good Fight’s NEXT gig 
They’re playing at the Hallam Hotel, in Hallam, Victoria. If you’re in the area, you should definitely make an effort to come along. There are three support bands in the lead up to Thirsty Merc hitting the stage. Unfortunately, the third artist escapes me completely just now, but the first two are draw card enough, so little matter. First up is Good Fight. Now with Luke Mears on drums and Ben Clacy on bass, their sound has grown and expanded exponentially over the last six months. Featuring their stand out new song “Dublin Rain” (listen to a sneak peek here – “Dublin Rain Preview” or BUY it here – “Dublin Rain Two Track Promo CD”), the beautiful ‘Open Your Eyes’ (the second track on the CD) and their latest addition to the set, the rhythmic, gutsy song ‘Centre Of Your World’, this will be well worth your time and petrol to come along.
Following them is Victoria’s rocking, quirky boys from ‘The Wonderul’. Another local band whose sound has matured rapidly over the past year with the addition of drummer, Noel Tenney and bassist, Pete Mollica. With well-known frontmen Olly and Scuzzi, they’re bound to raise the roof and get you jumping. I’ve yet to hear them live as a full band and can’t wait to hear how they sound as a four piece.
As I said earlier, if you’re in the area, you should definitely get along to this gig. Yes, I know the headliners are the incredible Thirsty Merc, but I think the true focus of the evening should be given to supporting our local artists. Not only is this a nice thing to do it’s also damn encouraging and (hopefully) will help put a little money into the pockets of four people (Juvita and Joel; Olly and Scuzzi) who have been providing free entertainment for all of you Mornington Peninsula-ites and beyond over the past 3 to 8 years. The bigger the crowd support bands can draw, the more exposure they get, the more gigs they get, the more chance they have of being heard by recording studios and radio stations. Come on, kiddies, do your bit to get them on the air!
(Update:The third support artist is Andrew Swift.)
© Melinda Chambers. All posts are the creation of the author and, as such, remain the author's property with all rights reserved.
- Good Fight Supporting Vanessa Amorosi At The Chelsea Heights Hotel – Page 2
- Good Fight Supporting Vanessa Amorosi At The Chelsea Heights Hotel – Page 1
- Good Fight – Juvita, Joel and Cassie – Debut Album Launch!
- Good Fight Supporting Vanessa Amorosi At The Chelsea Heights Hotel – Page 3
- Good Fight at The Hallam Hotel
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also known as
Olly and Scuzzi
Olly and Scuzzi of The Wonderful
Well, it was inevitable – I’m a complete masochist and, besides, it was time to break up the poetry with an intrusion from the real world (says she who lives off with the pixies!)
So, it’s be kind to gelfs day and I’ve decided to pop a little more promotion on the net for two friends of mine with an abundance of talent and no managerial skills (sorry guys 
but you know it’s true!). At the very least, it’ll give them a new google listing and exposure is exposure, regardless of the source, right?
Olly and Scuzzi currently play live three nights a week – Flanagan’s in Frankston on a Thursday night, The Stamford in Rowville on Friday’s, and The Royal Hotel in Traralgon of a Saturday evening. God knows what a place like Traralgon is doing calling one of their venues “The Royal”. To misquote a comedian I heard the other night, you can’t even get Virgin Olive Oil there. Actually, the same could be said of Frankston, but I live kind of near there and may have just set myself up for a bashing from the local ferals!
My, I’m really out to win popularity contests today, aren’t I?
At any rate, while they’re currently playing covers, they can probably be persuaded to throw in some originals if you ladies would be kind enough to throw your underwear on the stage (I’ve heard that’s all it takes with them… you could probably offer up the part of the anatomy they’re intended to cover while you’re at it and they wouldn’t say no… but I digress )
They have a four track EP for sale at their gigs and also available from their website The Wonderful. For a mere ten dollars or so (inflation’s up three percent I hear, so that price might be out of date), you can purchase yourself a great little lolly bag of goodies.
First there’s their signature track “Scatterbrain”. For this song you need to come prepared with the ability to have FUN! Yes, I know, anyone perusing a web page which normally devotes itself to the tortures of love lost and looking to find 2,845 reasons to kill themselves will probably struggle with this prerequisite but, trust me, you want to suspend the doom, gloom and cynical world weariness here and find out how to enjoy yourself! Any song that can cheer ME up has a thing or ten going for it. It’s fun, quirky and chock full of effortless skill and cleverness. If you like off the wall music designed to make you forget that the world (or, more properly, its inhabitants) suck, get your hands on a copy of this song a.s.a.p.
Next up is possibly my favourite song of theirs, “Where Did You Go?” Just to surprise anyone who knows me, this is also a very upbeat song. (And she likes it? Absolutely!) This is the coolest song bar none. When you’ve got Jack Howard of Hunters & Collectors fame adding his trumpeting expertise to a song already deserving of a number one position on the charts, you know you’re in for something very fine indeed. This song sounds to me as though it would be right at home in a speak easy in the prohibition era. Now, either you know what I’m talking about or you don’t. Think Bugsy Malone and Al Capone…. now find yourself a very cool dive located down a few shady stairs to a smoke filled room peopled with fast talking, smooth gangsters and 1920s starlets, the scotch flowing freely, one very cool cat behind a piano, a mean bluesy trumpeter and a couple of slick front men singing about that one night stand they almost had with the hottest woman their fantasies never could have conjured. The photos on their EP and on their website actually fits the feel of this song extraordinarily well, I think – two men out to sea and then, once again, dumped in the drink!
Both in the same boat…. funny how they just can’t seem to see that massive wave about to swamp them… although there’s a great deal to be said for enjoying the moment and not worrying about “tomorrow”! …
The Wonderful EP CD Front: Both in the same boat – Olly, Scuzzi and Noel
Ahh, the inevitable…
The Wonderful CD Insert: Olly and Scuzzi
Did I ever tell you about the time…..
The Wonderful Olly, Scuzzi and Noel CD Back
Thirdly, there’s “In Stone”. This song is on equal footing with “Where Did You Go?” for me but for entirely different reasons.
Yes, finally we come to a place Miss Molli feels right at home! This song bleeds. It has one of the most heart-rending riffs I’ve ever heard. Damien’s (aka Olly) guitar soars like a violin in places, piercing and so unbearably eloquent in a way words could never convey. Anthony (sorry Scuzzi, I prefer your real name) really explores the full range of his voice, in some places soaring ethereally and sounding almost operatic and, in others, reminiscent of Rob Thomas when you know he’s breaking his heart wide open to talk to you. This is the sort of song easily imagined at a stadium packed with 50,000 fans who all hold their breaths with the first quiet piano intro, lifting their lighters and thinking of that one person who should have been “forever”. If you’ve ever heard INXS perform “Never Tear Us Apart” you’ll know exactly the mood evoked by “In Stone”. I could write another dozen paragraphs exploring every facet of this song but, 1) you should buy it for yourself and, 2) I’m going to start getting all teary in a second and start thinking too much about my “should have been forever man”. Let’s move right along then, shall we?
Last on the EP is “This Time”. This has quite a Barenaked Ladies feel to it and I definitely mean that as a good thing. Anthony and Damien are consummate musicians and, whether they’re playing quirky nonsense songs or blazing torch ballads, this fact is always readily apparent. “This Time” is certainly no exception. When you combine two men who can both sing, both play guitar and harmonise brilliantly, you can’t go wrong. This song reminds me of those great Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra buddy songs – telling a story whilst throwing the lead back and forth between each other. While upbeat, there’s a nostalgic trip down memory lane involved; one of those last ditch efforts to recover “the good old days” and re-ignite an almost forgotten passion with someone who you know just isn’t the one for you no matter how hard you try to make it otherwise.
All in all, for a tiny little ten dollars (plus GST no doubt!) you’ve got your hands on something for everyone – “Scatterbrain” for the slightly unhinged, got to party NOW people, “Where Did You Go?” for those of you who insist on wearing your sun glasses at night and wouldn’t say no to a little illicit romancing on the bonnet of a car in a public car park, “In Stone” for the bleeding hearts everywhere, and “This Time” for those of you who like the top down on your convertible, summer days, a bottle of wine and a “stop at Lorne for tea”. Very few bands these days can cover such an eclectic mix of genres and certainly not with the skill and success with which The Wonderful has.
Now I’m just waiting on their full album and, please guys, a live show of ALL of your original work! Their website does give information about their gigs but, be warned, the “stay tuned” message has been displayed for quite some time. Any professional session players out there in Victoria, Australia who’d like to get some experience on the road with two extraordinarily talented (not to mention oh-so-irresistibly loveable) guys should visit their website and offer their services. You’re in for a great deal of fun, trust me! I believe that, while Damien is more than capable of providing piano, drums, bass and lead guitar and vocals and Anth well and truly has the latter two covered, it’s a tad difficult to do everything at once! So, a bass player, drummer and possibly a keyboard player are needed to join their line-up to put together a live show.
There, I think that’s my bout of friendliness done for the day!
Update: They now have a third permanent member of the band in Noel Tenney, one of Australia’s most “kick-ass drummers” as Olly would put it. Now for a bass player
The Wonderful: Olly, Noel and Scuzzi on stage
Related Links:
- The Wonderful Official Site
You can purchase their Self Titled EP here. (Well, you could if the site was up and running at the moment…. which it’s not.)
- The Wonderful’s MySpace Page
This is their most up-to-date site and the most assured method of contacting them. They’re currently selling tickets to see them supporting The Screaming Jets at The Hallam Hotel, Victoria, Australia as well as making their four track EP available – both via PayPal directly from their MySpace page.
- Rate The Wonderful on Triple J’s Unearthed
Triple J have “Unearthed” some of Australia’s best emerging talent on the music scene. Ratings and reviews on this site not only help promote unsigned bands, they can also lead to airplay and the possibility of a record deal.
- The Wonderful on ymiUndiscovered
As far as information goes, this is probably the most informative write-up around at the moment on The Wonderful’s influences and the writing techniques employed by Olly and Scuzzi.
- The Wonderful on Garageband
This is a great site for rating and reviewing unsigned bands
- Download The Wonderful on iLike iTunes
While anyone can listen to songs at this site, you’ll need iTunes installed on your computer to purchase downloads of these tracks.
© Melinda Chambers. All posts are the creation of the author and, as such, remain the author's property with all rights reserved.
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- Good Fight Supporting Vanessa Amorosi At The Chelsea Heights Hotel – Page 1
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