October 2024 Mick and the band headed to Neil Finn’s prestigious Roundhead Studios in Auckland to record with award winning producer Steven Schram. First Step in a Homeward Direction (seven track maxi single) is the first offering from this inspired collaboration. It’s an all guns blazing rocking ballad - both triumphant and fragile - concerning the vagaries of the touring life. There’s another six tracks on the record - all covers from various contemporaries of the band including a lost track from Spencer P. Jones and Kim Salmon, one from the band’s WA buddy Carla Geneve and to close the record, a version of the Screaming Jet’s Helping Hand - as surprising as it is poignant.

To get the record out there the band are making a quick trip ‘round the country in June. It’s the dead of winter so it will be good to have a heartwarming new batch of tunes on offer along side the familiar cannon of tunes Mick’s audience have come to know and love. This year’s Port Fairy Folk Festival saw the Roving Commission handle the big stages with a serious amount of confidence and aplomb. The shows in June will be a great chance for the band to continue their quiet ascendancy as one of the country’s great touring acts.

with special guest Sky Scraper Stan