Knievel and Toby Martin are thrilled to announce their 'Songs From the Emerald City' tour. Toby and Wayne Connolly (from Knievel) have a long history of making records together.  All the way back, in fact, to the heady days of the early 2000s. This tour will be a chance to celebrate that history and their continuing musical and song-writing like-mindedness.  Both Knievel and Toby released records last year - 'Emerald City' and 'Love's Shadow' respectively - which feature several songs that are imbued with the geographies of their home town, Sydney. 

Toby explains some connections: 

'The first time I heard a Knievel song was in Canberra.  I was 19.  Driving my parents' car across the lake. They had a pretty melodies AND  great, noisy guitars.  I thought you weren't allowed to do both.  Knievel helped create a glimmer of realisation that pop songs could have distortion, feedback and weird-sounding tunings.  In fact they were better when they did.'

'Fast forward a few years to Sydney's Kings Cross.  Turtlerock Studios on Kellett St.  Moreton Bay Figs and neon and the old man restaurant below the window.  Wayne Connolly was producing Youth Group's first album 'Urban And Eastern'.  I totally fucking loved that time.  We were working with a producer who took guitar and drum sounds very seriously.  But didn't take himself, or us, that seriously.  As anyone who has worked with Wayne will attest, there are lot of jokes in the studio. And this approach stayed with me: making a record should take time, it should take thought, it should be taken seriously. But it should also be approached with a light touch. Weird tunings and jokes. Wayne always had the best jokes.'

Wayne went on to produce the first three Youth Group records, and there have been many other musical collaborations over the years. But they have never toured together.  It's time to right that oversight Australia! 

www.tobymartin.com.au

www.knievel.com.au

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