SEPTEMBER
Gigs are happening every Tuesday night at The Underground at the Grand Hotel, Newcastle
Doors open at 7:30pm. Band plays from 8:00-10:00pm.
Bar open until 12:00am.
Underwards | Tuesday 5 September
The full moon through trees and mist. Towering majestic cliffs above a quiet rural valley. A calm river winding through a rocky landscape. A swim in a tidal ocean pool. A muddy swamp, teeming with life. The effects that being in nature has upon our senses and our minds, and the stories and memories that places hold. This is what Underwards makes music about.
Led by award-winning trumpeter and composer Ellen Kirkwood, Underwards features some of Sydney’s most exciting, versatile and creative musicians. Their music, like nature, combines beauty, mystery, colour and rhythm, but also leans into the ways humans experience nature; sometimes with joy or calm, other times melancholy or bewilderment, even awe.
This performance will be part of Underwards’ launch tour for Delve; their characterful and eclectic debut album. Delve boasts ten original, contrasting and evocative tracks, in which Kirkwood and her talented band mates show off their abundance of musical versatility, wit and expressivity.
"Deeply sensitive, intellectually inquisitive, modern and of today." - Eric Pozza, Canberra Jazz Blog
Ellen Kirkwood – Trumpet
Hilary Geddes – Guitar
Nick Henderson – Bass/Synths
Alex Inman-Hislop – Drums
Cardiff Spares | Tuesday 12 September
The Cardiff Spares deliver a Class A fusion of blue, roots, funk and rock. Led by veteran all-rounder guitarist Robbie Long, the soulful Vocals of Grace Finlayson, Jason Tyler on Keys, Jonathan Murray on Bass, and Justin Ngariki on Drums, the music is groove-based, fluid and dynamic - from sublime, earthy ballads up to high energy improvisations. The Cardiff Spares interpret material from the likes of John Mayer, Jeff Beck, Tedeschi Trucks Band and Bonnie Raitt, plus a host of handpicked rare classics, adding their own touch and delivering with passion and edge.
Grace Finlayson – Vocals
Jason Tyler – Keyboards
Robbie Long – Guitar
Jonathon Murray – Bass
Justin Ngariki – Drums
Spirograph Studies | Tuesday 19 September
Cinematic and dream-like, Spirograph Studies build a collective dialogue using influences from post-rock, minimalism and neo-classical musical styles to create their live, genre-bending soundtrack. They introduce themes which slowly build to fill out the space they perform in, drawing on different sonic influences for each track.
Spirograph Studies have been carving out a niche in the Australian music landscape with their unique approach, led by bassist and composer Tamara Murphy. Their albums have been shortlisted for Music Victoria awards, featured on The Best Jazz on Bandcamp list October 2021), Album of the Week on ABC Jazz and the single Anteloper was one of the Top Tracks on Feature Sounds (PBS Radio). They toured Australia and New Zealand in 2019, receiving glowing reviews.
“If there is one quality which most permeates the music of Spirograph Studies, it is melodic beauty.”
– Eric Myers, The Weekend Australian, July 3, 2022
Fran Swinn – Guitar
James McLean – Drums
Luke Howard – Piano
Tamara Murphy – Bass
