There will be a new EP Airs and Dances out late October. Its electronic and collectd from songs written during my time at the shearers cottage in Gulgong in the Central West. a little bit soundtrack a little bit Euro synth a little bit electro pop
Heres a sneak preview…available youtube/itunes/spotify
Lots of fans have been bemoaning the fact they cant access Soundcloud or Spotify as they dont have accounts and it is clunky on mobile so i have decided to make it simple and revert to a youtube playlist format from now on for the Explosion Radio Show
The last 4 shows have concentrated on progressive and dynamic record labels such as Elektra/Vertigo/Stiff and coming up is Modular Records
Enjoy here
August 9, 2018
As the sun set on the touring days for indie rock band The Lime Spiders, Richard Lawson dreamt of heading to Tuscany to live as a peasant farmer. Instead he settled in Mudgee in the Central West of New South Wales, which offers a lifestyle closely aligned to the Tuscan experience. There he established one of Australia’s first certified organic olive farms with the Figtree Food Company. He also began taking music students with the Lawson School of Music.
Although the connections to Mudgee have remained strong for 25 years, Richard and his partner Elizabeth are now based at Mystery Bay, where they have planted over 100 fruit and nut trees to continue the Tuscan experience by the seaside. The pair attend weekly growers markets up and down the coast, including SAGE Farmers Markets every Tuesday, Bermagui growers market as well as Tilba markets on Saturday mornings with their hand made produce.
But it’s not just the food that hungers this musical couple. “For me, the full experience of life has always centred around both food and music,” Lawson says. “In many ways it’s exactly what our culture is crying out for – a return to the simple pleasures of life, like good local food, and real music,” Richard said.
Richard and Liz teach a variety of instruments, with Rich focusing on performance and rock music, whereas Liz takes a more formal approach teaching classical guitar, piano and improvisation.
Richard’s experience was gained on the road touring the world as original drummer with the Lime Spiders, whereas Liz has taken the formal approach to studying music at the University of New South Wales and Sydney Conservatorium. Liz has been teaching private piano and guitar groups at many public and private schools in the Central West. “We have students from kindy to HSC and many adult students as well,” Liz says.
The pair bring their musical talents together in their band called “Honey”, symbolizing a substance that is pure and real that makes the world go around. The band plays as a duo at events and night clubs, swelling the ranks with other musicians for a full line up at larger music festivals throughout New South Wales, and featured on ABC radio.
Rich and Liz also run rival drumming groups – with Richard’s snare and Tom Tom based outfit Kings of Congo Congo featured as the headline band for many Mudgee events in recent years, and Liz’s African drumming band Bella Djemballa bringing a different style of groove to street events and festivals too.
Richard is now taking rock guitar, vocals and kit drums, students on the south coast, and Liz is taking classical piano, classical guitar, improvisation and African drumming classes on the coast as well.
When not teaching or playing, they can be found pottering around as they work towards establishing their new food garden at Mystery Bay.
Above: Liz and Tim Holt on @abcsoutheast
I’ll be heading North to Townsville Qld on the June long weekend with my old friend Ben Fowler to play drums for Benji and the Saltwater Soundsystem. We have 3 shows at the Palm Creek Music Festival and the friday night is the QLD launch of their new Coming up for water EP. I thought for a bit of a laugh Id put this photo of a facebook conversation between members about volume might explain a few things LOL
Richard Lawson I bet Bean Jamin Chookand Steve Russonello are worried about how loud Im gonna be at Palm Creek Folk Festival June Long Weekend Mick Elderfield ???
Mick Elderfield I know it will be loud, and I’m not the least bit worried about it 
😎
Steve Russanello hahahaha I am bringing the spaceship and you will need earplugs for my 15 minute feedback solo based on Neil’s Rockin in the Free World…you’re not going to mic the kick are you Richard?
Richard Lawson dunno…up to the soundies i suppose…jamming with Bean Jamin Chook this weekend at the new Mystery Bay garage studio
Ben Fowler What??? You’ll have to speak up!
Brian Eno turns 70 today. He is still as relevant today as when he stalked the keyboard in his flamboyant precursor to the glam era in his groundbreaking work with Roxy Music way back in 1971.
He is best known for his pioneering work in ambient music and contributions to rock, pop, electronic, and generative music. A self-described “non-musician”, Eno has helped to introduce a variety of unique conceptual approaches and recording techniques into contemporary music, advocating a methodology of “theory over practice” throughout his career. He has been described as one of popular music‘s most influential and innovative figures.
4 of his solo albums in the 70’s/ Here come the warm Jets, Taking Tiger mountain by strategy, Another Green World, Before and after science were predominantly Pop/rock albums. These were commercially successful to varying degrees but it is also his work with his ambient/electronic albums which are just as fondly remembered and influential. Its like he was working in 2 streams at the one time.
Eno’s biggest mainstream successes have been as a member of Roxy Music and, more recently, as the producer of U2 and Coldplay, but his most enduring music may well prove to be among his many solo and collaborative recordings. These span glam rock, art rock, avant funk, electronica, ambient, fourth-world and generative music. Eno self-deprecatingly describes them as “little ships floating on a sea of indifference.”
Eno has also produced over 50 albums for other artists, from U2 and Coldplay to Laurie Anderson, Seun Kuti, Devo, Talking heads, Daniel Lanois, Peter Gabriel, Bob Dylan, David Bowie, and Grace Jones.
His ambience dovetails his pop work but seems to have had its genesis in Ambient 1 Music for airports
Ambient ambient ambuen ambience ambien etc etc etc
The 4 pack of Ambient albums….collect the whole set, swap with your friends, compare ambient notes
There are so many more things to say about him. His restless artist energy, his witticisms and quotes [my favorite being …”the problem with success is its own momentum”]. The Oblique strategies set of playing cards for studio use founded on the i-ching principle [its still functioning on website]
I will have an explosion radio show soon on the best of him but for now there is a fantastic selection of 10 of his best albums/collaborations on the web from an English store called the Vinyl Factory…ranked thus
A person who makes money by passing the hat (soliciting donations) while entertaining the public (often by playing a musical instrument) on the streets or in other public area such as a park or market.
Wow. I feel bad now soliciting donations. Its a funny thing but I look at people who don’t put money in the hat/ or guitar case/ or whatever I happen to have out and get a bit peed off but then I think about what reaction I would make to a busker. If they are good I will gladly leave money and if they are good they brighten up the area where they radiate music.
I now officially love busking. It frees you up to play a looser style , experimenting with songs and generally having a chilled out time
I can remember the first time I did it down the South coast of N.S.W. at Milton outside Pilgrims vegetarian cafe. A really cool hang for the hipsters and tourists. It was July school holidays and Lizzie and I had our time off from our students [I had nearly 40 at the time and was finding it exhausting] so what do I do….go and play music. I asked them with much trepidation if I could busk, [the cafe that is] and next thing you know I grab the guitar from the car and off we go.
I made a lot of money that day and noticed a trend for people paying if you played lots of Bee Gees, Simon and Garfunkel and Beatles.
That was back in 2014 and now I think I’ve racked up over 50 busking gigs…with or without Honey. At one stage I was helping raise funds for the Gulgong Folk Festival by busking every Friday morning outside 3 different locations in Mudgee. It was freezing and temperatures were around 3 degrees Celsius which is really hard on your fingers
It is an instant gig and Honey sometimes did Flash mob gigs or Pop up gigs promoted on Facebook but still they are basically busking
I love it and now down the coast I am planning where and when. I would love to busk at least once a week to keep my chops up and earn a little side cash and just get out there, get amongst it and have fun
I think I must have set a new record for performances in 1 day. At the Gulgong Folk Festival in 2015 I played in 7 bands over the course of 1 day but this was intense…4 bands in 4 hours. First a background brief on what Council was trying to do on the day
An exciting FREE live music event will transform Mudgee’s retail outlets and eateries into temporary live music venues on Saturday 17 March.
From 4pm to 8pm musicians will perform in unconventional music venues as part of Live and Local on Church Street.
Grant funded through the Live Music Office, the program promotes live music in local communities and creates opportunities for employment and cultural development.
Eight businesses and 17 musicians will participate in this free event to coincide with the Mudgee Food and Drink Trail.
I approached council about the curators job at a few peoples insistence stemming from My festival directorship background but I didn’t get the gig. I did though secure performances for 4 of the acts I perform with including a solo spot
First was my solo spot at Simply Fresh at 4 pm. I had a little cheer squad and all went well…Then onto the Juice bar for Lizzie’s African drumming outfit ‘Bella Djemballa’. They are highly rehearsed and very intricate only playing hand drums , Djembes, Dun duns. It was 32 degrees already and the heat was on….then straight onto ‘Kings of Congo Congo 2 doors down the street at Subway.
It was really hot now and I was feeling it. We were playing in direct sun with the heat from the bitumen shining straight up at us. By now it was about 7.00pm and we had to hightail it down to the Mudgee Brewery for our last performance of the night to a packed house as Honey
What a great initiative and day. The crowds were plentiful and the atmosphere fantastic. I hope they do it next year
