John Butler Trio – APRIL UPRISING
Here's the thing about revolution—it's ever present. It doesn’t
end with the dreams of a former generation, nor is it waiting at the
end of some rainbow. It's not an end at all, in fact, but a constantly
renewing beginning. ‘Revolution’ is also track one on John Butler's new
album, ‘APRIL UPRISING’, his first studio offering in three years since
the much acclaimed ‘Grand National’.
"April Uprising is a metaphor for transformation," John
says. "April was the month when this huge period of change in my life
manifested in the foundations of this album. That was when I realised
what I needed to do and started playing with Nicky and Byron. That was
an uprising in itself and not one that was taken lightly." John
explains.
The announcement of a new John
Butler Trio with Nicky Bomba on drums and Byron Luiters on bass, was a
surprise for those who were turned on to John’s music through his
globally successful ‘Grand National’ album of 2007.
For music lovers who have known him longer - maybe since his
'98 debut, or his multi-platinum ‘Three’ and ‘Sunrise Over Sea’ albums -
renewal and revolution have always been constant in his band and his
music. This rebirth was the culmination of an especially momentous
period in his life. It began with the seemingly innocuous acts of
cutting his hair and taking a few months off in late 2008.
"Then I went out and did Who Do You Think You Are?" John
says. "After that, so much had changed in my life on so many levels
it seemed anything and everything was on the table."
Although many of the tracks for the new album had been written
before John took on his incredible journey with documentary makers ‘Who
Do You Think We Are’ the exceptional genealogy series which aired on SBS
TV late last year, the title ‘APRIL UPRISING’
came to him after that journey. John
started the voyage hoping to find poets, musicians, and revolutionaries
in his past. He traced the Butler name through generations of hardship
to a matriarch who sang for her survival and he traced his Bulgarian
ancestry to a fore bearer caught up in a violent revolt.
To say the least, John Butler’s previously unknown history of
trailblazers, idealists and bona fide revolutionaries helped make
profound sense of his long-simmering passions as a writer and musician.
"I always knew where I was going but didn’t I
know why, in a heritage sense," he explains. "The intuitive compulsion
to be socially driven, conscious through music . . . this gave me a very
strong sense of foundation for all of that?
John's bond with his brother-in-law, Nicky Bomba, one of
Australia's most inventive and experienced drummers, had been proven
with his drumming role on the studio album, ‘Sunrise Over Sea’. Less
expected was the undeniable chemistry they found with Sydney bassist
Byron Luiters, sealed in a single jam in John's new Fremantle studio
back in February 2009.
Come September, with long-time
engineer Robin Mai, whom also engineered and mixed ‘Sunrise Over Sea’,
at the desk, the new trio had 22 songs and a whole new musical palette
in the can: playful and explosive, rhythmically complex and melodically
immediate, charged with new purpose but more committed than ever to the
principles of classic song craft.
"When we
started mixing at Melbourne's Sing Sing Studios, the question we were
asking was, Is this a great song?" John says. "I don't care how
cool the rhythms are, how amazing it sounds. Even an instrumental has to
have a voice that holds you and carries you through light and shade. If
you have the voice then you have a song. And then you're saying
something."
Those 22 songs were 15 by the time
the first single, ‘One Way Road’, became the most added song on
Australian radio in late November 2009. 2010 started with the track at
No. 1 on the Australian radio airplay charts.
‘APRIL UPRISING’ is John's most focused, diverse and accessible
album to date, showcasing innovative sounds from the trippy steel drum
detail on ‘Take Me’ to the roaring radio chorus of ‘To Look Like You’;
the tender ache of ‘Steal It’ and ‘Fool For You’ to the rustic folk of
‘Ragged Mile’ and the hysterical rock attack of ‘C’mon Now’, to the
second single , a rock disco classic ‘Close To You’ where John lets rip
with the electric Telecaster. Between the epic opening track
‘Revolution’ and a whispered acoustic coda ‘A Star is Born’, dedicated
to John's son, ‘APRIL UPRISING’ is an album that combines the personal,
the political and the musically memorable with skill and passion.
"It's interesting to see a band come together and the first
thing they do is create and produce together," John says. "We
came in as three producers, three writers, three players. We went into
the laboratory to produce the best thing we could and here we are. What
an interesting way to start a relationship. Personally I feel we’ve
created something very special that will stand the test of time – it’s
my best work to date.”
John continues, "I know now
we’ve got some work before us in terms of, okay, we've got four albums
to learn, then we've got this album to learn -and all with the eyes of
our fans around the world watching. There is by no means any complacency
but the chemistry is so there that I won't be surprised if it's all
very fun and easy. Like everything else has been so far."
The John Butler Trio release ‘APRIL UPRISING’ around the world
in March and April 2010. They will be touring their highly acclaimed
live show to all corners of the world with many iconic festivals and
sold out headlining concerts awaiting them.
Revolution Underway!
JOHN BUTLER TRIO:
John Butler – guitar and vocals
Nicky Bomba – drums and percussion
Byron Luiters – bass