Music n Arts n Food
BECCY COLE BARES HER SOUL By Lachlan Bryan For successful performing artists in the prime of their careers, a new album every couple of years is the established rule of thumb. Making records is a long, challenging process which can break the spirits of even the most seasoned pros, and it usually requires all of the artist’s strength and energy, plus the help of a good supporting cast. Beccy Cole has made plenty of records (7 prior to this year, as a fact) and knows the process involved – but this time round she’s complicated things further by teaming new record Sweet Rebecca with her autobiography, Poster Girl. “When the publisher referred to me as an ‘author’ within the first ten minutes of our conversation I started to like the idea,” says Cole, who claims that she was essentially “talked into” writing her memoirs.
as completely honest and open if I was recounting my stories to another person in the room. Writing it all down myself seemed to make more sense, and luckily the final product isn’t edited too much!” Alongside the book, new album Sweet Rebecca sees Cole at the top of her game. Recorded with master producer and good friend Shane Nicholson (the second Cole album in a row that he has produced) the almost exclusively mostly self-penned songs showcase Cole’s abilities as both writer and performer – as well as her continued willingness to bare her soul. Poster Girl and Sweet Rebecca are available now at all good bookstores and music stores.
Despite being one of Australia’s most established and credible country singers, it was Cole’s personal life that captured the nation’s attention back in 2012 when she ‘came out’ on ABC TV’s Australian Story. It was seen as a brave move considering her relatively conservative country music fanbase, but Cole found great support from the industry and audience – and also won over a legion of new fans. “If anything, it made me wish I’d done it a lot sooner,” she says, before noting that the support of her fans did not surprise her at all. The journey from her hometown Adelaide, through the wild country touring circuit of the 90s and early 2000s and eventually to her emergence as an inspirational female icon in recent years certainly makes for interesting reading “I resisted the urge to employ a ghost writer,” she says, “as I didn’t really feel like I’d be
ROSEBUD BUSKFEST 2015 Rosebud’s busking festival will launch on the morning of Saturday 14 November. Once again there is an impressive $1000 cash prize for the overall winner, plus other prizes of cash, music services and gigs at local venues. Performers with skills in music, dance, acrobatic skills and comedy, that are transferable to a street environment, are encouraged to submit their entry before Monday 31 August. Speaking to last year’s overall winner, Brendon Mellere, we hear he has spent time since his win playing gigs around the Peninsula, while working on the production of an album. Brendon invested his $1000 winnings on equipment for his own recording studio. Asked what winning had meant for his music career, he replied that his confidence in public performance had increased, and it also created a fanbase for him, giving him more recognition as a musician.
The Best Group winners, The Bean Project, have also been busy in recent months performing in Sydney, Hobart and Canberra and have just released a self-titled EP, which is available at thebeanproject. bandcamp.com or at facebook.com/ thebeanproject. Ben Langdon from the duo, said that for them the Buskfest win had opened doors to gigs in new venues plus direct access to production professionals previously unknown to them. The guys all encourage emerging performers to grab this amazing opportunity by entering this year’s busking festival, saying how much fun the day itself had been, never mind the great opportunities it had offered their music career. For more information on how to enter the competition (registration essential by Monday 31 August), go to facebook.com/ rosebudbuskfest or call 0403 889 559. Southern Peninsula News 21 July 2015
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