Courtney Barnett, Hiatus Kaiyote and The Avalanches. What do these three acts have in common? Well, each of them had to blow up overseas before they received the same sort of recognition locally. It’s a strange phenomenon that’s seen some of our (now) biggest domestic exports have to gather immense international acclaim before they were similarly embraced locally. In the hopes that this doesn’t happen yet again, we’d like to draw your attention to a pair of visionaries known as Venus II. The duo consists of long time Melbourne band leader Jarrad Brown (Dorsal Fins, Eagle & The Worm) and Sydney’s electronic luminary Ryan Grieve (Canyons).
You might not have heard of Venus II but in the UK, the noise is already there. Their debut single Inside Your Sun has been all over UK Radio, including a big drive through BBC Radio 6. The song came with a mind-altering video to compliment the acid-rave / techno fusion vibes of the audio which references the old and the new in the same was as does the song itself.
They’ve recently announced their debut album, also titled Inside Your Sun which will feature more of those raw, instinctual rave elements combined with surprising hooks that have made the single such an unusual listen. The album combied Brown’s meticulous songwriting with Grieve’s spatial and expansive production so as to create something referential but fiercely unique. The album comes after Brown worked on the original mixes (recorded with on with Steve Schram in Melbourne and his band Eagle & The Worm) before taking the project in a new direction with Grieve. Those sessions will become available to as part of a CD set but the movement of sound led Brown & Grieve to a whole new place which retained the familiar but saw them push each other in a new direction for both musicians.
“Some of the ideas and conversations within this album were out of my reach when we started,” says Brown. “We distilled our ideas- we made demos, we made new demos, we made beats, we made new beats.... Ryan rarely used the idea I thought would be the idea. Working in a new environment with a new person - you’re presented a set of choices and unknowns. You can’t be the old and familiar version of yourself - you become a new you. A product of your collaboration…” – Jarrad Brown
Inside Your Sun will be out on August 19 and the band will be playing the following shows through August and September to celebrate the release.
ALBUM RELEASE PARTIES
Friday 19th August – Gasometer, Melbourne
Information and tickets available at the venue.
Saturday 3rd September – Freda’s, Sydney
Information and tickets available at the venue.
AUSTRALIAN TOUR DATES (SUPPORTING GL)
Saturday 10th September – Howler, Melbourne
Saturday 17th September – Newtown Social, Sydney