Bluejuice
| Bluejuice | |
|---|---|
 Bluejuice perform at Splendour in the Grass, 2009 |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Sydney, Australia |
| Genres | Funk, indie rock |
| Labels | Dew Process |
| Website | Bluejuice.info |
| Members | |
| Jake Stone Stavros Yiannoukas Jamie Cibej Jerry Craib James Hauptmann |
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| Past members | |
| Ned Molesworth | |
Bluejuice is a rock band based in Sydney, Australia. The group consists of Jake Stone, Stavros Yiannoukas, Jamie Cibej, Jerry Craib and James Hauptmann.
They have released three studio albums; Problems, Head of the Hawk and Company.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Problems
Bluejuice released the album Problems in 2007. Problems was well received by Rolling Stone magazine in Australia, which awarded the album a four out of five rating.[citation needed]
The band's first single, "Vitriol", enjoyed airplay on the Australian national radio network Triple J, being the second most popular track in 2007 and ultimately reaching #11 in the annual Triple J Hottest 100 countdown in 2007.[1] "Vitriol" ranked number 67 in the Australian Rolling Stone Magazine's 100 Best songs of 2007. The video clip for "Vitriol" won best clip at Sunscreen Video Awards in 2007.
The video clip for "The Reductionist", the second single from Problems, was Rage "Indie Clip of the Week" in January 2008. The third single, "Phantom Boogie", has received airplay on Triple J. All three singles were produced by Genevieve Maynard.
[edit] Head of the Hawk
In 2009, Bluejuice signed to the Australian record label Dew Process and recorded their second studio album at Big Jesus Burger in Sydney with producer/mixer Chris Shaw (Bob Dylan, Public Enemy, Super Furry Animals, Weezer). Lead single "Broken Leg" debuted on the Australian Singles Chart at number 47 on 23 August 2009. They released the album Head of the Hawk on 18 September 2009, and it debuted at #37 on the Australian Albums Chart. "Broken Leg" eventually peaked at #27 on the Australian Singles Chart, supported by a music video directed by Samuel Bennetts, as well as reaching #5 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2009. The band performed the song on Channel Seven's Sunrise and Channel Nine's Wide World of Sports.
The second single from Head of the Hawk is "(Ain't) Telling the Truth", which was added to Triple J airplay. The band have also been nominated for two ARIA Awards in 2009 for Best Breakthrough Artist (Single) for "Broken Leg" and Best Video for "Broken Leg". The "Broken Leg" video was directed by Sammuel Bennet and was shot at the Metro in Sydney with the local skipping team called (in video) "Shimmer Extreme" led by the coach TK. "Broken Leg" was also voted #1 on Rage's inaugural "Rage FIFTY" in 2009.
On the Grand Final (part 1) episode of the AFL Footy Show, Hawthorn Football Club players Ben Stratton, Jarryd Morton, Matt Suckling and Liam Shiels re-enacted the popular video clip to "Broken Leg" live as part of the 2010 Player Review.
[edit] Company
On November 11, 2011, Bluejuice released their third album Company. The first single 'Act Yr Age' was co-written by Sparkadia's Alex Burnett. The closing track, 'On My Own' was co-written by The Presets' Julian Hamilton.
In an interview with Australian music journalist Nick Milligan that was published in the Maitland Mercury, co-vocalist Jake Stone said of the public's response to Company: "We seem to be in an okay position with the way people like or dislike the band. People seem to be supportive and anecdotally like us - they're not saying, 'Bluejuice - we don't want that band to exist'. It hasn't been an overwhelming response in the sense that we're not like The Jezabels and getting that huge public vibe. But I feel like we made a more consistent songwriting record, which was my intent. I'm pleased that people are enjoying [Company] in the way that we intended them to enjoy it - as a pop record with some serious songwriting, but never so serious that it interferes with the catchiness or the danceability of it. This band is at its best when it's making light of serious issues."
In January 2012, Bluejuice hit the road for their Sizzling Summer tour with dance act The Aston Shuffle. They are also due to perform on both the Big Day Out and Groovin' the Moo festival tours in 2012.
[edit] Musical style
The musical style of Bluejuice has variously been described as "punk-hop",[2] "downtempo hip hop, ska-tinged pop and pounding disco"[3] and "too straight for funk, too groovy for indie rock and too sweaty for pop".[4]
[edit] Touring
Bluejuice have played numerous concerts and large festivals including Big Day Out, Playground Weekender Festival, Come Together, Splendour in the Grass, Parklife,[5] Homebake, O-Fest and Coaster Festival. They have supported numerous artists including Tricky, Pnau, Dizzee Rascal, and The Specials.
In 2008 Bluejuice completed the Less Talk More Problems tour with Sydney Indie rock band The Paper Scissors.
In October 2009 Bluejuice set out on the Head of the Hawk Australian tour. They were also on the bill for the Big Day Out festival 2010.
Bluejuice played at The Marlin Hotel in Ulladulla on 6 January.
They also performed at "AJ2010", the 22nd Australian Scout Jamboree, with an audience of approx. 15,000
As part of a promotional interview on the Ryan, Monty and Wippa show on Nova 100 in Melbourne, Australia on Wednesday 27 January 2010, they allowed host Ryan Shelton to change details on their Wikipedia entry live on-air to include the addition of Street Fighter character Chun Li as a member of the band, and to add an interesting "fact"; that they are a "militant political group from the Maldives".
On 17 February 2010, Bluejuice were announced on Breakfast with Tom and Alex, on Triple J, as one of the acts to be performing at the One Night Stand concert on Saturday 27 March.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Studio albums
- Problems (2007)
- Head of the Hawk (2009) #37 AUS
- Company (2011) #23 AUS
[edit] Extended plays
- "Zebraaazz" (2003)
- "Here We Go Now"
- "Check out the Bobos on Superfreak"
- "Phalanx"
- "Phonetical Stungun"
- "Here We Go Now" (remix)
- The Good Luck Pig (2005)
- "Mad Squabbles"
- "Bounce Back"
- "The Madness"
- "Unemployed"
- "Strivin'"
[edit] Singles
- "Vitriol" (2007)
- "The Reductionist" (2008)
- "Broken Leg" (2009) #27 AUS
- "(Ain't) Telling the Truth" (2009) #64 AUS
- "Head of the Hawk" (2010)
- "Act Yr Age" (2011)
[edit] Awards
- 2003 MusicOZ Award
- Australian Music Prize 2007 Red Bull Award for Outstanding Potential
- Vitriol won best clip at Sunscreen Video Awards 2007
- Nominated for 2 ARIA Awards in 2009 for Best Breakthrough Artist (Single) for "Broken Leg" and Best Video for "Broken Leg"
- "Vitriol" nominated for 8th Annual Independent Music Awards for Pop/Rock Song of the year
[edit] References
They were also the star performers at AJ2010 (Australian Jamboree 2010)
[edit] External links
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