Basement Birds

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Basement Birds
Origin Australia
Years active 2009–present
Website Official website
Members Kavyen Temperley
Steve Parkin
Josh Pyke
Kevin Mitchell

Basement Birds is an Australian indie group composed of Kavyen Temperley (Eskimo Joe's frontman and bassist), Steve Parkin (solo singer/songwriter), Kevin Mitchell (Jebediah, aka Bob Evans) and solo singer/songwriter Josh Pyke.[1][2] The groups' mutual love of lush vocal harmonies and alt-country style was the basis for forming the Basement Birds project.

Luckily we all seem to have fairly similar tastes in music, I think it'd be harder if we had someone who was into death metal and another into jazz fusion. That'd be tough. There's enough common ground between the four of us.
—Steve Parkin

Influences cited by the band include Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Wilco. The first single, "Waiting for You" was first introduced nationally on Australian Radio station Triple J's Drive program on 14 April 2010 and subsequently released for sale on the iTunes Store.

History

Formation

Talk of the groups' four members combining forces was initially discussed around 2008 whilst Steve Parkin was performing in the Bob Evans touring band.[2] He and Mitchell found moments during downtime to write what would become the first single, "Waiting For You". Meanwhile, Josh Pyke had joined Eskimo Joe on a national tour and began exchanging ideas with frontman, Kavyen Temperley. Pyke and Temperley penning a song called "Reasons".[2]

The notion was now set in place as a reality, but the four were yet to actually get together in the same room (in fact this has only occurred during four week-long writing/recording sessions that have taken place since mid-2009). Plenty of calls and emails were exchanged however, and the initial vision of recording an acoustic-based, organic release that referenced their mutual love of the likes of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Wilco held true until the foursome were able to gather in Temperley's home studio in Hamilton Hill, Western Australia to begin the recording process.[1]

Post-completion

Following the completion of the Basement Birds project, Mitchell rejoined Jebediah for its fifth album, Kosciuszko, Temperley rejoined Eskimo Joe for its fifth album, Ghosts of the Past, Pyke resumed his solo career, releasing his third studio album Only Sparrows and Parkin relocated to Melbourne, Australia. Both Parkin and Mitchell also signed to the publishing company, Select Music, in 2012.[3][4]

Releases

"Waiting for You", the first single was released exclusively on the iTunes Store 26 April 2010 and first introduced by The Doctor on the Drive program of Australian national radio station Triple J on 14 April 2010. In an accompanying interview with member Josh Pyke, it was revealed that the group hopes to tour some time in mid-2010.

The Basement Birds debut album was released via iTunes digital downloads in the form of three EP bundles and two singles released every couple of weeks. The first bundle of songs included "Reasons", "Skin of the Sky" and "Bus Stop" (featuring Julia Stone), which was released on iTunes on 17 May 2010.

The debut album was physically released on 16 July 2010. It featured the tracks from the EP's and singles, and the CD-only track "All I Want".

Three iTunes exclusive acoustic sessions have also been released.

Music videos

The album's first single, "Waiting For You", was released with an accompanying music video that features the band at Temperley's Hamilton Hill house.

The music video for the second single, "Not The One", was filmed in Ashendon, Western Australia and features all four members of the band, a blue pick-up truck, and a "red dirt" back-road. The driver of the vehicle is Malcolm Clark, The Sleepy Jackson's drummer and the video was filmed in less than eight hours.[2][5]

Discography

Singles

  • "Waiting for You" (26 April 2010)
  • "Not the One" (22 June 2010)

EPs

  • "Skin of the Sky"/"Reasons"/"Bus Stop" (17 May 2010)
  • iTunes Sessions (8 June 2010)
  • iTunes Sessions (23 June 2010)
  • "Holly"/"Hardest Part"/"Heartache On the Radio" (29 June 2010)
  • iTunes Sessions (13 July 2010)
  • "Cinnamon and Smoke"/"All That I Feel"/"Ghosts"/"Hamilton Hill" (13 July 2010)

Album

  • Basement Birds (16 July 2010) #12 AUS

Members

Current

The core members of the band are:

  • Kavyen Temperley — (2009–present)
  • Kevin Mitchell — (2009–present)
  • Steve Parkin — (2009–present)
  • Josh Pyke — (2009–present)

Management

The band is under the management of the Catherine Haridy Management company; the company also manages the individual careers of Temperley (Eskimo Joe), Mitchell (Jebediah and Bob Evans) and Parkin.[6]

External links

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Collins, Simon (8 May 2010). "Basement Birds ready to fly after a few beers". The West Australian (West Australian Newspapers Limited). p. 17. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Collins, Simon (14 May 2010). "Birds of a Feather". The West Australian (West Australian Newspapers Limited). 
  3. ↑ Steve Parkin (3 July 2012). "Me and MGMT celebrating my publishing signing with a cheeky champers. Gee we work hard at our meetings!!". Steve Parkin Facebook fan page. Facebook. Retrieved 24 August 2012. 
  4. ↑ Select Music (2012). "BOB EVANS". Select Music. Select Music. Retrieved 24 August 2012. 
  5. ↑ BasementBirds (6 July 2010). "Basement Birds - 'Not The One'". YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 28 August 2012. 
  6. ↑ Catherine Haridy Management (2012). "Our Roster". Catherine Haridy Management. Catherine Haridy Management. Retrieved 24 August 2012. 
  • Soulshine - Introducing Basement Birds
  • FasterLouder - Introducing Basement Birds
  • Triple J - Music News
  • About Basement Birds - Official Website
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