Papa VS Pretty
Encyclopedia
Papa Vs Pretty is an ARIA
-nominated Australian rock
band from Sydney
, New South Wales
. Originally the solo act of then 15-year old Thomas Rawle (lead vocals
, guitar
, piano
, primary songwriter
) in 2006, Papa Vs Pretty became its current three-piece band in 2008 with the addition of Rawle’s friends Angus Gardiner (bass guitar
, cello
, backing vocals) and Tom Myers (drums, backing vocals).
Papa Vs Pretty’s musical style has evolved from the initial fusion of indie rock
and electronica
of their first two EP's, to a more guitar-driven alternative rock
sound from 2010's Heavy Harm
EP onwards. Papa Vs Pretty has gained notable attention in the Australian music scene for their "intimidatingly tight" and energetic live performances. Their 2010 tracks "Heavy Harm" and "Wrecking Ball", and 2011 singles "One Of The Animals", "Honey" and "Darkest Way" have received heavy rotation on Australia-wide radio station Triple J
.
Papa Vs Pretty's debut album, United In Isolation
, which was recorded in January 2011, was released on 27 May 2011 to positive reviews, including a 9 out of 10 rating from Triple J Magazine and a coveted Triple J Feature Album slot. The album was nominated for Rock Album of the Year at the 2011 25th Anniversary ARIA Music Awards
, and it has also been nominated for the 2011 J Award
for Album of the Year.
In 2006, Rawle adopted the stage name Papa Vs Pretty to write, record, and perform his music under, creating songs which fused elements of electronica and indie rock. In 2007 he recorded and released the first EP under the name Papa Vs Pretty, The Presence, in which Rawle wrote all songs and performed all instruments. The originally untitled EP received its name 'The Presence' after Rawle delivered it to Sydney radio station FBi Radio
heralding it a 'present', and FBi mistakenly took that to be the EP's name. The song "Citizen No. 1" received air-play on FBi, and the EP was well received by the local music street press; Drum Media
's Liam Casey praised it saying "May god strike me down if this isn’t the best thing I’ve heard this year".
In late 2009, via online video sharing website Vimeo
, the band released an eight-part video series of live studio performances filmed in their rehearsal space, entitled From The Bunker. Filmed and produced entirely by the band and director Ben Wilson, From The Bunker showcased previously unreleased original songs, and a cover version of Prince
's Purple Rain
. The song "Piper" was featured on Triple J
radio station, and was then later re-recorded to be released on their Heavy Harm EP in 2010.
Australia. The band’s third studio EP Heavy Harm
, released 13 August 2010, was the first ever release for Peace & Riot. Recorded at Sydney’s Albert Studios in early 2010, the EP was produced by Australian musician and Something For Kate
frontman Paul Dempsey
, and was mixed by Dempsey and Rick Will. The first single, title-track "Heavy Harm", was added to national rotation on Triple J radio station in June 2010, and in July, an animated music video for the song by Melbourne design studio We Are Synapse was released online, and rotated on Rage
and Channel V
. The Heavy Harm EP was officially launched at a sold-out headline show at Sydney's Spectrum on 28 August, where the band also debuted some new songs live. The band toured heavily during 2010 in support of Heavy Harm, embarking on a national tour supporting Paul Dempsey for his Burning Leaves tour in April 2010, as well as opening for Grammy Award
-winning French band Phoenix
at the Luna Park Sydney Big Top in March, and Silversun Pickups
at their Melbourne headline show in September. In a July 2010 interview with FBi Radio
, the band revealed that they were currently writing their debut album, tentatively set for a 2011 release. After capping off the year performing at Peats Ridge Festival
2010 and Pyramid Rock Festival
2010, the band eventually entered BJB Studios in Sydney in January 2011 to begin the recording of their debut album. Throughout January they also performed at the Sydney Big Day Out
Festival 2011, as well as opening for a string of Hot Hot Heat
and Birds of Tokyo
shows.
On 20 March 2011 the first-single from their debut album United In Isolation
, "One Of The Animals", had its radio premiere on Triple J with Richard Kingsmill
. This was followed up with the official announcement of the album title and a confirmed release date for 27 May 2011. Produced and engineered by five time ARIA Award
winning producer Paul McKercher and mixed by Scott Horscroft, the album was released through Peace & Riot/EMI. Thomas Rawle has described United In Isolation as "almost a concept album", with a main lyrical "focal point". "In a very broad sense, it's about human nature's desire to always be coupled with another, and how love can sometimes be a vessel of selfishness. It's almost like animal behaviour, and I guess we are animals, just with language and ego". Various bonus, deluxe and limited editions of the album have been released, including the United in Isolation (Deluxe Edition) iTunes LP
featuring two bonus tracks and interactive artwork hand-drawn by Thomas Rawle, as well as a bonus limited edition 7 track EP titled Memoirs From A Bedroom: Issue 1, featuring previously unreleased new Papa Vs Pretty songs. The album has been met with positive reviews, with the mature songwriting and production in particular praised. Awarded a 9 out of 10 by Triple J
Magazine, it was also awarded the coveted Triple J Feature Album spot for the week beginning 30 May 2011. The album was released on 27 May 2011. It marks the first official release of a full-length Papa Vs Pretty album, despite songwriter Tom Rawle having written and produced approximately 30 albums worth of material at home in his bedroom, which he hopes to release eventually. The limited edition Memoirs From A Bedroom: Issue 1 EP, which was available alongside United In Isolation pre-orders from select distributors, is the first effort to release some of the band's vast amount of unreleased music.
Throughout 2011 Papa Vs Pretty have toured Australia extensively on their own album launch headline tour, and also touring with the Kaiser Chiefs
and The Vines
throughout August and September. The band has also contributed to The Wiggles
tribute cover album, Re-Wiggled: A Tribute to The Wiggles, alongside other Australian artists such as The Living End
, Jebediah
, Sarah Blasko
, Frenzal Rhomb
, covering the track "Can You (Point your Fingers and do the Twist?)". On 12 October 2011 it was announced that Papa Vs Pretty's album United in Isolation had been nominated for the Rock Album of the Year category for the 2011 25th Anniversary ARIA Music Awards
, to be held on 27 November. The album is also nominated for the 2011 Triple J J Award
for Album of the Year.
and indie rock
music, but have also integrated elements of grunge
, hard rock
, funk rock
, and electronica
in the past. Lyrically, Papa Vs Pretty songs have been described as often dealing with themes of disenfranchisement, lost love, human emotions, technology, and the state of the world, however Rawle, whilst accepting these as legitimate interpretations of his lyrics, says he's never thought that much about what he writes.
Recognisable characteristics of many Papa Vs Pretty songs include the focus on melodic backing vocal harmonies, lead vocalist Thomas Rawle’s falsetto
voice, and Rawle’s intricate lead guitar work. As a guitarist, Rawle cites other guitarists such as Prince
, Eddie Van Halen
, Jimmy Page
and Jimi Hendrix
as inspirations, and has been himself described as a "shredder
" and one for "grungy guitar riffs". As a whole, the band cite that they are influenced by many artists from a diverse range of genres, including Radiohead
, Queens of the Stone Age
, Daft Punk
, Aphex Twin
, The Smiths
, The Mars Volta
, At The Drive-In
, Incubus
, Prince
, The Drones
, Silverchair
, Jack White
, Jimi Hendrix
, Grizzly Bear
, Dinosaur Jr
, Battles
, Joy Division
, Elliot Smith, Jeff Buckley
, David Bowie
, Talking Heads
, Tom Waits
, Pavement
, The Reels
, Roxy Music
, Air, Vangelis
, and Sergei Prokofiev
.
Papa Vs Pretty's musical style and sound has drawn wide-ranging comparisons to many different artists and genres throughout its evolution. Evolving dramatically since their conception, their earlier musical output has been described as much more experimental
, indie and electronic sounding, applying a "deconstructuralist ethic... to traditional song structures," and creating "impulsive and spontaneous compositions". Their second EP, Papa Vs. Pretty, evoked comparisons to early Muse
, Coldplay
, Nine Inch Nails
and R.E.M.
, and Silverchair
. 2010's Heavy Harm EP saw the band shift towards a more guitar-focused and raw stripped-back melody-centric approach, described as "frantic guitar rock", with a grunge and classic rock inspired sound mixed with elements of Okkervil River
style folk rock
. Their 2011 debut album United In Isolation explored a dynamic dichotomy of loud, heavy and aggressive rock juxtaposed against softer and gentler music, drenched in an alternative rock
sound reminiscent of such alternative rock luminaries as The Bends
-era Radiohead
, Jeff Buckley
, Muse
, Silverchair
and "a handful of Australian Triple J
bands from the 90's." The album is also notable for its prominence of guitar solos and vocal harmonies, drawing comparisons to Queen
and The Darkness.
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
-nominated Australian rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band from Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. Originally the solo act of then 15-year old Thomas Rawle (lead vocals
Lead vocalist
The lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, primary songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
) in 2006, Papa Vs Pretty became its current three-piece band in 2008 with the addition of Rawle’s friends Angus Gardiner (bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
, backing vocals) and Tom Myers (drums, backing vocals).
Papa Vs Pretty’s musical style has evolved from the initial fusion of indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
and electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
of their first two EP's, to a more guitar-driven alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
sound from 2010's Heavy Harm
Heavy Harm
Heavy Harm is the third EP by Australian rock band Papa Vs Pretty. The album was recorded at Albert Studios in Sydney, Australia. It was produced by Australian musician and Something For Kate frontman Paul Dempsey in Sydney, and was mixed by Dempsey and Rick Will...
EP onwards. Papa Vs Pretty has gained notable attention in the Australian music scene for their "intimidatingly tight" and energetic live performances. Their 2010 tracks "Heavy Harm" and "Wrecking Ball", and 2011 singles "One Of The Animals", "Honey" and "Darkest Way" have received heavy rotation on Australia-wide radio station Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
.
Papa Vs Pretty's debut album, United In Isolation
United In Isolation
United In Isolation is the ARIA-nominated debut album by Australian rock band Papa Vs Pretty. It was released in Australia on 27 May 2011 through Peace & Riot/EMI. The album was recorded at BJB Studios and Oceanic Studios in Sydney, Australia, throughout January and February 2011...
, which was recorded in January 2011, was released on 27 May 2011 to positive reviews, including a 9 out of 10 rating from Triple J Magazine and a coveted Triple J Feature Album slot. The album was nominated for Rock Album of the Year at the 2011 25th Anniversary ARIA Music Awards
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
, and it has also been nominated for the 2011 J Award
J Award
The J Award is an award given by influential Australian youth radio station Triple J to Australian Album of the Year. It is judged by a panel of members of the music industry, led by Richard Kingsmill...
for Album of the Year.
Early years (2006–2007)
Thomas Rawle developed a strong interest in music from a young age and began playing the drums at age 4, the piano at age 6, and the guitar at age 12. Writing his own songs and composing music from the age of 7, Rawle had access to basic digital recording equipment and gear because his father used to be an audio engineer.In 2006, Rawle adopted the stage name Papa Vs Pretty to write, record, and perform his music under, creating songs which fused elements of electronica and indie rock. In 2007 he recorded and released the first EP under the name Papa Vs Pretty, The Presence, in which Rawle wrote all songs and performed all instruments. The originally untitled EP received its name 'The Presence' after Rawle delivered it to Sydney radio station FBi Radio
FBi Radio
FBi is an independent, not-for-profit community radio station in Sydney, Australia. FBi places a heavy emphasis on local alternative music: it has a policy that at least 50 per cent of its music content is to be Australian, of which at least half comes from Sydney musicians.FBi began 'test...
heralding it a 'present', and FBi mistakenly took that to be the EP's name. The song "Citizen No. 1" received air-play on FBi, and the EP was well received by the local music street press; Drum Media
Drum Media
Drum Media is a free weekly tabloid-sized music and lifestyle magazine established in 1990 and based in Sydney, Australia. It is distributed throughout Sydney, Wollongong, Newcastle and Canberra, and surrounding districts. A separate weekly issue began circulating in Perth in September 2006. The...
's Liam Casey praised it saying "May god strike me down if this isn’t the best thing I’ve heard this year".
Papa vs. Pretty and From The Bunker (2008-2009)
In late 2007, Rawle invited friends Angus Gardiner and Tom Myers to join him as fulltime members, playing bass guitar and drums, respectively, and Papa VS Pretty became a three-piece band. Their first gigs together happened in 2008 and were played in local Sydney nightclubs and venues such as Candy’s Apartment, World Bar, Oxford Arts Factory, and The Factory Theatre. During this time they played sets at the 2008 Peats Ridge Festival, the 2008 Parklife Festival, and in early 2009 they played the Laneway Festival and also released their self-titled second EP, Papa Vs. Pretty. This EP was positively received by critics in reviews, described as having "pretty fantastic songs", and being both "haunting and captivating .... chaotic and compelling". An accompanying music video was filmed for the song "Ballad", directed by Ben Wilson and featuring Australian actress Sophie Lowe.In late 2009, via online video sharing website Vimeo
Vimeo
Vimeo is a video-sharing website on which users can upload, share, and view videos. It was founded by Zach Klein and Jake Lodwick in November 2004...
, the band released an eight-part video series of live studio performances filmed in their rehearsal space, entitled From The Bunker. Filmed and produced entirely by the band and director Ben Wilson, From The Bunker showcased previously unreleased original songs, and a cover version of Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
's Purple Rain
Purple Rain (song)
"Purple Rain" is a power ballad by Prince and The Revolution. It is the title track from the 1984 album of the same name, which in turn is the soundtrack album for the 1984 film of the same name, and was released as the third single from that album. The song is a combination of rock, pop, gospel,...
. The song "Piper" was featured on Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
radio station, and was then later re-recorded to be released on their Heavy Harm EP in 2010.
Heavy Harm and United In Isolation (2010-present)
By 2010 Papa VS Pretty had signed on to Peace & Riot, a new subsidiary label formed in 2010 by major record label EMIEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
Australia. The band’s third studio EP Heavy Harm
Heavy Harm
Heavy Harm is the third EP by Australian rock band Papa Vs Pretty. The album was recorded at Albert Studios in Sydney, Australia. It was produced by Australian musician and Something For Kate frontman Paul Dempsey in Sydney, and was mixed by Dempsey and Rick Will...
, released 13 August 2010, was the first ever release for Peace & Riot. Recorded at Sydney’s Albert Studios in early 2010, the EP was produced by Australian musician and Something For Kate
Something for Kate
Something for Kate are a rock band from Melbourne, Australia. Members include songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Paul Dempsey, drummer Clint Hyndman and bassist Stephanie Ashworth...
frontman Paul Dempsey
Paul Dempsey
Paul Dempsey is the lead singer, guitarist and principal songwriter of Australian rock group Something for Kate. Paul was a founding member of the band, and in August 2009 released his first solo album, Everything Is True whilst continuing his work with Something for Kate...
, and was mixed by Dempsey and Rick Will. The first single, title-track "Heavy Harm", was added to national rotation on Triple J radio station in June 2010, and in July, an animated music video for the song by Melbourne design studio We Are Synapse was released online, and rotated on Rage
Rage (TV program)
Rage is a popular all-night Australian music video program broadcast on ABC1 on Friday nights, Saturday mornings and Saturday nights. It was first screened on the weekend of Friday, 17 April 1987. With Soul Train no longer being produced, it is the oldest music television program currently still...
and Channel V
Channel V Australia
Channel [V] Australia is an Australian subscription television music channel, and also the newest Channel [V] channel. It is available on Foxtel, Optus TV and Austar satellite and cable services...
. The Heavy Harm EP was officially launched at a sold-out headline show at Sydney's Spectrum on 28 August, where the band also debuted some new songs live. The band toured heavily during 2010 in support of Heavy Harm, embarking on a national tour supporting Paul Dempsey for his Burning Leaves tour in April 2010, as well as opening for Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning French band Phoenix
Phoenix (band)
Phoenix is a Grammy Award winning French indie rock band from Versailles, founded by Thomas Mars, Deck d'Arcy, Christian Mazzalai and Laurent Brancowitz.-Formation and early years:...
at the Luna Park Sydney Big Top in March, and Silversun Pickups
Silversun Pickups
Silversun Pickups is an alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2002. The band comprises Brian Aubert, Nikki Monninger, Christopher Guanlao, and Joe Lester....
at their Melbourne headline show in September. In a July 2010 interview with FBi Radio
FBi Radio
FBi is an independent, not-for-profit community radio station in Sydney, Australia. FBi places a heavy emphasis on local alternative music: it has a policy that at least 50 per cent of its music content is to be Australian, of which at least half comes from Sydney musicians.FBi began 'test...
, the band revealed that they were currently writing their debut album, tentatively set for a 2011 release. After capping off the year performing at Peats Ridge Festival
Peats Ridge Festival
Peats Ridge Festival is a sustainable arts and music festival, held in Glenworth Valley, Peats Ridge, 1 hour north of Sydney and 90mins drive from Newcastle, New South Wales. Established in 2004, one year after the passing of the founder of the Glenworth Valley Horse Riding facility, the Festival...
2010 and Pyramid Rock Festival
Pyramid Rock Festival
The Pyramid Rock Festival is a New Year's Eve camp-out rock music festival at Pyramid Rock, Phillip Island, Victoria, Australia.Beginning in 2004, it runs over two nights with two stages - the Main Stage, and the Pharaoh's Annex...
2010, the band eventually entered BJB Studios in Sydney in January 2011 to begin the recording of their debut album. Throughout January they also performed at the Sydney Big Day Out
Big Day Out
The Big Day Out is an annual music festival held in several cities in Australia and New Zealand in late January. It started in Sydney in 1992, spread to Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth by 1993, with the Gold Coast and Auckland joining in 1994...
Festival 2011, as well as opening for a string of Hot Hot Heat
Hot Hot Heat
Hot Hot Heat is a Canadian indie rock band formed in 1999 from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.-Career:Dustin Hawthorne and Steve Bays had been in many different bands together since 1995 and met Hawley in 1998. In 1999, Hawley bought a Juno 6 keyboard and asked Bays to try playing it, as no one...
and Birds of Tokyo
Birds of Tokyo
Birds of Tokyo is a four-piece alternative rock band from Perth, Western Australia. Their debut album Day One, gained them domestic success with it reaching No. 3 on the AIR Independent Album charts, spending a total of 36 consecutive weeks in the top 10.In 2008, the band released Universes,...
shows.
On 20 March 2011 the first-single from their debut album United In Isolation
United In Isolation
United In Isolation is the ARIA-nominated debut album by Australian rock band Papa Vs Pretty. It was released in Australia on 27 May 2011 through Peace & Riot/EMI. The album was recorded at BJB Studios and Oceanic Studios in Sydney, Australia, throughout January and February 2011...
, "One Of The Animals", had its radio premiere on Triple J with Richard Kingsmill
Richard Kingsmill
Richard "The King" Kingsmill is an Australian radio announcer and music journalist.He is best known for his work at national youth broadcaster triple j. His career at the station started in 1988 as a producer for station presenters George Wayne, Tracee Hutchison and Tim Ritchie...
. This was followed up with the official announcement of the album title and a confirmed release date for 27 May 2011. Produced and engineered by five time ARIA Award
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
winning producer Paul McKercher and mixed by Scott Horscroft, the album was released through Peace & Riot/EMI. Thomas Rawle has described United In Isolation as "almost a concept album", with a main lyrical "focal point". "In a very broad sense, it's about human nature's desire to always be coupled with another, and how love can sometimes be a vessel of selfishness. It's almost like animal behaviour, and I guess we are animals, just with language and ego". Various bonus, deluxe and limited editions of the album have been released, including the United in Isolation (Deluxe Edition) iTunes LP
ITunes LP
iTunes LP is a format for interactive album artwork introduced by Apple Inc. on the 9 September 2009. It is similar to the CMX format being developed by the 4 major record labels, and operates within the iTunes 9 software, allowing the user to view multimedia elements alongside the music...
featuring two bonus tracks and interactive artwork hand-drawn by Thomas Rawle, as well as a bonus limited edition 7 track EP titled Memoirs From A Bedroom: Issue 1, featuring previously unreleased new Papa Vs Pretty songs. The album has been met with positive reviews, with the mature songwriting and production in particular praised. Awarded a 9 out of 10 by Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
Magazine, it was also awarded the coveted Triple J Feature Album spot for the week beginning 30 May 2011. The album was released on 27 May 2011. It marks the first official release of a full-length Papa Vs Pretty album, despite songwriter Tom Rawle having written and produced approximately 30 albums worth of material at home in his bedroom, which he hopes to release eventually. The limited edition Memoirs From A Bedroom: Issue 1 EP, which was available alongside United In Isolation pre-orders from select distributors, is the first effort to release some of the band's vast amount of unreleased music.
Throughout 2011 Papa Vs Pretty have toured Australia extensively on their own album launch headline tour, and also touring with the Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs....
and The Vines
The Vines
https://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Special:LandingCheck?landing_page=L11_1121_WMUK_Jimmy_DDOptimised&utm_medium=sitenotice&utm_campaign=C11_1121_WMUK_DDvOneOff&utm_source=B11_1121_WMUK_Jimmy&language=en&country=GB...
throughout August and September. The band has also contributed to The Wiggles
The Wiggles
The Wiggles are a children's group formed in Sydney, Australia in 1991. Their original members were Anthony Field, Phillip Wilcher, Murray Cook, Greg Page, and Jeff Fatt. Wilcher left the group after their first album...
tribute cover album, Re-Wiggled: A Tribute to The Wiggles, alongside other Australian artists such as The Living End
The Living End
The Living End are an Australian rock band from Melbourne, Victoria, formed in 1994. The current lineup consists of Chris Cheney , Scott Owen and Andy Strachan...
, Jebediah
Jebediah
Jebediah is an Australian alternative rock band formed in 1994 in Perth, Western Australia. The group consists of vocalist and guitarist Kevin Mitchell, guitarist Chris Daymond, bassist Vanessa Thornton, and Kevin's brother Brett Mitchell on drums...
, Sarah Blasko
Sarah Blasko
Sarah Elizabeth Blaskow , is an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. After fronting Sydney-based band Acquiesce from the mid-1990s, Blasko developed her solo career from 2002. In 2007, she won the 'Best Pop Release' for What the Sea Wants, the Sea Will Have at the ARIA Music Awards, which...
, Frenzal Rhomb
Frenzal Rhomb
Frenzal Rhomb are an Australian punk rock band which formed in 1992 with mainstay Jason Whalley on lead vocals and rhythm guitar. In 1996, Lindsay McDougall joined the line-up on lead guitar and backing vocals. Two of the group's albums have peaked into the top 20 on the ARIA Albums Chart, A...
, covering the track "Can You (Point your Fingers and do the Twist?)". On 12 October 2011 it was announced that Papa Vs Pretty's album United in Isolation had been nominated for the Rock Album of the Year category for the 2011 25th Anniversary ARIA Music Awards
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
, to be held on 27 November. The album is also nominated for the 2011 Triple J J Award
J Award
The J Award is an award given by influential Australian youth radio station Triple J to Australian Album of the Year. It is judged by a panel of members of the music industry, led by Richard Kingsmill...
for Album of the Year.
Musical style
Papa Vs Pretty primarily play alternative rockAlternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
music, but have also integrated elements of grunge
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
, hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
, funk rock
Funk rock
Funk rock is a music genre that fuses funk and rock elements. Its earliest incarnation was heard in the late 1960s through the mid-1970s by acts such as the Jimi Hendrix Experience , Eric Burdon and War, Trapeze, Parliament-Funkadelic, Betty Davis and Mother's Finest. The 1990s were known for acts...
, and electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
in the past. Lyrically, Papa Vs Pretty songs have been described as often dealing with themes of disenfranchisement, lost love, human emotions, technology, and the state of the world, however Rawle, whilst accepting these as legitimate interpretations of his lyrics, says he's never thought that much about what he writes.
Recognisable characteristics of many Papa Vs Pretty songs include the focus on melodic backing vocal harmonies, lead vocalist Thomas Rawle’s falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
voice, and Rawle’s intricate lead guitar work. As a guitarist, Rawle cites other guitarists such as Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen
Edward Lodewijk "Eddie" Van Halen is a Dutch-American guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
, Jimmy Page
Jimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
and Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
as inspirations, and has been himself described as a "shredder
Shred guitar
Shred guitar or shredding is lead electric guitar playing that relies heavily on fast guitar solos. While some critics argue that shred guitar is associated with "... sweep-picked arpeggios, diminished and harmonic minor scales, finger-tapping and ... whammy-bar abuse", several guitar...
" and one for "grungy guitar riffs". As a whole, the band cite that they are influenced by many artists from a diverse range of genres, including Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
, Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, United States, formed in 1997. The band's line-up has always included founding member Josh Homme , with the current line-up including longtime members Troy Van Leeuwen and Joey Castillo , alongside Michael Shuman and...
, Daft Punk
Daft Punk
Daft Punk are an electronic music duo consisting of French musicians Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter . Daft Punk reached significant popularity in the late 1990s house movement in France and met with continued success in the years following, combining elements of house with synthpop...
, Aphex Twin
Aphex Twin
Richard David James , best known under the pseudonym Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born electronic musician and composer described as "the most inventive and influential figure in contemporary electronic music"...
, The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
, The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta is a Grammy award winning American progressive rock band from El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2001 by guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López and vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, the band incorporates various influences including progressive rock, krautrock, jazz fusion, Latin American music, and...
, At The Drive-In
At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In was an American rock band from El Paso, Texas, considered part of the post-hardcore genre and active from 1993 to 2001. They were known for their extremely energetic stage shows which hearkened back to the 1980s hardcore scene...
, Incubus
Incubus (band)
Incubus is an American rock band from Calabasas, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist Brandon Boyd, lead guitarist Mike Einziger, and drummer Jose Pasillas while enrolled in high school and later expanded to include bassist Alex "Dirk Lance" Katunich, and Gavin "DJ Lyfe" Koppell;...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, The Drones
The Drones
The Drones are an Australian rock group who rose to prominence during the early 2000s. They are influenced by a variety of bands and soloists including Neil Young, The Velvet Underground, Bad Brains, Suicide, Green on Red, The Birthday Party, Van Morrison, Bob Dylan and Nina Simone.- The Sound...
, Silverchair
Silverchair
Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Merewether, Newcastle with the line-up of Ben Gillies on drums, Chris Joannou on bass guitar and Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars. The group got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo...
, Jack White
Jack White (musician)
Jack White , often credited as Jack White III, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and occasional actor...
, Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, Grizzly Bear
Grizzly Bear (band)
Grizzly Bear is a Brooklyn-based indie rock band, composed of Edward Droste , Daniel Rossen , Chris Taylor and Christopher Bear . The band employs traditional and electronic instruments...
, Dinosaur Jr
Dinosaur Jr
Dinosaur Jr. is an American alternative rock band formed in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1984. Originally called Dinosaur, prior to legal issues that forced the group to change their name, the band disbanded in 1997 until reuniting in 2005...
, Battles
Battles (band)
Battles is an American experimental rock group, founded in 2002 in New York City, comprising guitarists Ian Williams and Dave Konopka , and drummer John Stanier .-Biography:...
, Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
, Elliot Smith, Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, Talking Heads
Talking Heads
Talking Heads were an American New Wave and avant-garde band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991. The band comprised David Byrne, Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth and Jerry Harrison...
, Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, Pavement
Pavement (band)
Pavement is an American alternative rock band that formed in Stockton, California in 1989. In their career, they achieved a significant cult following, and they were called the best band of the 1990s by prominent music critics Robert Christgau and Stephen Thomas Erlewine...
, The Reels
The Reels
The Reels is an Australian rock/indie pop group which formed in Dubbo, New South Wales in 1976 and initially disbanded in 1991, they eventually reformed in 2007. Their 1981 song, "Quasimodo's Dream", was voted one of the Top 10 Australian songs of all time by a 100-member panel from Australasian...
, Roxy Music
Roxy Music
Roxy Music was a British art rock band formed in 1971 by Bryan Ferry, who became the group's lead vocalist and chief songwriter, and bassist Graham Simpson. The other members are Phil Manzanera , Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson . Former members include Brian Eno , and Eddie Jobson...
, Air, Vangelis
Vangelis
Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou is a Greek composer of electronic, progressive, ambient, jazz, pop rock and orchestral music, under the artist name Vangelis...
, and Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor who mastered numerous musical genres and is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century...
.
Papa Vs Pretty's musical style and sound has drawn wide-ranging comparisons to many different artists and genres throughout its evolution. Evolving dramatically since their conception, their earlier musical output has been described as much more experimental
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
, indie and electronic sounding, applying a "deconstructuralist ethic... to traditional song structures," and creating "impulsive and spontaneous compositions". Their second EP, Papa Vs. Pretty, evoked comparisons to early Muse
Muse (band)
Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard...
, Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
and R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
, and Silverchair
Silverchair
Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Merewether, Newcastle with the line-up of Ben Gillies on drums, Chris Joannou on bass guitar and Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars. The group got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo...
. 2010's Heavy Harm EP saw the band shift towards a more guitar-focused and raw stripped-back melody-centric approach, described as "frantic guitar rock", with a grunge and classic rock inspired sound mixed with elements of Okkervil River
Okkervil River
Okkervil River is an indie rock band from Austin, Texas. Formed in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya. They self-released their first album, Stars Too Small to Use, which led them to the South by Southwest music festival. After recording their first...
style folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
. Their 2011 debut album United In Isolation explored a dynamic dichotomy of loud, heavy and aggressive rock juxtaposed against softer and gentler music, drenched in an alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
sound reminiscent of such alternative rock luminaries as The Bends
The Bends
The Bends is the second studio album by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, released on 13 March 1995 by Parlophone. The Bends was produced by John Leckie at EMI's studios in London, and engineered by Nigel Godrich, who would go on to produce all future albums by the band...
-era Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
, Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
, Muse
Muse (band)
Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard...
, Silverchair
Silverchair
Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Merewether, Newcastle with the line-up of Ben Gillies on drums, Chris Joannou on bass guitar and Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars. The group got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo...
and "a handful of Australian Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
bands from the 90's." The album is also notable for its prominence of guitar solos and vocal harmonies, drawing comparisons to Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
and The Darkness.
Current members
- Thomas Rawle - vocals, guitars, keyboards, lyrics and primary songwriting duties
- Angus Gardiner - bass guitar, cello, backing vocals
- Tom Myers - drums, backing vocals
Extended Plays
- The Presence (2007)
- Papa Vs. Pretty (2009)
- Heavy HarmHeavy HarmHeavy Harm is the third EP by Australian rock band Papa Vs Pretty. The album was recorded at Albert Studios in Sydney, Australia. It was produced by Australian musician and Something For Kate frontman Paul Dempsey in Sydney, and was mixed by Dempsey and Rick Will...
(2010) - Memoirs From A Bedroom: Issue 1 (2011)