“…And We’re Off And Running”
28 April, 2008

Well the news is in…”Rattlin’ Bones” has hit the charts running, jumping in at #1. What can I say?…I’m pretty happy with that! Thanks so much to everyone who rushed out and grabbed themselves a copy…you took us straight to the top and we really appreciate it. I’m not sure if any of my previous albums have ever even made it into the charts, let alone anywhere near the top… seems like it may have been a wise decision to work with my incredibly talented wife, huh?

Seriously though, we are very proud of this record, and are extremely happy with the reception so far. It all seems so positive. Our new label, Liberation, have done an amazing job, and are so incredibly passionate about what they do, that we are truly inspired and excited about music again.

We are currently getting our shit together to head off on tour in a week or so. The tour this year is pretty extensive, covering as many regional areas as we can possibly manage to get to, and then hitting the major cities after that. For all those in the US, fear not, we will hopefully be heading your way later in the year, and are determined to give the new record a decent run in the States.

On the home front all is dandy…little Arlo is doing great. He has started walking at 9 months! Maybe I’m just a proud parent, but Goddamn, he seems extraordinarily clever to me!

Anyway folks, we’ll talk again soon.

Bye for now, Shane xx

PS: Happy Birthday to my little nephew Jack on April 29, and my sister Katy on April 30. Sorry we can’t be up there in QLD to see you guys, but we’ll make up for it by sending expensive gifts:)
 

Another Birth In The Family…
12 March, 2008

Hey everyone.

It’s with extreme pleasure and excitement that I pass on the news that the new album (a collaboration with Kasey) is set for release on April 19. “Rattlin’ Bones” is the first record that Kasey & I have made together, and we’re both very excited to be sharing it with the world very soon. We have been welcomed into a new label home at Liberation, the record company releasing the album, and we’re looking forward to a great year, with plenty of touring. All the relevant dates can be found in the ‘tour dates’ section on the new “Kasey & Shane” site (You can find the link on my home page).

Kase & I spent most of last year writing the songs, while we took some time off around the birth of our little boy, Arlo, who is almost 8 months now. We recorded the album ‘live’ in a total of 8 days in Sydney at Jimmy Barnes’ Freight Train Studios, with Nash producing, and some special friends of ours playing various instruments throughout the record. It was a whole lotta fun – probably the most fun I’ve ever had in the studio.

We’ve also made a new video for the first single, “Rattlin’ Bones”, and you should be seeing it soon on a TV near you.

We played the Port Fairy Folk Festival last weekend, and it was without doubt one of the best festival experiences I’ve ever had. We did two Kasey shows, and Bill Chambers and I also did our own show. The audiences were so great we didn’t want it to end. Truly amazing!

This weekend we head to WA for the West Coast Blues & Roots Festival, then next weekend sees The Lost Dogs make their first appearance at the East Coast Blues & Roots Festival in Byron Bay, with two shows (Sunday and Monday). These will probably be the last Lost Dogs performances for the year.

Hope you all dig the new record, and we’ll see you soon on tour.

Shane x
 

Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’
20 January, 2008

Hey folks.

Happy New Year. I hope everyone had a great holiday season.

We enjoyed a quiet Christmas at home this year, our first with little Arlo, which was very special. Talon was given more presents than he could humanly handle and loved every minute of it.

We took a week off from The Lost Dogs between Christmas and New Year as we were holed-up working in a studio in Sydney, but now we’re back at The Avoca for business as usual, with The Lost Dogs Sessions continuing on until February 21. We had some amazing guests at The Lost Dogs last year, and there’s still more to come, so keep your eyes peeled for news updates (probably on Kasey’s website, as I’m too slack to keep up with news updates on my sites).

The year has started up already with meetings, plans, recording, mixing, everything already getting underway for yet another round. Tamworth-time arrives soon, and we’ll again be braving the heat up there. 2008 sees The Lost Dogs make their debut in Tamworth, and as usual we’ll be doing Kasey’s show in the park on Friday 25. Then it’s onwards with a “work” year…we enjoyed our year off with the arrival of baby Arlo, but it’s time to get back to work! There may be a few major news developments on the horizon, so my advice is to keep your ears to the ground, ok? We’ll be touring quite a bit in 2008, so hopefully we’ll see you all in your respective parts of the country/world.

Until then…..Shane xx
 

Good News...
19 July, 2007

Hey everyone.

I come bearing good news! Kase, Talon and I have finally welcomed our new addition to the family. Beautiful baby boy ‘Arlo Ray Nicholson’ was born at 10:30am on Monday morning, weighing in at a whopping 9lb 10oz. Kase did an amazing job through a difficult labour, and mum and bub are both doing great. Talon is over the moon about having a little brother, and I’m the proudest new dad that ever walked the earth!

Thanks for all the good wishes.

Shane x
 

Billy, Don’t You Lose My Number….
4 February, 2007

Sorry it’s been so long between talks, guys.

Life is nice at the moment. We’ve been hanging around at home a lot since we stopped touring in December. Kasey is becoming more pregnant by the day. We’ve had a good, lengthy holiday and are just starting to venture out into society again. Of course we did the annual trip up to Tamworth in January, which was a blast - great beer-drinking weather this year, as always.

Things are starting to move along for the US release of Faith & Science. We’re still working over the details, but we’ll be sure to keep everyone over there informed of any news, release dates, tour dates, etc.

The acoustic Kasey tour kicks off this month in Bundaberg on 28 Feb. I’m really looking forward to it. Kasey, Bill (Chambers), and I will be sharing the stage each night, doing all the Kasey classics, plus maybe a few surprises. Bill and I will also open up the show together with a set of “who-knows-what”. I think Phil (Mo) has put the dates up in the Live Shows section for you all.

I’ve had a bit of a writing spurt of late and am about halfway through a new album. I’m not quite sure where it’s heading yet, but it’s becoming clear to me that it’s something pretty different from my last few records. It’s been a lot of fun…and I’m pleased my old guitar still has some songs left in it!

Anyway, that’s pretty much all for now. Talk soon.

Shane x


Some exciting news...
20 December, 2006

Hiya guys.

Firstly, some exciting news. Kasey and I are proud to announce that we’ll be welcoming a new addition to our family next July. We’re both incredibly happy, of course, and I just can’t wait to meet this little person. Whether it be a boy or a girl, I just hope it loves Neil Young and Bob Dylan.
So we’ll be looking forward to spending some time at home next year (for a change)………

There’s still a few other things happening, though, including the acoustic Qld theatre tour with Kasey and Bill Chambers, which we’re all pretty excited about. It should be loads of fun. Also, I’m currently working on songs for Album No.3, and am planning to get in the studio sometime next year. There’s talk of a US tour sometime, too, so keep your eyes peeled for dates if that’s your part of the world.

Lastly, I’d just like to thank everyone for a great year. Phil (Momo) for his constant upkeep of the official website - I appreciate your work immensely. Also Rhythmus for her moderating expertise and enlightening posts on the forum. Also anyone who enjoyed Faith & Science, or came to a show and left happy. Thankyou all so much. I look forward to bringing you more music very soon.

Have a happy and safe holiday season, guys.

Love Shane xx
 

Quiet Time After "The Quiet Tour"…
21 July, 2006

Well I'm back at home with the family for a little time off. ‘The Quiet Tour’ wrapped up in Byron Bay last Sunday, and Barb and I had a great time with everyone who managed to get along to one of the shows. We did 11 shows in 11 towns, and played over 180 songs, diving deep into the back-catalogue and dusting off some tunes that haven’t seen the light of day for quite a few years (and some that probably should have remained that way). The request spot was a great idea in theory, but I had a lot of trouble remembering some of those old songs you guys were calling out for. Thanks for testing my ability, though, it made for some funny moments. Thanks to all the tour managers: Chris Lee (Victoria), Greg Weaver (NSW) and Marshall Cullen (NSW/QLD). Thanks once again to Barb Griffin for her talents at the piano. Thanks also to all the support acts: Tom Cooney (QLD), Red Ghost (NSW) and Emily Ulman (VIC). Thanks to all at One Louder for doing all the boring stuff, and making it possible for me to do all the fun stuff. I hope everyone enjoyed the shows as much as I did. There’s a small video diary we made of the tour, too. You can see it here on the site, or on the myspace.

The next single from F&S is “Safe and Sound” including some new covers for b-sides. There’s a kinda Springsteen-y version of Del Amitri’s “Food For Songs”, and also a pseudo-country take on Cold Chisel’s “Cheap Wine”. I recorded it as part of a Cold Chisel tribute album a few years ago (my voice sounds so young it makes me laugh now).

I had a few people ask during the tour about “that unreleased ep” that I made a little while ago (it’s called “Exit Wounds” by the way). Just to let you all know, I’ve still got it sitting on ice in the studio, and some day soon I’ll get it out to you all. It’s just a matter of finding the right way, and waiting for the right time, to do it.

I’m looking forward to the upcoming shows with Bic Runga. It’s been a few years since I’ve done a show with her, and it’s so great to see her perform. There’s also some other dates in the pipeline, too, but all in due time people.

Anyway, let’s shake off this terrible winter and bring on the sun! Talk soon, guys.

Love Shane x



Countdown To Ignition…
2 June, 2006

Hey guys, I just wanted to pop in and say a big ‘thankyou’ for all waiting so long and being so patient for the new album. It’s finally released tomorrow, June 3, here in Australia. I’m really excited. As I’ve been saying in all the interviews so far, I’m really proud of this album.

The launch shows have been going great. Melbourne was a blast. The Northcote Social Club is a great room to play in. Sydney turned out great, too, although I battled very painful tonsillitis all night, but managed to make it through. Thanks to everyone who made it along to the shows. I’m looking forward to Brisbane next week. I haven’t played The Rev since PVS days when it was called the Chelsea, and I’m psyched to be doing a show back in hometown Brissie again.

Anyway, I’ll drop by in another week or so and fill you all in on what’s coming up next.

Take care, shane x.



•The State of Things...
14 May 2006

Things have been pretty busy of late. All the usual stuff that goes along with a new album: I spent about two and a half weeks travelling to all the major cities (and a few regional spots) doing lots of press interviews and radio performances. I Know What You Need was released at retail last week, which is exciting, because it means the album’s not too far away now, and I can’t wait for it to be in the stores. I get a huge feeling of relief when something I’ve been working on for quite a long time is actually released and not sitting on the shelf anymore. It’s kinda like I’m handing it over to all of you, and it doesn’t belong to me anymore.

We shot the video for single #2 a few weeks ago in Sydney at Fox Studios with director James Littlemore. You’ve probably seen some of his work before – remember the Speedstar video for “Unbreakable”? Very cool! It was a pretty wild experience: a massive sound stage, semi-trailers, industrial fans, smoke and lights, angle grinders, even a confetti machine! And then little old me in the middle of it all not knowing what was going on. I won’t tell you too much about it – you’ll see it for yourselves soon enough – but it was crazy!

Also been working up some more b-sides this week for the next single. It feels like I spend more time recording b-sides than actually making records – they never seem to end, and I’m not very good at planning ahead, so I always end up racing the calendar. Anyway, they’re almost done, and there might be a slight curveball in there this time, too.

Band rehearsals start getting serious this week for the launch shows. I’m really looking forward to these first few dates. It’s been so long since I’ve dragged a band around the country with me, I’m excited about being “loud” again. So the new band is a bunch of very nice chaps from Sydney: Lee (drums), Richie (bass), Cam (guitar), Clayton (keys), and myself. A five-piece! Who’d have thought?

Tip for the month: everyone go out and find anything you can by Philadelphia-based songwriter Denison Witmer, especially the latest album ‘Are You A Dreamer?’ I’ve only just become aware of him, and this record is currently the most played in my house. Unbelievable songs and a voice to match. Totally worth the effort.

Ok, until next time.

S.N. xx



•Something looks different... have you changed your hair ????
28 March 2006

Hey everyone. It seems the holiday is over. Things have been getting progressively more intense over the last month or so. Photo shoot, video shoot, artwork, b-sides, band rehearsals, promo, all the usual pre-release stuff. I've been really enjoying the process again, though. I guess it's been a while since I've released an album and I'm feeling ready for it all again.

I went to Brisbane and we shot a video for the first single, "I Know What You Need". It rained on us all day, but we had fun. I think Mo has put up some on-set photos in the gallery. There might also be a small doco popping up of the video shoot sometime in the near future.

Nash and I finished a few b-sides for the 1st single last week. A couple of months ago I recorded a track for an Elliott Smith tribute album, but I liked it so much I wanted to release it myself. So it will now sit alongside a new Neil Young cover we did a few weeks ago, which features the exceptional talents of fiddle player Mick Albeck.

Live dates are starting to roll in for the coming year. I'm sure you guys will hear all about them as soon as they're confirmed. First up are the album launch shows in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. Dates are probably in the 'live shows' section. I've been rehearsing a new band in Sydney. It's an awesome, rocking set-up. Great bunch of guys and really strong players. I've been having so much fun bringing the new album to life with a really good band... and now I can't wait to get out on the road with it.

There's a brand new Shane Nicholson myspace thing going on. The link is here on the website. I'm still getting my head around the whole myspace concept - I don't quite understand it all yet. But everyone else in the world seems to know what it's all about, so be sure to check it out.

Finally, a big thanks to Mo for all his work on the 'new look' site. I love it. Looks great. Also, huge congratulations to Mo and his lovely wife Maree, on the arrival of their second child. Such great news. All the best guys.

That's about all for now. I'll be in touch soon.

Take care, Shane x



•End Of The Line (But The Start Of A New One)
17 January 2006

Happy New Year. I hope everyone had a good holiday season. Mine was very quiet and relaxing. Just hanging at home with family and friends. We went to Vanuatu for a week after New Year, which was great. Now it's back to work - time seems to stop for no one, especially me.

I'm sitting in the mastering suite at 301 in Sydney and the new album is about 4 hours from being completely finished... and out of my hands. I gotta say, I'm very proud of this record. It's taken a while to make and it's taken a lot out of me, but it's also been the most rewarding recording process I've ever undertaken. I think I almost sent Nash mad again (I know I'm sometimes not the easiest to work with) but it all seems worth it now. I guess to sum it up, I kinda see it as "It's A Movie" on steroids. In places a bit more exciting, in places a bit more sad, in places a bit more crazy. I'm feeling warm and fuzzy at the prospect of stepping out of the studio (finally) and doing some shows again. Thanks to everyone for being so patient. I know it's been a while between drinks. I hope you find it was worth the wait.

See ya soon.

Shane.. x

•BIG News
19 December 2005

Hey everyone.

Just dropping a note to share some good news with you all. Kasey and I got married on Saturday night. We decided a little while ago that we would just have a really small ceremony with only our family and closest friends. We also wanted it to be a surprise. So we invited everyone around to our place (and flew my family down from Brisbane), telling them all it was our engagement party. After they arrived we announced that we were actually going to get married. Then the celebrant arrived, we got married and then has a barbecue and a big party. Kase made all the food herself, too. It was really, really great. Just the way we wanted to do it - simple and fun. Kasey has written a bit about it on her website, too, if anyone wants to venture over there and check it out. Lots of girlie info about what she wore and stuff like that. There'll be some photos posted in a few days, too. Life is good. Let me tell ya..

Shane xx

•The Long And Winding Road
13 December 2005

Hi people.

The new album is just about done! We're halfway through mixing and should be finished by Christmas. It's sounding great and I'm really happy with the record. It's been a while in the making (sorry!) but I think it's all gonna be worth it. There's 12 songs, a couple of very cool guest appearances and a whole lot of blood and sweat on this album. It's been heaps of fun making it, too. Nash has been there with me every step of the way and I owe him a big thanks for helping me make this record. So, the next thing is handing it over to all you guys. I hope you dig it.

The end of the year is upon us. Warm weather, barbeques, summer storms, bad television. I hope everyone has a safe holiday season. I'm looking forward to seeing you all on the road somewhere next year. Merry Christmas.

Shane xx

•The Story Continues...
3 October 2005

Hey everyone. Just dropping you all a little note to say 'hi'. The new album's coming along nicely. We're in the finishing stages now. A bit more recording to do, then into mixing. It seems to have taken forever, but that's the way it goes, I guess. We took a short break from the studio and went to Darwin and Broome for some outdoor shows with Kasey, Troy, Bill, Shane Howard and Broome legends The Pigram Brothers. Had an absolute ball.

Did some salmon fishing, did the jumping crocodile tour on the Adelaide River, hired some beach buggies and managed to play some music, too. Nice working holiday.

We also did another Lost Dogs show up on the coast, which was fun as always. There'll probably be another one coming up sometime in the next few months, so (all you locals) keep your eyes peeled for details. I've also been doing some shows with Lloydie lately to promote his new album. There's a national tour coming up soon as well.

Anyway, that's it for now. Can't wait to share the new album with you all. Looking forward to Summer in Oz. Hope all is well in your respective parts of the world. Talk soon.

Shane... x

•Voice From The Deep
22 February 2005

Hey guys. Thought I'd drop by and let you all know what's been happening. Sorry it's been so long. We're still working away on the new record, and it's all been going really well. I'm so excited. we took a small break from the studio to go to Western Australia for the Kasey run of shows over there, which was fun as always. Holly Williams was also on tour (she did the US run with us last November), so it was good to see her play again, too. The shows were great fun and I had a total ball. Thanks to all who made it a pleasure for me. I'm quite enjoying the laid-back lifestyle of living up here on the Central Coast. Some days it's hard to decide if we should do some work on the album, or just go swimming, fishing, or sit around and just talk shit. But hopefully the record will be finished soon, and I can hand it over to all you guys. I can't wait. Hope all is well with everyone. Talk soon.

Shane xx.

•Long Time...
23 November 2004

Hey there... long time no speak. I just arrived back in Australia this morning from the US. Trying to outrun the jetlag and sadly losing the battle at the moment. The tour with Kasey went amazing... without doubt the most fun I've ever had on the road. All the shows were cool and touring with a bunch of my best friends in an awesome kick-ass tour bus was definitely the best way to travel around America. San Francisco, LA, Austin, Atlanta, Asheville, Washington D.C., Boston, Northampton, Philadelphia, New York, Milwaukee, Chicago and Saint Paul... every show was a highlight.

After the New York show I had to leave the tour-party for a few days and take a not-so-small detour on the way to Milwaukee and fly into Kansas City for a show at The Hurricane. Thanks so much to everyone at 97.3 The Planet for all their support and to Stan for looking after me while I was in town. A big thanks to Kasey and crew for making life on this tour so easy... yet again! Thanks to Glen Hannah for taking the stage with me every night, Nash for the sounds, Worm for the lights, Greg for keeping me organised and Jeff, BJ, Gary and Bill for making room for me on the bus.

So now we'll just be getting back to work on the new album, which we started tracking before we left for the US. Nash, Jeff and I got into the studio on the Central Coast with Mr Ian Jones (drums) and Mr Mike Mills (bass), and it all went great. I can't wait for the record to start taking more shape over the next few months... I'm very excited.

Hope all is well in your part of the world.


Shane... x




•The Calm Before The Storm
24 August 2004

Howdy people. I'm on holiday in Queensland for a few weeks, catching up with family, friends and my dog. Working on some last demo's for the new album, too. I can't wait to start recording in October. I was originally going to start the album in Los Angeles in September, but decided I needed some time off instead. It seems like life has been one big tour of late, so I just felt like some chill-time before heading back into the studio. We're going to record at the Beach House on the Central Coast again, the same place we did "It's A Movie". Not a bad place to spend the summer.

I hung out at Gigpiglet's house for a few days when we got back from the last US tour and we recorded a couple of songs in his lounge room studio. Just a piano, a few guitars, a few microphones and a few beers. It's a collection of songs that I wrote over the course of a few months in different parts of the world. They weren't ever really contenders for the new album, but I still felt there was something kinda special about them. They also had a certain thematic resonance when grouped together, so I decided to make them into an EP. I'm stoked with how it came out. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with it yet, though, but i'd love to get it out to you guys. We'll keep you informed.

Also, I'm heading back to the US in November for the tour with Kasey, which I'm really looking forward to. After that, I'll just put my head down and finish the album as quick as I can.

Hope life is good... wherever you are.

Talk soon,
Shane x

•Seattle
1 August 2004

So we're about to head back home to Australia. Just waiting at the airport to board our flight to LA, which then continues on to Sydney. Portland was great. I always love going there... it's such a beautiful city. The show at Fez Ballroom was quite special. Such a beautiful venue to play in and the audience was amazing... very warm and welcoming.

The LA show was at Genghis Cohen, which is a venue attached to a Chinese restaurant on Fairfax. Quite a neat set-up. The room itself is like playing in a small church, with wooden bench seats arranged in two rows, front to back. A bunch of LA friends of mine came down to the show too, which was great. We all had a few drinks and swapped a few stories. Unfortunately Gigpiglet and I had to leave Los Angeles just before midnight, as we had to get to San Francisco by the next morning to do a radio interview on KFOG. So we travelled all night... Gigpiglet driving, me asleep in the back seat and we arrived in San Francisco at 7:15am. We had just enough time to check in, shower, get changed and get to the station for the 8am live to air. It went really well, though. KFOG have been unbelievably supportive and I was glad to be able to make it there on this tour.

The show later that night at Cafe Du Nord was close to the best show of the tour. The crowd was just sensational. I was having so much fun I coulda played all night. Great venue. There was a baby-grand piano on stage and I just couldn't let it go to waste, so "Life On Mars" even got a rare dust off. This was the last of the Paul Kelly shows, which was a bit sad. I had a great time playing with him, as always, and enjoyed being able to hear his songs each night. Big thanks to Paul and Dan for making life easy for us on these shows.

Last night was the final show of the tour, at Sunset Tavern in Seattle, which went really great. Another fine crowd in a very cool bar. All in all a very enjoyable show. I gotta say, I've been so incredibly pleased with all the shows on this tour. The audiences have just been fantastic. Thanks for welcoming me into your cities. Thanks to all the Cabral people in New York, who made this tour possible. You guys have been amazing! Also, thanks again to Michael and all at Virt Records for everything. Finally, a big thanks to my tour manager Gigpiglet, who did a fine job of getting me to the airports and the shows on time, negotiating the freeways, flying the PA's, selling the CD's, handling the money, protecting the budget, drinking the riders, manning the phone and generally keeping me in order. Thanks dude, with you on the case I can comfortably be my usual scattered, unorganised self.

See you all again on tour in November.

Shane...x

•Portland, Oregon
27 July 2004

Hey guys. Gigpiglet and I are in Portland, Oregon today. We arrived late last night after two flights across the country. The tour's been going great since the last update. New York was a whole lotta fun as always. We had a night off there before the show, and our friends from Cabral took us to a huge party on The Intrepid (a retired aircraft carrier moored in NYC). Such brilliant fun. There was a huge marquee erected on the flight deck, and some very cool DJ's kept everyone dancing all night, right where fighter jets have landed and taken off. It was all very surreal. We tried to be sensible though, and left about 1am to get some sleep before the show the next day, but the thing with NY is, there's always something to distract you on your way home, and we ended up slipping into about 3 more bars on the way back to the hotel.

Anyway, the show at The Mercury Lounge went really well. Very cool room and a nice crowd. We had an early flight to Pittsburgh the next day, so I had the (almost never) bright idea of staying awake all night and going straight to the airport. So stupid. This is never fun the next morning. I had a radio interview at WYEP, and a show at Club Cafe later that night. Club Cafe was an amazing place, and the staff were unreal. They looked after us so well. The crowd were fantastic and I had a blast, even in my near delirious state. I'm definitely coming back to play for you guys again.

Then we flew out to Chicago for the next Paul Kelly show at Schubas, which was cool. Another nice crowd in another nice room. I'm so loving the US audiences. Very warm.

Next day drove up to Milwaukee for a radio interview at WUWM, and then did a two-day journey down to Knoxville, Tennessee. The show at Barleys Taproom was a lot of fun. Thanks to all you guys who came out on a rainy Sunday night. I had a great time and y'all are the nicest folk around.

Yesterday we flew up here to Portland (via Chicago), which took all day, but I read a new book (John Grisham's "Bleachers" ... quite good) and slept a bit. Another PK show tonight at Fez Ballroom, then down to LA tomorrow, followed by San Francisco and Seattle.

Looking forward to getting back home next week and catching up with all the Aussie crew again.

Later .... SN xo

•NYC
19 July 2004

Hey guys. I'm in New York. Just arrived here today. The tour's going really great so far. We started in Washington D.C. at IOTA Club and Cafe, which was a cool little room. Reminded me a bit of The Hopetoun or a smaller version of The Zoo.

Then we went up to New Haven... did an instore at Exile On Main St, which is an awesome record store run by an awesome bunch of people. They really looked after me and we had a great time. Then we went for some of New Haven's famous pizza with our new friends from "The Shellye Valauskas Experience" and then did the show at Cafe Nine. And what can I say ? It was unreal. One of the coolest pubs I've seen in a while, and one of the warmest crowds I've played to in ages. I had such a good time. Dean and Shellye (from "T.S.V.E") both joined me onstage throughout the show to help out on a few songs, which was very cool. The crowd were amazing and me feel totally at home. Can't wait to come back and play for y'all.

Then we headed up to Boston for the show at Club Passim with New York singer / songwriter Antje Duvekot (who was really amazing by the way!). The room was great and comes with a whole lot of folk music history dating back more than forty years. The show was great fun and Antje even got me up with her for a song in the encore.

Then we drove down to Delaware and stayed with some friends for a few days. We had a day off on Saturday and drove to the Jersey shore to see Atlantic City.

Last night was the Philadelphia show, the first of the Paul Kelly supports, at Tin Angel. Beautiful room. Nice audience. And Mr. Kelly was incredible as usual. We meet up again for another show together in Chicago in a few days.

The New York show at The Mercury Lounge is tomorrow night, so that gives us a night off tonight in Manhattan. Which means I gotta run... lots to do. Later...

Shane x

•One Long Tour Deserves Another...
8 July 2004

Well, sadly, the Lloydie tour has come to an end. It was a pretty hectic jaunt around the country, but we all had an awesome time. The band and crew managed to become a nice little semi-functional family unit over the course of six weeks, and this was probably the most enjoyable tour I've ever done with Alex.

Also, I meant to thank all the folks at AJ Hackett Bungy in Cairns in my last diary entry. Ian and I had a great time jumping off your bridge. We'll definitely be seeing you next time we're up your way.

I'm heading back to the U.S. on Saturday with my good friend and tour manager, Gigpiglet. The tour kicks off in Washington D.C. then continues on around the country for about three weeks. There's a few headline shows and a few with (one of my idols) Paul Kelly. Well wicked.

I also want to make special mention of Kenny and all at Cabral, who are making this tour possible. Thanks heaps, guys.

Anyway, I'll speak to you all next week from the other side of the world.

Shane x.

•Touring
8 June 2004

Hey guys. Hope all is well in your respective parts of the world. I thought I'd drop by and fill you all in on the latest...

Well, we're about a week or so into the Lloydie tour of Oz, and it's going great so far. We started in Darwin, then went to Cairns, Townsville, Magnetic Island, Mackay, Rockhampton, Hervey Bay, and now have a few days off in Brisbane. The shows have been great fun so far. I also did a few opening slots in North Queensland which was cool. We've still got a long way to go, finishing up in Perth in about 4 weeks time.

For everyone reading in the US, there's possible good news on the horizon: it looks like I may be heading over there a couple more times this year for a bunch of live shows. Nothing's locked in stone as yet, but it all looks promising... so I've got my fingers crossed.

As for the new album, it's almost completely written and I should start recording in LA sometime in August if everything goes according to plan. Then I'll come back and finish it in Australia. I hope to have it all done by Christmas, and then hand it over to you all early next year. I'm really excited with the new songs, and can't wait to get started on making a new album... finally!

Talk soon. Take care people.

Shane. xo




•New York, New York
5th April 2004

Hi guys, just a quick hello from Manhattan... this city is awesome!

Everything's going really great over here. Totally loving it. I'm gonna send through some of the tour diary to Mo in the next few days, so you can all see what's been going on. We've been travelling all over the place, having a ball. Gotta run though, so much to see...

Talk soon,

S.N.