Photo Credit – Jacob Turnbull
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“There’s something infectious about their sound; it’s happy, it’s relaxed and a little bit cheeky.” – Pilerats
New Zealand’s indie sludge-pop rockers Soaked Oats are on a high after a massively successful summer of Australia and New Zealand touring and alternative radio chart-topping success following the release of latest singles ‘Driftworld’ and ‘
Not only do the boys have a new EP in the wings, but today they announce their landmark-signing to Australian record label Dot Dash. With label mates of high indie calibre as Methyl Ethel, Carla Geneve, Gabriella Cohen and Total Giovanni, this signing marks a huge career step for the band. All that hard work, endless touring and careful honing of the band’s sonic and visual aesthetic have paid off!
Originally formed as a label for Australian artists only, Dot Dash / Remote Control Records co-owner Harvey Saward commented on the addition of a New Zealand band to the roster. “In the fine tradition of Mother Goose’s Baked Bean song, Sharon O’Neil and the pavlova; it seemed only right for an Aussie label to claim another golden Kiwi as our own. Joking! We saw this band play live in Melbourne a couple of times and alongside the new recordings we believe these young chaps have amazing potential“.
The new single ‘Coming Up’ brings the wistful self-examinations within Soaked Oats’ lyrics to the fore, drawing the listener into a reflective, nostalgic soundscape. Paired with a video directed by Jake Munro (Avantdale Bowling Club, Yukon Era), the flickering black-and-white film depicts the boy’s adventures during their travels in a 34 foot 1980’s R.V. they called home for their 10 week, 20 thousand mile, D.I.Y U.S. tour in 2018. The video transports us through both rural and suburban America. We witness caravan parks, waterfalls and underground gig venues, following the boys on their travels through the grainy lens of nostalgia and longing for a time now passed.
Speaking on new single ‘Coming Up’, lead singer/songwriter Oscar Mein says, “I had just written the first half of the lyrics as a poem. I was trying to personify a low morning in the immediate surroundings of a bedroom. Henry sent through a demo he had done titled ‘coming up from behind’, and I started playing around with applying the poem to the song while working within the title he had given it. I wrote the last few lines in a more positive headspace with Tom Bell at Chicks Hotel where we recorded it. Tom Healy added a bunch of nice stuff to this song, and it wouldn’t be what it is without him, especially that acoustic guitar that chimes through when we get grooving and the synth parts too, plus a lot of other tasty bits. The cover photo is an image I took of my close friend Louis. He’s a very talented poet who also writes about crappy mornings sometimes, often after he has just woken up.”
‘Coming Up’ was recorded in Dunedin by Tom Bell at the iconic Chicks Hotel in Port Chalmers. The track was produced in Auckland at Paquin Studios (The Lab) by Tom Healy (Tiny Ruins, Miss June, Finn Andrews) and Soaked Oats. ‘Coming Up’ is accompanied by a music video shot and directed, once again, by Jake Munro (Avantdale Bowling Club, Marlin’s Dreaming, Yukon Era), who shot the video on location as the touring adventures unfurled in the U.S.
The band is heading to The Great Escape, the UK’s largest showcase for up-and-coming bands held in Brighton, May 9-11. The boys are gracing the Horatios stage with their distinctive sludge pop sound on Friday the 10th of May at 12:30 pm, followed by an evening set at The Hope and Ruin stage, 9:00 pm on Saturday the 11th of May.
Once they’ve finished blowing Brighton away, Soaked Oats will be playing a London show on Monday, May 13th at the east London venue, Servant Jazz Quarters.
To celebrate the release of Sludge Pop, Soaked Oats will be playing both Australian and New Zealand tours. Dates for these shows below.
Soaked Oats Sludge Pop Release Tour
UK, Australia & New Zealand
Friday May 10 12.30pm – Horatios – The Great Escape, Brighton UK
Saturday May 11 9.00pm – The Hope and Ruin- The Great Escape, Brighton UK
Monday May 13 – Servant’s Jazz Quarters, East London UK
Saturday June 22 – Winter Festival, Queenstown
Wednesday June 26 – The Bearded Lady, Brisbane
Friday June 28 – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney
Saturday June 29 – Grace Darling Hotel, Melbourne
Friday July 5 – Totara St – Mount Maunganui
Saturday July 6 – Galatos – Auckland
Thursday July 11, San Fran – Wellington
Saturday July 13, Blue Smoke – Christchurch
Thursday July 18, The Cook – Dunedin
Calling all New Zealand music enthusiasts, travellers or fans of Soaked Oats abroad. Come and enjoy Soaked Oat’s penchant for joyous songwriting and high energy shows!
UK Tickets available here
Tickets for AU / NZ on sale soon – check https://www.facebook.
“If you said they sounded like Mac DeMarco cruising around
the South Island and playing loose pop in the back
of a Britz camper you wouldn’t be far off.”–Vice Noisey
Soaked Oats are a young four-piece band that formed in Dunedin, New Zealand who have been described as “a southern stew of Kevin Morby and LCD Soundsystem with a good shake of Mac DeMarco“.
Their latest singles include ‘Driftworld’ and ‘
After a solid 18 months touring NZ, Australia and the U.S, Soaked Oats are making their inaugural trip to the motherland in May to perform at the UK’s well-established music festival, The Great Escape.
Since forming in early 2017, the band have come to notoriety for writing songs about stone fruit (‘Avocado Aficionado’, ‘I’m a Peach’). As well as touring prolifically, the band has released three EPs in their short existence. Tour Supports have included: Tiny Ruins (NZ) and Hockey Dad (AU).
The band is made up of lead vocalist Oscar Mein who scribes the smart, witty and thoughtful observations on life. And fruit. Don’t forget the fruit. Guitarist, Henry Francis and his amazing pedal-board are on the noble path to tone mastery, making the instrument sound like it was made by unicorns. Rhythm section Max Holmes (bass) and Conor Feehly (drums) provide the backbone, the funk and keep the party going.
Check out Soaked Oats on:
Instagram | Facebook | Bandcam
“Bold colours and dancing beats cut nicely through the grizzly cold of the NZ winter, warming the bones with relevant words and pop/rock’n’roll rhythms.” – NZ Musician
