Combining groove-laden funk soul and Californian acoustic folk-rock, Dunedin-based American troubadour Julian Temple is set to release his band's new album tonight at Re:Fuel.
The album comes on the back of Temple spending a year and a-half living and performing in his native California.
''Most of this was written while I was back in California,'' Temple says while sipping a pint.
''Cayucus is the place that I'm from, a tiny little beach slum. A really cool little town, it's one of the last beach slums. Most places in California are mansions now, but this is still kind of bogan.
''It was written in this garage looking right on to the ocean, where I'd see the most beautiful sunsets.''
After spending a period playing five nights a week as a full-time musician, Temple returned to Dunedin and set about readying the new album.
Ceiling in the Sky was recorded at the University of Otago's Albany Street Studios by Mike Holland and produced by Temple's Dunedin bass player Paul McMillan as part of his work towards his PhD in music.
''Does he like him any less as a band-mate now?'' I jokingly ask.
Temple laughs.
''We've never worked with a producer before; it's always just been us as the band.
''It was nice. It was his project, and it was him who got us in the studio and it was through his PhD that we could do that: just having Paul on the other end of the microphone going, `I want you to sing that one with a little bit more'.''
And according to McMillian, there's a lot more everything on this record.
''There's a particular sound that Julian gets when he writes songs and when he plays guitar. It's very funky, with a great sense of rhythm. There's a bit of, I don't want to say expected sound, but there is; this band has a history.
"None of that's gone away, but we've just added more layers,'' he told me a few months ago in the lead up to the announcement of the album.
Title track Ceiling In the Sky is an early standout.
Riding a funk groove while Temple's breathy, gravelly voice whispers ''I heard you twice, the very first time'', moody electric guitar and Alex Vaatstra's violin gradually weave their way around until the song breaks out into a pumping and punkish straight beat.
During the outro, Temple lets loose, his vocal becoming a scream, letting his early influences of Pixies and Nirvana show a little.
''This one felt like we've experienced a lot together,'' Temple said trying to sum up the record.
''It's a strange feeling playing with this band, not like anything I've ever felt before. The times that I'm lucky enough to step back from the mike and I see these guys, it's powerful. This album still mystifies me. It makes me feel slightly uncomfortable, but it also makes me go wow, what is that?''
• The Julian Temple Band celebrate the release of Ceiling In the Sky tonight at Re:Fuel.
ENHANCED PERFORMANCEAmelia Murray, aka Fazerdaze, is bringing her full band to Dunedin next week for a show as part of Radio One's Club Night series. Mixing the transcendent textures and pastel one-tone imagery of dream pop with more propulsive rock riffs, Murray's songs first emerged as a string of bedroom recordings on her eponymous 2014 EP.
Now Murray leads a full band, adding depth and punch to her compositions and enhancing what was already one of my favourite records of last year.
The gigs
• Julian Temple Band Ceiling In The Sky album release show, with support from Owls, Ragged, The Violet-Ohs and special guests, tonight at Re:Fuel, Dunedin. Doors 8.30pm, $15 entry or $20 with a copy of the album.
• The 91Club presents Fazerdaze and Kane Strang with support from DJ Marina Sakimoto (Shunkan), Friday, October 23, Chick's Hotel, Port Chalmers. Free entry with a 2015 Radio Onecard, or $10 without. Doors 8.30pm. The Chick's Hotel Magic Bus leaves Countdown Central at 8.30pm, the University of Otago library at 8.35pm, returning to town after the show and is free to ride with your 2015 Radio Onecard.
