Australian indie stalwarts, Little Birdy return to the road to celebrate the 21st anniversary of their debut album, 'BigBigLove'.
The pop-rock trio from Perth's tour commences this weekend in Brisbane and Gold Coast, before heading to Adelaide, Melbourne (x2 shows), Newcastle, Wollongong, Sydney, Perth and Dunsborough.The run of shows will see frontwoman Katy Steele reuniting with original members Simon Leach and Scott O'Donoghue to perform 'BigBigLove' (which debuted at #5 on the ARIA album charts) in its entirety followed by a second set featuring cuts from Little Birdy's other two records: 'Hollywood' (2006) and 'Confetti' (2009).
Nominated for Breakthrough Artist - Album and Best Rock Album at the 2005 ARIA Awards (as well as Paul McKercher receiving nominations for Engineer Of The Year and Producer Of The Year), the album also produced two tracks that landed in triple j's Hottest 100 for 2004: 'Beautiful To Me' at #8 and 'Tonight's The Night' at #78.
"These songs still feel just as real as they did when we first wrote them," Katy says. "Revisiting them as a band has been such a unique and healing experience. I can't wait to see our old fans down the front, singing along again – just like we did all those years ago."
Here, Simon 'Corky' Leach (guitar, synths) shares a few memories from the recording and touring 'BigBigLove'.
1: Recording at BigJesusBurger, Sydney
We were all pretty fresh from lonely Perth. Sydney was/ is a great experience, not only recording but culturally. We stayed there for about six weeks – if I remember correctly, we had a full schedule, day and night, even a teetotaller like me.2: Accident (Almost) On The Harbour Bridge
Got a night ride on a sports bike across Sydney Harbour Bridge with our producer Paul McKercher, Matty did too, nearly fell off.3: RIP The Zoo, Brisbane
This venue was always unique to me. It had a really good view from stage and vice versa. This was the first venue I thought of when we starting talking about a reunion. This venue would get hotter and hotter at night during Summer. Always a good vibe.4: Bullcreek, WA
After 'Relapse' got some attention, we demo recorded at Matty's [Chequer, drummer] home in Bullcreek. It was a great time creating with old friends like Eskimo Joel and the Debaser team.Everyday we would rock up in our classic or not so classic cars and spend the day perfecting, which included a lunch break at Nandos. Now I'm thinking about it, it was probably one of my favourite times in Little Birdy.
5: Brother's 21st
I remember hearing Katy sing at her brother Luke's 21st. That was probably the seed for our Little Birdy collaboration. I was fluent in rock band instruments, so I wanted to keep LB as a two piece and write and record as a duo.Then friendly Barney [Scott O'Donoghue] popped his head in after we played at the Rosemount gig and from there our Jebediah, Eskimo, End Of Fashion type friends recommended Matty for drums.
To mark this milestone, Little Birdy will release 'BigBigLove' on vinyl for the first time ever – a limited-edition 12" pressing featuring an extra 7" single with two exclusive bonus tracks, including an unreleased version of 'Beautiful To Me'.
Alongside 'Beautiful To Me' and 'Tonight's The Night', 'BigBigLove' also features 'Relapse', 'Come On Little Heartbreaker', 'Message To God', 'Excited' and 'Losing You'. "I never thought this thing would have a chapter two," Leach reflects.
"Playing onstage again, seeing Little Birdy devotees and a whole new generation singing along – it's surreal, and we're so grateful to be doing this again."
During their peak in the 2000s, Little Birdy supported the likes of REM, Bright Eyes, and Placebo, while featuring on festival stages at Big Day Out, Falls Festival, Groovin The Moo, and Homebake.
Little Birdy 2025 Tour Dates
Fri 20 Jun - The Princess Theatre (Brisbane)Sat 21 Jun - Miami Marketta (Gold Coast)
Thu 3 Jul - The Gov (Adelaide)
Fri 4 Jul - The Corner Hotel (Melbourne)
Sat 5 Jul - Chelsea Heights Hotel (Melbourne)
Thu 31 Jul - King Street Bandroom (Newcastle)
Fri 1 Aug - Waves (Wollongong)
Sat 2 Aug - Manning Bar (Sydney)
Fri 8 Aug - Astor Theatre (Perth)
Sat 9 Aug - Dunsborough Tavern (Dunsborough)
