The newest album from Rockhampton natives Busby Marou is an ode to their humble coastal beginnings, recorded in part on Great Keppel Island where the duo’s music first took root.
“The album was written over a course of close to two years now,” Tom Busby says, “but we always have this connection back to Great Keppel Island because it's where the melody started when we went over there to write and play and jam in front of our fans.
“Then we'd go away to the studio to write and do some recording, and then we'd come back and test some more songs out around campfires with mates having a few beers. That's always been the connection there.”
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‘Postcards From The Shell House’ is the third studio album from Busby Marou and sees the band's format whittled back down to a straight duo of Tom and Jeremy Marou.
Last year they debuted the album’s first single, ‘Getaway Car’, on a small, 7-show tour, all of which sold out. “We just wanted to get out and blow the cobwebs out so it took us by surprise,” Tom says of the tour.
“We had to make sure we were sounding good and doing our thing, but it was so much fun and got a great reaction.
“Just being away from everyone for that long has given people more time to get used to our old albums, so everyone was singing every word to every song we were playing. It was a great feeling and we're looking forward to this year.”
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Fans should also be looking forward to the coming year, as Busby Marou embark on a regional tour of Queensland.
The album will be launched in Rockhampton and as a regional act themselves, Tom says it’s important to both he and Jeremy they continue to play shows outside the capital cities. “It's our bread and butter,” he says.
“A lot of big bands miss the regional places and I think that hurts them in the long run because they can play out all the capital cities but they struggle in the little places because they haven't been going there regularly.
"It is very important to us, particularly playing our big launch in Rocky. It's going to be massive I reckon, I think up to one or two thousand; that’s a regional town and we don’t get that many in Brisbane.”
Metropolitan fans needn’t fret though, as Busby Marou have plans to take ‘Postcards From The Shell House’ on a national tour once it hits the airwaves. “Absolutely, from here on in it's going to be a crazy year for touring,” Tom says.
“I think once we get the album out there, there will be some new announcements of big, capital city dates and plenty more regional runs all through the country, so we're not missing out any towns this time around.”
‘Postcards From The Shell House’ is available now. Busby Marou play Sea N Sound Festival (Sunshine Coast) 10 June.
Busby Marou Shows
Sat 18 Feb - Great Western Hotel (Rockhampton)23-25 Feb - Reef Casino (Cairns)
Thu 2 Mar - Mt Pleasant Tavern (Mackay)
Fri 3 Mar - Magnums (Airlie Beach)
Sat 4 Mar - Dalrymples (Townsville)
Thu 9 Mar - The Spotted Cow (Toowoomba)
Fri 10 Mar - Wharf Tavern (Mooloolaba)
Sat 11 Mar - Bay Central Hotel (Hervey Bay)
